The Russell Moore Show - Christianity Today, Russell Moore

Latest Episodes:

Jesus in the Old Testament and the Reliability of Scripture Nov 20, 2024

Show notes

Nancy Guthrie has taught the Scriptures, written about them, and searched them for answers when tragedy struck her family. “ The Bible is the one thing in the world that the closer scrutiny you give to it,” she said, “the more it holds up.”

Guthrie and Moore discuss Guthrie’s new book, Saved: Experiencing the Promise of the Book of Acts; maintaining attention while studying Scripture; and interacting with the biblical text. They talk about praying with the Bible in hand, avoiding the stereotypes often projected onto female authors, and engaging with difficult passages. They consider what it looks like for modern Christians to follow God’s command not to call common what God has called clean and what it means that suffering is not the end of our stories—glory is.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Saved: Experiencing the Promise of the Book of Acts by Nancy Guthrie
The One Year Book of Discovering Jesus in the Old Testament by Nancy Guthrie
“It All Turns on Affection”
Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament with Nancy Guthrie
Nancy Guthrie
“Preaching Christ in a Postmodern World”
“Help Me Teach the Bible”
The Gospel Coalition Women’s Conference

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Media and Leadership in a World on Edge Nov 13, 2024

Show notes

Note: This episode was recorded before the presidential election.

“We don’t live in a world of ideals right now.”

So says Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief of The Atlantic. He and Moore, who recorded this episode on the anniversary of the October 7th Hamas attacks on Israel, discuss the fraught state of both domestic and global politics. They consider cultural climates on college campuses and social media, civil disobedience, and leadership. They also talk about military service in light of Goldberg’s new book, On Heroism, and talk about perspectives on masculinity in light of American culture and politics.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Jeffrey Goldberg
The Atlantic
Washington Week with The Atlantic
Prisoners: A Story of Friendship and Terror by Jeffrey Goldberg
On Heroism: McCain, Milley, Mattis, and the Cowardice of Donald Trump by Jeffrey Goldberg
“The Unreality of Columbia’s ‘Liberated Zone’”
“Stoicism in the South”
Seven Days in May
The Overton Window

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Civility, Calvinism, and the Coming Judgment Day Nov 06, 2024

Show notes

“Civility is not the whole story in life,” Richard Mouw said. “But we often take incivility much too far.”

Online, in face-to-face relationships, and even at church, this statement has proven true time and again in recent years. Mouw—author, theologian, and former president of Fuller Seminary—says that in a world of ridicule, Christians can still be people who honor the humanity of others.

Mouw and Moore discuss political division, patriotism in worship services, and the powerful draw of specific candidates to certain demographics. They talk about the rise in female leadership, the sense of lostness many men feel amid cultural shifts, and the idea that bitterness and anger are often forms of grief. Mouw and Moore talk about what Calvinism can bring to the church today, whether they believe they’ll be surprised by the faces they see in eternity, and how to live in light of the kingdom.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Richard J. Mouw
Uncommon Decency: Christian Civility in an Uncivilized World by Richard J. Mouw
Divine Generosity: The Scope of Salvation in Reformed Theology by Richard J. Mouw
Wendell Berry on the providence of God
Nicholas Wolterstorff
“Sphere Sovereignty” by Abraham Kuyper
James E. Bradley
“Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”

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How Great is the Political Divide? Oct 30, 2024

Show notes

When will all the craziness be over?

It’s the question that seems to be on every American’s mind, and one that many have asked both Russell Moore and George Packer, author and staff writer at The Atlantic. Moore and Packer discuss the exhaustion and rage that have become common in our politics. They discuss partisanship, profitability, and pessimism. They talk about the historical events that have led to our current realities, the effects of secularization on culture, and what it might take for Packer to believe there is a God—and why Packer still, despite all of the chaos, can’t forgo his hope for humanity.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

George Packer
"What Will Become of American Civilization? Conspiracism and Hyper-Partisanship in the Nation’s Fastest-Growing City” by George Packer at The Atlantic
The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America by George Packer
The Assassins’ Gate: America in Iraq by George Packer
Blood of the Liberals by George Packer
Facing Unpleasant Facts: Narrative Essays by George Orwell, compiled and with an introduction by George Packer
Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century by George Packer
David French
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis
The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt
Montaigne’s Tower

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Detoxing, Mapquesting, and Holy Kisses Oct 23, 2024

Show notes

Carlos Whittaker is an author, podcaster, and global speaker who is backed by, as he puts it, “the power of a massive Instafamilia.” Perhaps it’s no wonder, then, that when he decided to spend 23 hours a day in silence at a Benedictine monastery, he experienced physical detoxification symptoms—including heart palpitations.

Whittaker and Moore talk about their experiences of spending time screen-free and how it has changed them. They discuss the relational focus made possible by time apart from devices and the transformative effects of communal living. They consider how Christians engage with time, why it’s important to savor experiences, and how believers might reclaim the practice of solitude.

Ultimately, they speak to the potential for a healthy relationship to technology and discuss what it may look like to pursue it.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com.

