Andrew has a PhD from King’s College London, and he serves as the teaching pastor at King’s Church London.
In his new book, Remaking the World: How 1776 Created the Post-Christian West, Andrew looks at 7 transformational events which took place in 1776, that paved the way for today’s post-Christian western culture. By understanding how those events influence the way people think today, Christians can more effectively share God’s truth in a post-Christian age.
In this episode, Andrew and I talk about the TV show Lost, along with discussions about philosophy, and history, how these things relate to Christian theology, mission, and practice, and how God’s Word and the hope of the gospel are particularly relevant to the Western mindset today.
Andrew Wilson – Romanticism & “Protestant Paganism”: Christianity in Relation to Western Culture –
Theology for the People
In this first episode of Season 4, Nick Cady speaks with pastor and author Andrew Wilson about why understanding western culture is important for Christian theology and mission.
Andrew has a PhD from King’s College London, and he serves as the teaching pastor at King’s Church London.
In his new book, Remaking the World: How 1776 Created the Post-Christian West, Andrew looks at 7 transformational events which took place in 1776, that paved the way for today’s post-Christian western culture. By understanding how those events influence the way people think today, Christians can more effectively share God’s truth in a post-Christian age.
Make sure to visit the Theology for the People website at nickcady.org
Several people over the years have asked me whether the virgin birth of Jesus is an essential element of the gospel message.
Emergent church leader Rob Bell, for example, asked the question of which parts of the biblical story of Jesus are essential to believe in order to be saved. He specifically questioned the necessity of belief in the virgin birth.
Additionally, this week I came across a discussion online of people arguing that instead of the original lyrics to the hymn Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, the line “offspring of the virgin’s womb” should be changed to “offspring of Mary’s womb.” The reason for this, they said, was that not saying Mary’s name, but instead identifying her according to her sexual status, takes away from her dignity. Therefore, we should say her name, and get rid of this “unnecessary” controversy regarding the virgin birth.
So, is the virgin birth essential to the gospel?
I believe it is. In this video, I explain the reasons why:
Continuing through the workshop that Aaron Salvato and I presented at this year’s Calvary Chapel pastors and leaders conference on the topic of Understanding Doubt and Deconstruction, here is Part 3, in which we delve into topics such as:
Recently I posted Part 1 of a workshop that Aaron Salvato and I presented at this year’s Calvary Chapel pastors and leaders conference on the topic of Understanding Doubt and Deconstruction.
The purpose of the workshop was to help equip Christian leaders to understand and engage those experiencing doubts or going through a process of deconstruction, in order to help strengthen their faith in Jesus and their trust in the Bible, so they might wholeheartedly embrace the gospel.
In Part 2 of this series, Aaron and I speak about the #deconstruction movement and different causes of deconstruction, including the influence of the Emergent Church movement in the early 2000’s.
Yet, some further explanation will provide helpful in understanding exactly how to understand the times we are living in and what to expect.
The Promise of Jesus’ Coming
In 2 Peter chapter 3, Peter the Apostle responds to those who, in his day, were asking the question: “Where is the promise of his coming?”
In other words, even 2000 years ago, in the First Century A.D., people were asking this same question: “Are we living in the End Times?” And the question, “If Jesus said he would return, why hasn’t he come back yet?”
Peter tells us that “the promise of Jesus’ coming” was predicted by the Old Testament Prophets, was promised by Jesus, and by the Apostles. In 2 Peter 3:7, he tells us that Jesus’ (second) coming will involve a day of judgment, and the destruction of the ungodly.
Peter says in 2 Peter 3:10-12 that Jesus’ (second) coming will be “the day of the Lord,” in which the Lord will return to Earth, and the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies (stars) will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and everything in it will be exposed.
And in 2 Peter 3:13 he says that this will not only be a day of judgment, but for those who are in Christ, it will be a day of salvation. It will be at this time that God’s promise will be fulfilled, of bringing about the New Heavens and New Earth in which righteousness dwells (see also Revelation 21:1-4)
The Day of the Lord
The “Day of the Lord” is a really important concept in the Old Testament, especially in the Prophets. It refers to a time in history when God intervenes in the happenings on Earth, in order to bring judgment on those who do evil, and salvation to those who belong to Him.
