In these days of COVID-19, plenty of people are asking if the virus is a judgment from God, if he is sending a message to us.
I recorded this conversation on the book of Joel with Paul House, professor of Old Testament at Beeson Divinity School, prior to the spread of the virus. But his points have proved timely. Disasters, he says, should cause us to ask, “What have we as a people and a nation been doing? It certainly hasn’t been looking to the Lord. . . . These are meant to get people to repent.”
House presents the book as Joel preaching on Deuteronomy 28 and Exodus 34, using vivid imagery to warn of the awful reality of God’s judgments. Joel calls the people of God to turn toward God, assuring them that “even now, if they return to the Lord with all their heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning, he will be gracious and merciful and relent from disaster.” House offers insight on the locusts, the meaning of the the Day of the Lord, and how to present the mercy of Christ for sinners from the pages of Joel.
Paul House on Teaching Joel
May 14, 2020 • Nancy Guthrie, Paul House
Live at TGCW22: Putting Personality and Passion Into Your Teaching
September 1, 2022 • Nancy Guthrie
In this workshop, recorded live at The Gospel Coalition's 2022 Women’s Conference, Nancy Guthrie works through twelve ways to put personality and passion into your teaching without making it all about you.
Putting Together a Christ-Centered Bible Talk
August 5, 2021 • Nancy Guthrie
You’ve been asked to give a Bible talk. Where do you begin? And how do you make sure you’re understanding and applying the passage rightly? How will you get to the gospel? In this workshop session, recorded live at TGC’s 2021 National Conference, Nancy Guthrie takes listeners through the process of preparing to teach the Bible—including prayer, looking at the context, determining the structure of the passage, composing an aim, creating an outline, getting to the gospel, developing applications, and coming up with an introduction and conclusion. She then applies each of these tasks to putting together a talk on Numbers 6:22–27. Putting Together a Bible Talk worksheet (referred to in this podcast)
It’s Not About You: How Biblical Theology Transforms Bible Study
June 24, 2021 • Nancy Guthrie
Even in churches in which men and women are getting a regular diet of biblical theology and redemptive history from the pulpit, what is being offered in small-group Bible study is often driven by felt needs, has little biblical or theological rigor, or is oriented around self-improvement. But when biblical theology infiltrates Bible study, it puts the emphasis on what Christ has done rather than on what we must do. It helps participants put the various parts of the Bible together so they begin to make sense. And it makes being united to Christ by faith urgent and necessary. In this workshop, recorded live at The Gospel Coalition 2021 National Conference, Nancy Guthrie works through seven ways biblical theology transforms Bible study, as well as ways teachers can develop a deeper grasp of biblical theology.