Just War, Christianity, and The Call to Serve: The Ethics of Military Service (Darren Duke) Ep #211
Should Christians serve in the military? In this sobering and nuanced episode, Dru Johnson sits down with retired Colonel Darren Duke—Marine Corps Special Operations commander and intelligence officer—to unpack this deeply personal and morally complex question. Drawing from over 30 years of military experience, Duke shares his evolving view of military service, from Cold War patriotism to the hard-earned disillusionment of post-9/11 combat.
He offers insight into how symbols like the Punisher, Spartan helmets, and Valhalla became coping mechanisms for troops struggling with the trauma and moral ambiguity of prolonged warfare. Duke also warns young Christians to prepare not only for the battlefield but for the morally challenging culture within the military itself.
This conversation does not prescribe easy answers but outlines how one might think Christianly about enlistment, national service, and the weight of violence in a fallen world. Listeners will walk away better equipped to consider military service with sober realism, moral clarity, and theological depth.
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Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to Military Service and Personal Background
09:54 Reflections on Military Service and Christian Identity
17:52 The Complexity of War and Its Justifications
20:13 The Weight of War: Moral Trauma and Reflection
22:12 Existential Questions in Military Service
24:26 Navigating Morality in Combat
28:12 The Christian Perspective on Military Service
32:27 Defending the Defenseless: A Moral Duty
35:32 The Role of Leadership in Military Ethics
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Building a Movement: Why the Church Needs Hebraic Thought—and What We’re Doing About It Ep. #210
In this update episode, Dru Johnson and Mike Tolliver pull back the curtain on the work happening at the Center for Hebraic Thought. From filing 501(c)(3) nonprofit status and building a stellar advisory board, to launching a redesigned website and reviving in-person workshops, the CHT has been quietly preparing for long-term growth and broader influence.
They discuss the newly relaunched Hebraic Thought Community (HTC) on Facebook—already hundreds strong—and the four activities that bring the community together: highlighting member-created resources, sharing weekend reading, gathering weekly for public listening of Scripture, and hosting scholar Q&As. This digital community is sparking cross-disciplinary conversations, surfacing unexpected gems from laypeople, and reimagining how Christians listen to the Bible together.
Dru and Mike also explain why listening (not just reading) Scripture in community is a powerful and ancient discipline—and why it’s missing from most churches today. They reflect on the joy of watching Scripture come alive in unexpected ways through these communal practices.
They close with a call to support: whether through recurring giving, hosting a workshop, or sharing the word, CHT is building something bigger than any one person—something rooted in Scripture and flourishing in community.
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Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
00:03 Updates on The Center for Hebraic Thought
03:03 Community Engagement and Workshops
06:03 Hebraic Thought Community Initiatives
09:04 Public Listening of Scripture
11:55 The Importance of Listening to Scripture
15:10 Website Updates and Future Plans
17:53 Funding and Support for the Center
20:58 Workshops and Community Involvement
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Jesus Under Every Rock? Rethinking Christ-Centered Reading & Preaching (Chris Wright) Ep #209
Should Christians look for Jesus in every verse of the Old Testament—or are we missing the point when we do?
In this wide-ranging and practical conversation, Dr. Christopher J. H. Wright, Langham Partnership’s Global Ambassador and one of the world’s leading Old Testament scholars, joins Dru Johnson to explore the difference between Christocentric and Christotelic readings of Scripture. Wright reflects on common instincts Christians have—either skipping the Old Testament or trying to make every text about Jesus—and explains what we lose when we fail to respect the voice and context of the original authors.
Wright argues for a more faithful reading that respects the historical drama of God’s covenantal journey with Israel, leading to but not eclipsed by Christ. He explains how Luke 24 affirms that the Scriptures point to Jesus, but that doesn’t mean every verse must be “about” him. Instead, Scripture forms a unified story with Jesus as its destination, not its hiding place.
The conversation ends with a powerful case for why the global church, especially in the majority world, has crucial theological insights to offer—and why Western Christians should be ready to learn.