Throughout the Old Testament there were many smaller “days of the Lord,” when God intervened and brought judgment (such as the flood in the time of Noah, which Peter mentions in 2 Peter 3:6.
But all of these “smaller” “days of the Lord” were just previews and foreshadowings of THE Day of the Lord, which is still yet to come. And what Jesus told us is that THE Day of the Lord, AKA: “the day of God’s coming, will be the day when He returns to Earth in the Second Coming.
The “Parousia”
The phrase “Second Coming of Christ” is not found in the Bible, but instead, the word the Apostles used to speak about the Second Coming was the Greek word “word “”Parousia,” which means “presence,” or “appearing,” or “arrival.” More specifically, it might be translated as, “presence after absence.”
The word “Parousia” is used 13 times in the New Testament, and every time it is used it speaks of Jesus’ Second Coming.
In Jesus’ first coming, he came to live as one of us, as our substitute in life (a life of perfect obedience to God), and in death (as an atoning sacrifice for our sins). Further, he resurrected, in order to make a way for us to also be resurrected from death to life everlasting.
In Jesus’ Second Coming, he will come as king: judge, and ruler.
Are we living in the Last Days?
Peter tells us in 2 Peter 3:3 that in the last days, there will be scoffers who will say, “Where is the promise of His coming?” In other words, “If Jesus is really coming back, why hasn’t he come back yet?”
After all, modern readers of the Bible might ask the question, “If Peter and the early Christians, who lived nearly 2000 years ago, thought that they were living in the last days, then does that mean that they were wrong?” “And what does that mean for us today, especially if you say that we are living in the Last Days right now?”
It is true, that the early Christians believed that Jesus was going to return during their lifetimes, and that he did not, and that he still has not returned since that time. So, if those early Christians thought that they were living in the End Times, then how can we say that we are living in the End Times?
This requires an understanding of what the “End Times” is.
Are we living in the End Times? Yes. Was Peter living in the End Times when he wrote this letter? Also: Yes.
Here’s why: Because the “End Times” or “Last Days” is a PERIOD of time which BEGAN with Jesus’ ascension into Heaven, 40 days after his resurrection.
How do we know that? Because in Acts chapter 2, we read about how, on the day of Pentecost (10 days after Jesus’ ascension), the Holy Spirit was poured out on the 120 believers who were gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem. As a result, those people began to speak about God’s amazing works, in multiple languages, and the people down on the street who heard them doing this, said amongst themselves, “Look! Those people are already drunk, and it’s only 9:00 in the morning!” (Acts 2:13)
And Peter stood up at that moment and addressed the crowd, and said to them: These people are not drunk! Rather this is what was spoken of by the Prophet Joel. (Acts 2:14-16)
Peter then quoted from the Book of Joel, chapter 2 — where the Prophet Joel said that in the Last Days, God will pour out his Spirit, and these kinds of things would happen. (Acts 2:17)
In other words: Peter was explaining to those people, that with the ascension of Jesus and the coming of the Spirit on Pentecost, the “Last Days” had begun. The Last Days is the final period in the timeline of history, before the “coming of the Lord.” We are in that period right now, and have been for the past several centuries since Jesus’ ascension into Heaven.
You can think of it like this: Until the ascension of Jesus, history was moving forward, towards “the end of the age,” (Matthew 24:3). But when Jesus ascended into Heaven, the timeline of history turned, and began running parallel to “the end.”
That’s why we have been in the “End Times” or “Last Days” for almost 2000 years now. And the reason that’s important is because it means that Peter and the early Christians were not wrong in expecting Jesus to return in their lifetimes.
Further, it means that there is currently nothing preventing Jesus from coming back at any moment.
Peter says in 2 Peter 3:10 that when Jesus comes, it will be like the coming of a thief. When I lived in Hungary, one evening while we were out at dinner, our house got broken into and robbed. The thieves did not notify us that that they would be coming over at 7:00 PM on Tuesday. The only way for us to have been ready for their coming, would have been for us to always be ready. In the same way, Jesus’ coming could happen at any time.
Why Does Jesus Delay His Coming?
Jesus has not actually delayed or postponed his coming, though, to many of us, it may seem like the “end times” has been going on a long time.
