The Word Without Walls Podcast

Dr. Eschelbach engages life's fundamental questions and concepts with analysis and reference to the witness found in nature, common human experience, and biblical texts. Forty years of caring for the lives of people as pastor and professor provides recognition of questions and challenges that matter, as well as answers and solutions that are real and effective.

Bible Study: Matthew 3:7-12 12/02/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 3:7-12 Why was Jesus baptized? We'll discuss that, and also look into John the Baptist's confrontation with the Pharisees and Sadducees. How does Matthew use these groups to contrast the human ego with Jesus' life-giving ministry? /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/17032388

Bible Study: Matthew 3:4-6 11/25/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 3:4-6 How is John the Baptist similar to Elijah, and what is important about the baptizing described in this passage? /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16951613

Bible Study: Matthew 3:1-3 11/19/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 3:1-3 Learn about the importance of John the Baptist and his message as we consider the first three verses of the third chapter of Matthew. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16873463

Bible Study: Matthew 2:19-23 11/05/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 2:19-23 We learn in this passage of the importance of Jesus growing up as a Nazarite. What does that mean? How can the life of Jesus be compared to a well-known Nazarite from Old Testament history, Samson? /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16693268

Bible Study: Matthew 2:11-18--The Death of the Innocents 10/28/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 2:11-18--The Death of the Innocents There are two important things to glean from these few verses in Matthew. One is about Jesus retracing the steps of the children of Israel, doing correctly what everyone before Him did incorrectly. The second is in regard to the death of the innocents by Herod. How can we make sense of this tragedy, that God would allow it? /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16580288

Bible Study: Matthew 2 10/24/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 2 We all know the story of Jesus' birth and the Wise Men. But there are some interesting contrasts and important questions that Matthew 2 brings up that might not have come to your mind before. Listen in to hear a fresh perspective on this familiar text. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16528637

Bible Study: Matthew 1:18-23 10/15/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 1:18-23 As we consider this text from Matthew, we also consider marriage--what it is, and how it should be approached. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16413644

Bible Study: Matthew 1 10/07/2020

Bible Study: Matthew 1 Matthew's Gospel begins in the least likely place--with a genealogy. It's tempting to want to skim over these verses, but if you look carefully, there are important messages and insights into God's work that can be gained. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16305197

Peril and Promise 10/01/2020

Peril and Promise We have been thinking through the nature of the life of an ambassador of Christ, and it is the best of all possible lives. The problem is that we live within a corrupt human nature that always wants to revert to the way of the world from which we were redeemed. Jesus, of course, knows this, and consistently warns us about it. Three helpful texts to consider are Revelation 2 (the letter from Jesus to the church at Ephesus), Luke 16 (the unjust servant), and Matthew 18 (the unforgiving servant). /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16231337

Poor in spirit, and an easy yoke 09/23/2020

Poor in spirit, and an easy yoke One of the challenges of our ambassadorship is constantly resetting our consciousness to be the consciousness of Christ. Part of that is slowing down in reading the Bible, really swimming around the verses we encounter. We’re going to slow down and think about two different texts: the first beatitude—blessed are the poor in spirit—from Matthew 5, and Matthew 11’s account of the yoke of Jesus being easy and light. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16124534

Renewal and refreshment in Scripture: New and Old Wineskins 09/17/2020

Renewal and refreshment in Scripture: New and Old Wineskins As ambassadors of Jesus' kingdom, is it possible for us to still be swept up in the currents of thought and busy-ness of the foreign land in which we serve? Absolutely. Finding renewal and refreshment through Scripture is essential. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/16046636

Sharing the good news--what is salvation? 09/10/2020

Sharing the good news--what is salvation? As ambassadors of the kingdom of heaven, we are called and we desire to share the good news. But it can be a real challenge to communicate it. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15957980

How to be an ambassador 09/02/2020

How to be an ambassador As ambassadors of the kingdom of God, it's important to remember the two kingdoms to which we belong. In this episode, I provide a few examples for how to consider the condition of the people of this world to whom we are ambassadors, and strategies to provide the most help to them. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15852143

Being Ambassadors for the Kingdom of Heaven 08/13/2020

Being Ambassadors for the Kingdom of Heaven What are the advantages we possess by belonging to the kingdom of heaven? Also, what challenges do we face in reaching those in the world around us? What are strategies we can use? Those are all discussed in this episode. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15598148

