Ryley Heppner Podcast

Dr. Craig Ott /// Settlers of Catan, Contextualizing and Short Term Missions

In this conversation I am joined by Dr. Craig Ott to discuss topics ranging from the need for scholarship in missions, to the parallels between contextualization and Settlers of Catan, to the effects of the increase in short term mission trips.
Dr. Ott is professor of mission and intercultural studies, and chair of the mission and evangelism department at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (Deerfield, USA). Prior to going to Trinity in 2002 he served for 21 years in Germany planting four reproducing churches and teaching at the Academy for World Mission. During that time he also served as Central Europe church planting consultant with ReachGlobal. He has since ministered in over forty countries on five continents and coauthored or co-edited several books including Encountering Theology of Mission and Global Church Planting.

Sermon: Fear or Faith (Mark 16.1-8)

Mark's gospel ends abruptly, as if to say to the reader, "Now you finish the story." So how will we respond to the evidence of the resurrection that Mark presents? Like the 3 women, in fear and silence? Or with faith that declares through the radical lives that we live, "He has risen from the grave."

Sermon: What Kind of Prisoner Would You Be? (Acts 23.12-24.27)

If you are ever a prisoner, what kind of prisoner will you be? I think it really depends upon this question: What kind of person/citizen are you now?

Dan Kreiss and Efrem Smith /// Church For Everyone

In this episode I chat with Dan Kreiss and Efrem Smith about their (bound to be impactful) new book, Church For Everyone: Building Multi-Inclusive Community For Emerging Generations. Among other things, Kreiss and Smith unpack for me what multi-inclusiveness truly is, how rooted it is in Scripture, why it can be so difficult and how it is ultimately fostered. As you listen I hope you are both encouraged and challenged. And after you are done I hope you do yourself a favour and go get a copy of this one!
Dan Kreiss (DMin, George Fox University) is the associate minister for mission and community outreach at Roswell Presbyterian Church in the greater Atlanta area. He was previously professor of youth ministry and dean of the School of Missions at King University in Bristol, Tennessee.
Efrem Smith (DMin, Fuller Theological Seminary) is a pastor, consultant, speaker, and author. He is passionate about life transformation, multiethnic development, faithful and fruitful churches, and community development. He is the author of Raising Up Young Heroes, The Hip Hop Church, Jump, The Post-Black and Post-White Church, and Killing Us Softly.

Sermon: One Way to Follow (Mark 8.34-38)

Is there radical Christianity and non radical Christianity? Or is there just Christianity, and it is always radical?

Dr. Brent Sandy /// The Value of Hearing Scripture

In this episode I talk to Biblical Scholar Dr. Brent Sandy about his new book "Hear Ye The Word: What We Miss If We Only Read the Bible." Dr. Sandy describes ancient oral cultures, explains how the Scriptures would have been originally digested and passed around, and highlights some of what is being lost in our understanding of and interaction with Scripture today if we only ever read it and never hear it read.
Dr. Sandy (PhD, Duke University) taught New Testament and Greek at Wheaton College and chaired the Department of Religious Studies at Grace College. He is coauthor (with John Walton) of The Lost World of Scripture: Ancient Literary Culture and Biblical Authority and author of Plowshares, Pruning Hooks: Rethinking the Language of Biblical Prophecy and Apocalyptic, and most recently Hear Ye The Word: What We Miss If We Only Read the Bible.

John Hindley /// Church in Small Towns; God's Strength in Our Weakness

In this episode I ask pastor and author John Hindley about his experiences planting churches in the city versus planting in rural towns, and how the strategies for the two are both similar and different. We also chat about his new book "Weakness Our Strength," and how God so beautifully uses weakness and weak people to accomplish His will.
John Hindley is the pastor of BroadGrace church in Norfolk, UK, he is a part of the Acts29 Rural Church Planting Collective in Eurpoe, and he is the author of books like Suffering and Singing: Knowing God’s Love in Pain, Despair, Serving without Sinking and most recently, Weakness Our Strength: Learning from Christ Crucified. John studied for ministry at Oak Hill College. He is married to Flick and they have three children.

Ben Jepsen /// Strong Endings and New Beginnings

Stoked to be joined by Ben again to chat about everything from journaling to Bible Reading, to the difficulties of career and ministry transitions, to the absolute and undeniable importance of ending well in ministry, and really in all of life. Hope you enjoy!

Dr. Mark Noll /// Where Would We Be Without the Bible?

In my conversation with American and church historian Mark Noll, we discuss the place and role of the Bible in the America's early settlement and development, the influence in the colonies of the great evangelist George Whitefield, and how biblical literacy in America (and Canada) has changed through the centuries.
Dr. Noll is a leading church historian. He recently retired as the Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame, having previously served as Professor of History and Theological Studies at Wheaton College. His teaching included courses on American religious and intellectual history, the Reformation, world Christianity, and Canadian history.  He has written and edited numerous books, most recently including C. S. Lewis in America: Readings and Reception, 1935–1947 (2023). He has also served on the editorial boards for Books & Culture and Christian History, and as co-editor of Library of Religious Biography for Wm. B. Eerdmans. In 2006 he received the National Endowment for the Humanities medal at the White House.

Dr. Tremper Longman /// Jesus in Ecclesiastes

In today's conversation I ask Biblical Scholar, Dr. Tremper Longman III (among other things) to help me/us better understand OT books like Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs. What are the purpose of these wisdom books? How are they relevant to our lives today? And in what ways do they anticipate Jesus? As always, I hope you enjoy, I hope you are encouraged and challenged, and I hope you find yourself better equipped to read, understand and apply God's Word!
Dr. Longman graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University, earned a Master of Divinity from Westminster Theological Seminary, and completed a doctorate in ancient Near Eastern studies at Yale University. He served as the Robert H. Gundry professor of biblical studies at Westmont from 1998 until he retired in 2017. He continues to serve the college as a distinguished scholar of biblical studies. He has written or co-authored numerous scholarly articles and more than 20 books, including interdisciplinary works, books with psychologist Dan Allender, works on history and historiography, and textbooks for both seminary students a lay people. He is one of the main translators of the New Living Translation and has served as a consultant on other popular translations of the Bible including the Message, the New Century Version, and the Holman Standard Bible.