Real Christianity

How can church history strengthen the church today? What can we learn from the bold men and women of old for the days ahead of us? Which heresies and false doctrine can we avoid by looking at those who protected truth before us? In this episode of the Theologian Series, pastor Dale Partridge interviews Dr. Dustin Benge about why all Christians should study church history.

Dr. Benge is the Provost and professor of church history and preaching at Union School of Theology in the United Kingdom. Dr. Benge is the author of several books and is the host of the Walking Worthy podcast. In this discussion, Dustin and Dale discuss why Christians must seek to have a working knowledge of Church History and how having this knowledge can protect themselves and their families against false doctrine and bad theology.

Comfortable Christianity is on its way out in the West. Its replacement is bold and costly Christianity. In this episode of the Theologian Series, pastor Dale Partridge interviews Dr. Tom Ascol of Founders Ministries on how to overcome the fear of man. Tom is the author of several books and has served as the pastor at Grace Baptist Church since 1986.

According to the Bible, what’s the relationship between apologetics and evangelism? In other words, as we go out into our cities and preach the Gospel, how can we leverage apologetics to support our efforts? In this episode of the Theologian Series, pastor Dale Partridge interviews Dr. James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries on the topic of presuppositional apologetics.

Dr. White is the author of nearly 30 books and is one the world’s leading apologists. He specializes in a defense against false religions like Mormonism, The Jehovah’s Witnesses, The Roman Catholic Church, and Islam.

For those who don’t know, there are several forms of apologetics in church history (classical, evidential, experiential, and presuppositional). Today, we will focus on the latter. This form of apologetics is not interested in trying to persuade atheists with worldly logic, science or experience. Instead, presuppositional apologetics speaks of God in the same way the Apostles and Prophets spoke in Scripture. That is, they don’t attempt to prove God’s existence they assume God’s existence and anchor their central defense of the Gospel in Scripture. Essentially, in presuppositional apologetics the preacher proclaims the truth about God and allows the Holy Spirit to change the heart and mind.

Expository preaching is biblical preaching. Without a commitment to a verse-by-verse exposition of the Scriptures, pastors begin to inject their emotions and opinions into their sermons. In this episode of the Theologian Series, pastor Dale Partridge interviews Dr. Steven Lawson of One Passion Ministries about the vital need for expository preaching.

Dr. Lawson is the professor of preaching at the Doctor of Ministry program at The Master’s Seminary and he’s the author of nearly 40 books. Dr. Lawson was Dale’s preaching professor and has become a not only a mentor but a friend.

Dr. Lawson believes that you cannot have a healthy church without expository preaching. Listen is as Dale and him define and discuss why Christians should place themselves and their families under pastors who preach expository sermons.

The center of cultural deterioration is society’s failure to follow God’s design for the family. In this episode of the Theologian Series, pastor Dale Partridge interviews pastor Doug Wilson of Christ Church in Moscow Idaho. Together, they discuss not simply the instruction for family but the overall theology of family presented in the Scriptures.

Just last week, pastor James Coates of Grace Life Church in Edmonton Alberta was arrested and imprisoned for continuing to hold church services despite Canada’s draconian COVID regulations. In addition, James Coates was denied bail and is expected to remain in prison for at least several more months until trial. In this special edition episode, I interview James Coates’ wife Erin Coates to discuss the reality of her husband’s arrest.

In recent months, the late Ravi Zacharias was alleged with several counts of sexual misconduct, rape, and manipulation. This news has been difficult to comprehend for Christians around the globe. Does this mean that Mr. Zacharias was not really a Christian? Should Christians still continue to consume his content? Was his ministry a waste? Pastor Dale Partridge attempts answers these questions with biblical principles in this episode of Real Christianity.

It’s undeniable that we’re living in a hyper emotional era. Unfortunately, this state of emotionalism has infiltrated and manifested itself in the church. For instance, we are seeing more and more Christians embracing modern prophecy, healers, and self-proclaimed apostles. More than ever the church needs a theologically sound view of spiritual gifts and spiritual offices. In this episode of Real Christianity, pastor Dale Partridge looks to Scripture to find structure and boundaries to this important Christian issue.

When a person comes to Christ, do they decide to repent and place their faith in Jesus and, as a result, are born again? Or, is a person born again by the Spirit of God and, as a result, see their sin, repent, and place their faith in Christ?

The first view believes that humans, prior to Christ, can freely accept or reject the Gospel. The second view believes that humans will always reject the Gospel unless God sovereignly regenerates them through spiritual birth. In this episode of Real Christianity, pastor Dale Partridge looks at the Scriptures to discover what the Bible says about free will and fallen man’s ability to accept and reject Jesus Christ.

Many modern Christians are finding themselves and their churches fighting more diligently for social justice than they are for the Gospel. While benevolent acts are characteristic of a person who has experienced the love of God through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is social justice really the mission (or even part of the mission) of the Church? Dale Partridge answers this question and more in this episode of Real Christianity.