Do we really have a free will? 08/05/2020

Do we really have a free will? The assumption that each of us has a free will is powerful … but is it true? The idea of a free will is attractive and popular because it promises people happiness in the choices they make. I would like to assert that this notion is deceitful and a trap. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15491036

The Problem with the Problem of Evil 07/29/2020

The Problem with the Problem of Evil If there is a God, and God is good, why is there evil in the world? That is the premise of the problem of evil. But I'll challenge that idea by considering life through the lens of different worldviews. Listen in, and let me know what you think. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15397136

Definitions: Sex and Love 07/23/2020

Definitions: Sex and Love In this day and age, sex is constantly in our faces. And people use the word "love" all the time, but what is meant by it? In this episode, we consider what a one-dimensional worldview has done to our view of sex and love, and consider the alternative perspective that a three-dimensional worldview can provide. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15324974

Definitions: Male and Female 07/16/2020

Definitions: Male and Female When you ask people to define what male and female is, they will start with talking about anatomy. This is a one-dimensional view of life. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15227858

Definitions: Good, Evil, and Wickedness 07/08/2020

Definitions: Good, Evil, and Wickedness In today's world, the moral basis of what is good and evil seems to be a moving target, and it has been moving faster and faster in recent years. There is no absolute for either good or evil. It's really a function of who is in control. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15128714

Definitions: Life and Death 07/01/2020

Definitions: Life and Death In a one-dimensional worldview, we're used to considering life as only physical, material. And death is defined as someone's physiology shutting down. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/15041087

Definitions: Science, Knowledge, and Justice 06/24/2020

Definitions: Science, Knowledge, and Justice We're continuing to consider the difference in definitions of fundamental words from two different worldviews: a one-dimensional, material-only world versus a three-dimensional universe from which flows Christianity X. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14947835

Definitions: Religion and Faith 06/17/2020

Definitions: Religion and Faith This episode starts a series where I'll be defining what fourteen key words mean. We'll take a look at these words from how they're viewed most commonly--a one-dimensional, red pyramid worldview definition. And then we'll consider how they can be defined from a Christianity X perspective, which is three-dimensional in nature. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14857799

Contentment, Love, Honesty 06/10/2020

Contentment, Love, Honesty As ambassadors of a Green V worldview, there are three things we know to be true about our lives: /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14767997

Every day a Sabbath rest 06/03/2020

Every day a Sabbath rest What does it look like to live with awareness of God’s redemptive work in our lives? It changes everything! Listen in to this discussion of living each day as a Sabbath rest from every fear and worry. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14680394

Forgiveness is just the tip of the iceberg 05/27/2020

Forgiveness is just the tip of the iceberg When people speak of the Gospel, they often reduce it to just the forgiveness of sins. But it's so much more than that! This episode discusses the thirteen attributes of the Gospel. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14585513

Defining Redemption 05/20/2020

Defining Redemption This episode begins an in-depth look at the concept of redemption, and what it actually means. It’s very different from how we usually hear it discussed. How does the new way of considering redemption change the questions we ask related to our salvation? /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14495558

In the Image of God 05/13/2020

In the Image of God What is the nature of God? How can we see the image of God reflected in how He made people, male and female? In this episode, we consider relationships between men and women, and how it is intended to reflect the nature of God. We also define what love is in this three-dimensional world view, which is completely the opposite of how we see it defined around us. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14400350

Pursuing the Truth, No Matter What 05/06/2020

Pursuing the Truth, No Matter What What are the means by which it is possible to know things? This week we dive into epistemology--what we think we know, recognizing our own limitations. As we pursue the truth, I'd love to hear questions or challenges that you have. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14311712

A New Way to See 05/01/2020

A New Way to See Forget everything you already knew or assumed about life. This episode introduces a worldview radically different from that held by most of the world. It is a three-dimensional view of life that I call “Green V world.” Listen to learn about the three basic elements of this world view. You can also see a visual representation of this and read more here on my blog. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14231864

What hope do we have? 04/27/2020

What hope do we have? What hope is there for us if life boils down to simply being a good person, and in so doing, being rewarded by God with things that make us happy? As our examination of a one-dimensional worldview concludes, we consider what it means when all religious and philosophical systems become simply ethical systems. /episode/index/show/wordwithoutwalls/id/14160584

The Word Without Walls Podcast

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