The Godwit Podcast

Genesis 1 & 2 describe humanity as being made in the image of God, male and female, and that it is not good for humans to be alone. In this episode #42 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss how part of the goodness of creation before the fall was in the relationships humans had with each other, the creation and God.

This episode is also available on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/w5WX...

The first 2 chapters of Genesis lay an important foundation for the whole story of the Bible. How we read these chapters effects how read the rest of the story.
In this episode #41 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss how to read the early chapters of Genesis as "true myth"; the creation as God's temple; the relationship between creation and humanity; what it means to rule and subdu...

In our previous podcast episode we made the claim that no one goes to heaven when they die, that instead the destiny of the people of God is to have resurrected bodies on a new earth. But then, what happens to us before then, between death and the time of resurrection?

In this episode #40 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss what the New Testament has to so say about what happens to us when w...

Many Christians believe that we go to heaven as disembodied souls when we die, and that heaven is our final destination for spending eternity. Neither of those ideas are actually biblical. In this episode #39 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss what the Bible actually says about our final destination - a new earth with resurrected bodies.

Check out this video by Bible Project:
https://ww...

What is faith? What is the relationship between the words "faith" and "believe"? Does God have faith?
Faith is most commonly understood these days as a religious word, but in the 1st Century context of the New Testament it was a widely used societal term, with different connotations to the way we use it now. In this episode #38 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss what faith me...

According to the bible we are justified by faith, not by works. But what does that mean?
In this episode #37 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss what faith and works of the law mean in Paul's letters, and why faith and "good works" are not mutually exclusive in defining who the righteous are.

This episode is also available on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/M40QnBmFOlo...

To really understand justification in the New Testament it needs to be understood in the right context. In this episode #36 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss how a distorted grand narrative of the Bible as well as a distorted understanding of the New Testament context has led to a distorted understanding of justification. Instead justification in the New Testament needs to be placed in the right co...

What is a righteous person, according to the Bible? And what does justification mean? In this episode #35 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss both of these questions, and try to give a simple and clear summary of each as a foundation to build on for upcoming conversations about "justification by faith".

This episode is also available to watch on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/U...

The whole concept of righteousness has become a bit muddied throughout Christian history. In this episode #34 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we continue our discussion of righteousness by looking at what is meant by "the righteousness of God", including distinguishing it from "righteousness FROM God".

This episode is also available on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/BxcE_t9N...

A popular belief in modern Christianity is that we get "Christ's righteousness credited to our account." This is known as the "imputation of Christ's righteousness". It's a popular idea, but is it biblical?
In this episode #33 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss what the Bible has to say about imputed righteousness. Then we take a look at some major historical ...

After the events of "The Fall" in Genesis 3, humanity became instantly enslaved to sin and separated from God. Or so a lot of popular theology says. But does that theology square up with the story as it continues in the very next chapter? In this episode #32 of The Godwit Podcast, Paul Smith takes a look at Genesis chapter 4 and how it clashes with some big ideas in popular theology.

This episode is also availabl...

The apostle Paul famously says in Romans 3:10 that, "There is no one righteous, not even one." This verse has been used as the foundation for a whole doctrinal system about righteousness and justification. But what do we do with all the scriptures that seem to say that there are, in fact, righteous people? Have we perhaps misunderstood what Paul is trying to say in Romans 3?
This episode #31 of the Godwit Podcast wit...

"Atonement creates the kingdom of God," says biblical scholar Scot McKnight. In this episode #30 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we round out our series on "Why Did Jesus Die?" with a summary of our discussions on this topic and our conclusion: that the various aspects and motifs around Jesus' death all contribute to the big picture of establishing the kingdom of God, the new covena...

Good theology and doctrine are obviously important for Christians, but how important, and why? In episode #29 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we give our answers to this question. We'd also love to hear your answers, let us know your thoughts in the comments for this episode on our Facebook page!

This episode is also available on YouTube here:
https://youtu.be/5qgIB30t4Q4

Contact ...

Throughout Christian history a few major theories of "The Atonement" (what Jesus achieved through his death) have emerged. In this episode #28 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss a few of the most prominent ones and how well they square up with the Bible and Christian history. Theories discussed in this episode include Ransom, Christus Victor, Recapitulation, Satisfaction, Penal Substitutio...

What does it mean that Jesus died for our sins? And that we have been "bought at a price"? Was Jesus' death a form of payment?  In this episode #27 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss these questions, the use of the word "for", and we take a big look at the Suffering Servant passage in Isaiah 53.

Here's the blog series mentioned in this episode:
http://blog....

"I have been crucified WITH Christ," says the apostle Paul in Galatians 2:20. This is not substitutionary language but participatory - Christ didn't die as our substitute, instead of us, but as our representative, and we join him in his death. In this episode of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss the major theme in the New Testament of participation in Christ's death and resurrectio...

Romans 3:25 is the verse most often cited regarding atonement in the New Testament, but how to translate this verse and what it means is hotly debated. It all hinges on the Greek word "hilasterion", which is translated, depending on the translation, as propitiation, expiation, mercy seat or sacrifice of atonement. In episode #24 of The Godwit Podcast with David Kowalick and Paul Smith we discuss the different translations...