In 2 Peter 3:8-9, Peter says:
But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
2 Peter 3:8-9
Our sense of time is very different than God’s sense of time, Peter tells us. 2000 years may feel like a long time to us, but it’s not a long time to God.
In other words, God is not slow, but He is patient. And God’s patience has a purpose.
The purpose of God’s patience is that there are more people He wants to save! There are more people he wants to rescue and redeem, and bring into His family. Personally, I sure am glad He waited for me!
As Christians today — we often (rightly) say, “Come quickly Lord Jesus!” “Come and deal with all the wickedness in the world! Come, and bring your Kingdom of Righteousness!” Yet, if Jesus would have returned 10 years ago, or 20 years ago, many of us would not have been in a saving relationship with Jesus.
We should not confuse the patience of God with the permission of God. That’s the mistake that some in the New Testament era made. There is an urgency to the message of the gospel. And yet, God’s patience has a purpose: that more would be saved.
How to Live in the Last Days
In 2 Peter 3:11-12, Peter tells us that “Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God”
Since this world is going to pass away, it would be foolish to live lives focused on and for earthly things that will not last. Instead, our attention is better spent focusing on things that will last.
When everything is destroyed, what will remain are: God and human souls.
Therefore, the focus of our lives should be on pursuing godliness and holiness, because a relationship with the Living God is eternal (see John 17:3).
Furthermore, holiness and godliness matter for our mission. Jesus taught us: Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).
Both Peter and Paul talks the importance of Christians living holy lives so that the way of Jesus is not reviled. Hypocrisy and ungodly actions and attitudes undermine our effectiveness in the mission we have received from Jesus to spread His love and truth to people all over the world.
In Matthew 25, after talking to his disciples about the signs of His coming and the end of the age (Matthew 24), Jesus then told his disciples a parable to describe what it means to be “ready” for Jesus’ coming. To be ready, Jesus told them, is to be actively investing the resources that God has given you, to further his Kingdom. In other words, the way to live in the Last Days is to be busy about God’s work until Jesus comes again.
Earlier this year, Aaron Salvato and I presented a workshop together at the Calvary Chapel pastors and leaders conference on the topic of Understanding Doubt and Deconstruction.
The purpose of the workshop was to help equip Christian leaders to understand and engage those experiencing doubts or going through a process of deconstruction, in order to help strengthen their faith in Jesus and their trust in the Bible, so they might wholeheartedly embrace the gospel.
Prior to the conference, we recorded our material and Aaron took that video, added graphics and text, and is releasing it in parts on the Calvary Chapel YouTube page.
The first part can be seen here, and I have to say that Aaron did a really good job with the graphics.
One of my favorite parts of this episode is the discussion of the philosophical origins of the Deconstruction Movement, discussing Foucault, Derrida, and others.
October 3, 2023 marks 10 years since the passing and heavenly homecoming of Pastor Chuck Smith. Pastor Chuck was the man God used to start the Calvary Chapel Movement of churches.
For this anniversary, I wrote an article for CalvaryChapel.com about how Pastor Chuck impacted my life, and the lives of many other young people – including my pastor, Tom Stipe.
Additionally, I recorded a bonus episode of the Mission & Methods Podcast, in which I spoke with Pastor Brian Brodersen about Chuck’s approach to ministry, including some questions about how Chuck pastored personally, and what were the major influences that shaped Chuck’s theology, and his preaching.
Pastor Brian is uniquely qualified to speak to these questions, as he not only served alongside Pastor Chuck and eventually succeeded him as the Senior Pastor of Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa — but he also shares close family ties to Pastor Chuck, as his son in law.
How God Used Chuck Smith To Empower A New Generation Of Pastors
When I was 18 years old, I boarded a plane bound for Hungary. Despite the fact that I had only been following Jesus for two years, my pastor, the late Tom Stipe, sent me out as a missionary. Three years later, when I was 21, Tom ordained me as I was going out to plant a church.
At the time, these actions didn’t strike me as abnormal or unusual, yet now, years later, I look back on them with a sense of surprise. Why was Tom willing to take a chance on me, as young as I was? Why did he trust that I could serve the Lord in those ways without any formal training?
Later on, I came to realize that the reason was because that is what Chuck Smith had done for him when Tom was a young man: In 1976, Pastor Chuck sent Tom to Colorado to start a Calvary Chapel church here. In the movie, “Jesus Revolution,” millions of people saw the portrayal of how Chuck Smith empowered the young Greg Laurie to plant a church in Riverside, California. Still, the even more incredible reality is that Pastor Chuck did similar things with many young people over the years. Tom was doing for me what Chuck had modeled for him.
I remember sitting with Tom and listening to him tell stories of the early days of Calvary Chapel. One thing that Tom told me was that, in his opinion, the true genius of Chuck Smith was not his verse-by-verse teaching, as many people assume, and as masterful as that was. The true genius of Chuck Smith, Tom said, was that Chuck was willing, and even eager, to empower young people to serve the Lord in meaningful ways because he genuinely believed in the work of the Holy Spirit in and through people who were willing to make themselves available to God.
I finally got to meet Pastor Chuck in Austria, at the conference center that he had acquired for Calvary Chapel as a launching point for ministry in Eastern Europe. He asked about our ministry in Hungary and gave encouragement and affirmation. As I look back on that, I’m full of appreciation for him as a person who was more than just a good Bible teacher but an example of foresight and faith. Not only did Pastor Chuck want the Gospel to go forth into the whole world, but he understood that God wanted to use many other people to do that work. He was willing to support missionaries and church planters, including some of us who maybe wouldn’t have been empowered to do those things by anyone else who didn’t have the measure of faith he did!
Now, ten years after Pastor Chuck’s heavenly homecoming, I’m more inspired than ever to carry on his legacy of Bible teaching, evangelism, missions, and empowering people, especially young people, to serve the Lord.
Q&A On Chuck Smith’s Approach To Ministry – With Nick Cady And Brian Brodersen
I’m excited to be heading out to Kansas City in November to speak at a church which used the book as the basis for their community groups this fall. A Christian school in the Bay Area of California used it as the basis of an apologetics class for their students this semester. I have heard several other stories of churches using it in similar ways, and I’m glad it continues to be a helpful resource!
Spanish Translation Coming Out in November 2023
There are several translations of The God I Won’t Believe In currently in process, but I am excited that the Spanish translation is complete! My friend Jonathan Cuesta is a great translator, and did a great job.
The title of the Spanish version is: El Dios En El Que No Puedo Creer: Enfrentando Nueve Barreras Comunes Que nos Impiden Aceptar la Fe Cristiana.
It will be released mid-November once we get cover art and a few formatting things worked out. Then it will be sold on Amazon and hopefully in several Christian book shops in both the US and abroad. If you have Spanish speaking friends or family, please consider getting a copy for them and helping us promote when the time for that comes.
Study Guide Coming Soon
To help those who want to use the book for group studies, I am currently writing a Group Study Guide resource to be a companion to the book. This was originally scheduled to come out earlier this year, but my injury set me back.
When the guide comes out, each session will include a group activity, a synopsis, and several study questions which correspond to the content of each chapter. Additionally, we are planning to create a series of videos which can be watched along with the study guide, for groups to use.
New book – So That You May Believe: a Study of the Seven Signs and Seven “I am” Statements in the Gospel of John
I have been preparing the content for a new book, which will be a follow-up or companion to my first book. This book will show people the evidence for Jesus as Messiah and God our Savior which are presented by John in his gospel. The details and nuances of these evidences can easily be lost on modern readers, and I look forward to drawing them out for people to see.
Part of the impetus for writing this book is the fact that, when preparing a sermon series on the Gospel of John a few years ago, I noticed that many scholars and commentators point out the structure of John’s Gospel as being built upon seven signs and seven “I am” statements, but there were very few, if any, good short volume books on these subjects. I hope my book can fill that niche, as I’ve heard the need for a book on this topic confirmed by many of my pastor friends.
Last week, I spent the week teaching the content which will make up the book at Ravencrest Chalet Bible College (Torchbearers International) in Estes Park, Colorado. I got great feedback on the study from the students, which encouraged me in continuing the project.
I hope to be able to release that book by Spring of 2024.
Theology for the People 