For more from Chris Wright:
https://christopherjhwright.com/
For more about Langham Partnership:
https://us.langham.org/
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Chapters:
00:00 Understanding the Old Testament's Relevance
02:01 Challenges in Interpreting the Old Testament
05:26 The Importance of Context in Biblical Interpretation
08:09 The Role of Jesus in Old Testament Texts
11:00 Exegetical Approaches to the Old Testament
14:08 The Historical Unfolding of God's Promises
21:06 The Transition from Law to Grace
22:32 The Journey of Scripture Towards Christ
24:57 Understanding the Role of the Gospels and Acts
27:00 The Nature of Biblical Narrative
29:01 Langham Partnership: Resourcing Global Churches
32:37 The Importance of Preaching in the Majority World
36:00 Listening to Global Voices in Theology
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The NAR, Power, and Prophecy: Inside America’s Forgotten Christian Movement (Matthew Taylor) Ep. #208
What if the most politically influential Christian leaders in America aren’t the ones you’ve heard of?
In this eye-opening conversation, Dr. Matthew D. Taylor joins Dru Johnson to explain how the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) and related charismatic networks reshaped modern evangelicalism—and helped deliver the presidency to Donald Trump. Taylor, a scholar of religion and politics, traces how televangelists, prophets, and apostolic leaders operating outside denominational structures built a new Christian populist movement with real spiritual and political power.
Far from being fringe actors, these leaders—like Paula White and Lance Wallnau—hold enormous sway through media networks and prophetic authority. Taylor explores how modern prophecy, celebrity culture, and populist theology have created a system resistant to critique, driven by revival language and unregulated influence. He explains why evangelical elites misjudged the NAR’s reach and how their dismissal of these leaders as “hucksters” only deepened the divide.
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Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to the New Apostolic Reformation Movement
02:50 Understanding Pushback and Misconceptions
05:46 Defining the New Apostolic Reformation
09:21 The Role of Charismatic Leaders in Politics
12:10 Trump and the Evangelical Connection
15:09 The Seven Mountain Mandate and Its Implications
18:05 Cyrus Prophecy and Its Significance
21:14 The Divide Between Evangelical Elites and Grassroots
26:19 Theological Divides in Modern Evangelicalism
27:40 Historical Context of Evangelicalism
29:06 Populism and the Rise of Trump
31:29 Scriptural Interpretation and Prophecy
35:19 The Role of Modern Prophecy
38:33 Leadership Dynamics in Non-Denominational Spaces
43:41 Christian Nationalism vs. Christian Supremacy
46:35 The Early Church's Ethos vs. Modern Power
50:58 Path Forward for Evangelicals
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Hollywood, Scripture, and Politics: Joan Didion and the Power of Story (Alissa Wilkinson) Ep. #207
What do Hollywood, Joan Didion, and the Bible have in common?
More than you’d expect. In this episode, New York Times film critic and author Alissa Wilkinson joins Dru Johnson to discuss the life, work, and worldview of Joan Didion, one of the most influential American writers of the 20th century. Wilkinson’s new book, We Tell Ourselves Stories, explores how Didion made sense of chaos through narrative—and what her work reveals about faith, trauma, politics, and cultural memory.
Together, Alissa and Dru explore Didion’s insight that stories are not just entertainment; they are survival mechanisms, tools we use to impose order on a chaotic world. But is that all Scripture is—just another human-made narrative? Wilkinson offers a careful reflection on the limits and power of storytelling, showing how Didion’s work can challenge both Christian belief and secular mythmaking.
They also dive into conspiracy theories, the fusion of politics and Hollywood, and the rise of nostalgia as a cultural sickness. From John Wayne to 9/11 to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this episode traces the invisible threads between the stories we inherit and the truths we cling to.
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Chapters:
00:00 Exploring Joan Didion's Influence
02:10 The Chaos of Life and Storytelling
05:08 The Impact of California on Didion's Work
08:15 Didion's Perspective on Conspiracy Theories
11:24 Hollywood's Political Landscape and Didion's Critique
14:26 The Intersection of Politics and Entertainment
17:29 Didion's Views on Feminism and Fixed Ideas
20:26 The Role of Nostalgia in Storytelling
23:24 The Modern Political Narrative
26:17 Conspiracies and Their Impact on Society
29:27 The Nature of Truth in Storytelling
32:10 Didion's Legacy in Film and Media
35:20 The Future of Storytelling in Politics
The Biblical Mind is dedicated to helping its audience understand how the biblical authors thought, promoting Bible fluency through curious, careful reading of Scripture. It is hosted by Dr. Dru Johnson and published by the Center for Hebraic Thought, a hub for research and resources on the intellectual world of the Bible.