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The Mysteries of Music Oct 16, 2024

Show notes

“There’s something special about music. There’s something uniquely powerful about the way music connects with our brains and our memories.”

So says singer-songwriter and creative force behind Slugs & Bugs, Randall Goodgame, on this episode of The Russell Moore Show. Moore and Goodgame talk about the importance of music for all ages, the joy of creativity, and Goodgame’s new project, Scripture Hymnal. They discuss the remarkable value of memorizing the Bible through songs and how calling verses to mind can give us hope, wisdom, and peace in challenging moments. Their conversation covers reading the Bible with children, cultivating artistic gifts, and finding joy in the body of Christ.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Slugs & Bugs
Slugs & Bugs & Lullabies
Andrew Peterson
Scripture Hymnal
Ellie Holcomb
Taylor Leonhardt
Ben Shive
The Creative Act: A Way of Beingby Rick Rubin
John-Mark McGaha
The Practice: Shipping Creative Workby Seth Godin
Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com.

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Autocracy, Robots, & Outlaws Oct 09, 2024

Show notes

Welcome to the quarterly books episode of The Russell Moore Show!

Tune in for a discussion of what Russell Moore and Ashley Hales, the former producer of the show and now CT’s editorial director for print, have been reading lately. The two discuss the themes that emerge in their reads, from power to technology to deconstruction. Their conversation covers nonfiction, fiction, and poetry—with shout-outs to some television and music as well.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Ashley Hales
Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World by Anne Applebaum
Enlightenment: A Novel by Sarah Perry
The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner by James Hogg
Another Day: Sabbath Poems 2013–2023 by Wendell Berry
Break, Blow, Burn, & Make: A Writer's Thoughts on Creation by E. Lily Yu
The Slow Road North: How I Found Peace in an Improbable Country by Rosie Schaap
“Rainn Wilson Tells Me Where I’m Wrong on Spirituality”
Rainn Wilson and the Geography of Bliss
Willie, Waylon, and the Boys: How Nashville Outsiders Changed Country Music Forever by Brian Fairbanks
Confessions by Saint Augustine
The Sparrow: A Novel by Mary Doria Russell
Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu
Aegypt by John Crowley
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
The Life Impossible: A Novel by Matt Haig
The Grey Wolf: A Novel by Louise Penny
Charles Taylor
J. R. R. Tolkien

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Belief, Experience, and Expectations of God Oct 02, 2024

Show notes

Why do we struggle to rest in the love of God? Perhaps, says Steve Cuss, it’s because we’ve never “wrestled to the ground our own preconceived notions.”

On this episode of The Russell Moore Show, Moore and Cuss dig into some of those preconceived notions about God and Christianity. They talk about fear and anxiety, persistent sin, and addiction. Their conversation covers the differences between a preventative and a redemptive gospel, the power of community as an antidote to despair, and how to determine when a failure is an inevitable part of life or when it is a sign that something is wrong. Moore and Cuss discuss the five false needs in every human, what it looks like to give our anxiety to God, and the great hope of the thief on the cross.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Abbey of Gethsemani
The Silence of God
The Expectation Gap: The Tiny, Vast Space between Our Beliefs & Experience of Godby Steve Cuss
Being Human
Holy the Firm by Annie Dillard
Herbert McCabe
Managing Leadership Anxiety episode “Dr. Andrew Newberg”
Frederick Buechner
“‘I Wish You Bad Luck.’ Read Supreme Court Justice John Roberts’ Unconventional Speech to His Son’s Graduating Class”
“The Man on the Middle Cross Said I Can Come”
Philip Yancey

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Tattoos, ‘Shrek,’ and the End of Life on Earth Sep 25, 2024

Show notes

Does the world seem crazy because we’re in an unusually tense time? Or is this just … life? Maybe it’s a little bit of both.

On this episode, Bible teacher and author Jen Wilkin talks about the modern era in light of Revelation. She and Russell Moore talk about how the apocalyptic book has been misinterpreted and misused, how Christians can recognize when they have lost their first love, and the role of persecution in the life of the church. Their conversation covers the blessings of generations caring for one another, the hope of the new creation, and how the references to prior books of the Bible seen in Revelation might feel a bit like watching Shrek.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include:

Jen Wilkin
Revelation: Eternal King, Everlasting Kingdom by Jen Wilkin
Shrek

Do you have a question for Russell Moore? Send it to questions@russellmoore.com.

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Hope in Darkness Sep 18, 2024

Show notes

Content warning: This episode discusses mental affliction, self-harm, and suicide.

The United States surgeon general says there should be a tobacco-style warning for social media. Why? Because the mental health crisis among young people is reaching seriously harmful levels.

On this episode, associate professor, author, and cofounder and editor in chief of Christ and Pop Culture Alan Noble joins Russell Moore to discuss what such a warning may look like and the modern state of affairs in the public square. Noble and Moore talk about Noble’s latest book, On Getting Out of Bed, and the differences between mental affliction and mental illness. The conversation covers the importance of friendship, embracing life as an act of worship, and how men can embody healthy masculinity.

Resources mentioned in this episode or recommended by the guest include: