White Horse Inn
399 episodes - English - Latest episode: 16 days ago - ★★★★★ - 2K ratingsDo all paths lead to God? Is the Bible history or mythology? Are we saved by grace or good works? Featuring conversations with Christians from a variety traditions, this program is designed to give you a better understanding of what you believe and why you believe it.
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Episodes
Where Did We Go Wrong?
July 16, 2023 09:00 - 41 minutes - 94.7 MBIf God made both man and woman in his image as partners in the good work of filling up and caring for the earth, why does society seem to pit men and women against each other? Both in the church and in broader secular culture, men and women seem to be in competition rather than working in partnership. Could this be the reason why so many people are steeped with anxiety, gender confusion, or addiction? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and W...
One Image: Male and Female
July 09, 2023 09:00 - 39 minutes - 90.7 MBThe conversation of gender identity seems to have swept into every crevice of our culture. From debating gender “norms” to questioning the concept of biological gender completely, society has demanded to have a say in how men and women should understand themselves and the roles they play. But what are the ramifications of allowing the world to tell what we are to be instead of Scripture? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickla...
By Nature, Crowned with Glory
July 02, 2023 04:00 - 47 minutes - 109 MBIn the beginning, God spoke the world into existence. He made man and woman the crown of his creation, image-bearers of the Almighty God. Humans have a special place in God’s created order. But as we know, it didn’t take long for sin to enter the world, corrupting this image and changing our relationship to our Creator. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland consider our true nature as those created by God and why it’s impo...
The Kiss of Betrayal: How Do We Relate to Judas?
June 25, 2023 04:00 - 40 minutes - 91.7 MBFrom disciple to betrayer, Judas Iscariot is a figure with whom not many would choose to associate. It’s hard to imagine how someone could walk with Jesus and yet betray him. So why would Christ choose someone like Judas? Are we all just like him in more ways than we realize? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss what we can learn from the story of Judas Iscariot and his kiss of betrayal.
The Glory Days: Saul, David, and Solomon
June 18, 2023 04:00 - 42 minutes - 98 MBThough the Israelites recalled the monarchy as their “glory days,” even their most noteworthy kings were messy, complicated, and oftentimes disappointing in their actions. So why do we need their stories? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland wrestle with the challenges and significance of the first three monarchs in Israel’s history: Saul, David, and Solomon.
Flawed Heroes: Samson's Legacy
June 11, 2023 06:00 - 39 minutes - 91 MBAll Bible stories are really just one story repeated over and over again, describing the intersection between our sinful condition and God’s relentless faithfulness. So it should come as no surprise when even the heroes of the story seem to be the most flawed. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland consider the shocking narrative of Samson, explaining how all stories, like Samsons’, lead us back to the glory of God.
Out of Slavery and to the Promised Land: Why Moses?
June 04, 2023 06:00 - 42 minutes - 96.3 MBCalled by God to lead his people to the promised land, Moses is heralded as a prophet like no other—one with whom God spoke face to face. But between his murderous past, bursts of anger that ultimately kept him from entering the promised land, and his own record that he was the most humble man to ever live, is he the hero we think? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland tackle the complicated details of Moses’s life, reflec...
What are the Means of Grace?
May 28, 2023 06:00 - 37 minutes - 86.8 MBWhen new converts are brought into the church, they are often loaded up with the need to read the Bible, pray, practice repentance, and get into the community—but equally vital to spiritual health is a right understanding of and participation in the means of grace. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss how the means of grace are used for our sanctification and why they are central to life and identity in the church.
What Is the Lord’s Supper?
May 21, 2023 06:00 - 41 minutes - 95.3 MBChrist instituted the Lord’s Supper and commanded the church to “do this in remembrance of me.” But why? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland compare the unique views of the Lutheran, Baptist, Reformed, and Anglican traditions of this sacrament and what it means to participate in our union with Christ by “eating his body and drinking his blood.”
What Is Baptism?
May 14, 2023 06:00 - 46 minutes - 106 MBFrom his own baptism by John the Baptist to his last commission to his followers to go and make disciples from all nations, Jesus’s ministry is marked by this sacrament. But what does it mean? What are its biblical origins? And who should receive it? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss the traditional Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Baptist, and Reformed views on the sacrament of baptism.
What Is a Sacrament?
May 07, 2023 06:00 - 41 minutes - 94.1 MBWhat are the differences between Reformational, Roman Catholic, and Anabaptist sacramental views? And what are sacraments for? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss the common impressions and misconceptions of the sacraments in a society prone toward unmediated spirituality.
How Will the World End?
April 30, 2023 06:00 - 45 minutes - 104 MBSoteriology precedes eschatology—but how? And what will the judgment of the risen Christ look like? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland examine different views of the end times as they consider our hopeful future—one where the work of Christ finally culminates in the new heavens and new earth.
The Bad Plan of the Ascension
April 23, 2023 06:00 - 44 minutes - 101 MBThe ascension seems like a really bad plan. Why would Christ leave his disciples? Is the indwelling Spirit truly better than Christ in the flesh? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss Jesus’s gifts to the church through his intercession and his continuing priestly office in which he acts as our advocate and intercessor.
The Passive Obedience of Christ
April 16, 2023 06:00 - 43 minutes - 101 MBMany people struggle with the concept of atonement. What do we make of a God who demands the sacrifice of his own Son? And what exactly is happening in Christ’s work on the cross? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland consider the covenantal context for Christ’s passive obedience and speak to some of the harmful ways this doctrine has been misapplied.
The Active Obedience of Christ
April 09, 2023 06:00 - 43 minutes - 100 MBMost Christians know about the forgiveness of sins, but not the doctrine of active obedience. But how do we become righteous if not through imputation? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland explain what is meant by the active obedience of Christ and why there’s no hope without it.
Two Natures, One Lord: Incarnation
April 02, 2023 06:00 - 46 minutes - 107 MBChrist’s incarnation immediately sets Christianity apart from other religions and disrupts the expectations of religious leaders. So, what is this important doctrine and what do we lose if we deny it? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland consider Christ’s divine and human natures and what Christ’s incarnation means for us.
How to Do Law and Gospel Wrong
March 26, 2023 06:00 - 41 minutes - 94.2 MBThroughout this series, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland have talked a lot about the need to distinguish law from gospel, but what happens when there’s not only a distinction but a division between the two? In this episode of White Horse Inn, the roundtable considers various distortions of the law-gospel distinction and their implications for the church.
Why the Order Matters
March 19, 2023 06:00 - 42 minutes - 96.5 MBProponents of the law-gospel distinction have often emphasized the need for them to appear in the right order. But how important is that order? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss what’s at stake if the law and gospel are out of order or confused.
What Is the Gospel?
March 12, 2023 07:00 - 43 minutes - 99.7 MBIs the gospel something that we do? Is it something—like a law—that we can execute or abide by? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland unpack the covenant of grace throughout Scripture, considering the counterintuitive nature of God’s unilateral kindness to us in the gospel.
What Is the Law?
March 05, 2023 07:00 - 44 minutes - 101 MBWe are no strangers to the category of “law,” but how is God’s law different from man-made laws and rituals? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland discuss the importance of the law-gospel distinction and dig into the definition of the law and its impact on God’s people today.
God’s Remedy (1 John 2:1–2)
February 26, 2023 07:00 - 39 minutes - 89.4 MBWe have a remedy to our sin problem, declared in 1 John 2:1-2, the fourth and final Comfortable Word. Because Jesus was our sacrifice, he is now our advocate. In this conclusion to our series on Thomas Cranmer’s Comfortable Words, White Horse Inn hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller reflect on the doctrine of propitiation, the order of the words, and the comfort found in remembering that Christ is our advocate.
God’s Diagnosis (1 Timothy 1:15)
February 19, 2023 07:00 - 43 minutes - 98.7 MBThe third word (1 Timothy 1:15) diagnoses our human condition, revealing not just the subjective feeling of burden but also the objective consequences of violating God’s law. So how is this a “Comfortable Word”? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller consider the doctrine of sin and the concept and comfort of simul justus et peccator—“simultaneously justified and sinner.”
God’s Disposition (John 3:16)
February 12, 2023 07:00 - 37 minutes - 87 MBThe second of the Comfortable Words, John 3:16, demonstrates God’s desire and initiative to save his people. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller unpack this familiar verse and consider its implications for how we think about salvation, fellow image-bearers, and our Christian freedom.
God’s Invitation
February 05, 2023 07:00 - 41 minutes - 95.8 MBAs Christians, we often struggle to view God as one who wants to meet us with words of comfort and good news. But understanding God’s heart towards sinners is not just a therapeutic exercise, it’s our only hope in the midst of our spiritual fatigue. In this episode, White Horse Inn hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller discuss the first of the Comfortable Words, Matthew 11:28, exposing our weariness and longing while exploring the rest that Christ offers.
Spiritual Disciplines
January 29, 2023 07:00 - 44 minutes - 102 MBDo Reformational people read their Bibles? Do they have daily “quiet times”? Is it important for them to pray every day? Sometimes we can give people the sense that all God really cares about is public worship, but what happens in our public assembly should flow down into our families and then into our individual spiritual lives as well. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller discuss the role private piety plays in our Christian life, conside...
Every Member Ministry and Simple Church
January 22, 2023 07:00 - 45 minutes - 103 MBMany of us were raised in churches that downplayed the clergy-laity distinction. Every member, we were told, was a minister. Now, we’re in churches that take ordination seriously and that sees the biblical rationale for “office.” Maybe we’re even relieved to find that these churches don’t fill our calendars with a busy week of “ministry activities,” but instead prioritize Sunday worship. But where does that leave the laity? And where is the spiritual formation that happens when we live in co...
Sin and Total Depravity
January 15, 2023 07:00 - 41 minutes - 57.3 MBMany churches preach that your biggest problem is that you’re not living your best life now. Rather than calling people to repentance, they call them to “try harder, do better” so that they can be fulfilled, healthy, and happy. Reformed theology provides a doctrine to help counter this wrong diagnosis of our true problem: total depravity. But sometimes, this doctrine sounds much more like “utter depravity,” leaving nothing good or redeemable about humanity. In this episode of White Horse Inn...
The Egghead
January 08, 2023 07:00 - 43 minutes - 99.9 MBIs Christianity really as intellectually driven as some of us seem to think? Sermons are lectures. Bible studies, book groups, and theology discussions take on an outsized role in the life of the church. We have difficulty talking to people who don’t know our jargon. In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller discuss how we can push back against an overly intellectual approach to the faith and embrace a holistic church ministry and spiritual life.
Tim Keller on Suffering, Forgiveness, and the Future of the Church
January 01, 2023 07:00 - 46 minutes - 106 MBMartin Luther once said, "Prayer, study, and suffering make a pastor." Few things can better describe the life and ministry of Tim Keller. In this episode, Michael Horton is joined by Tim Keller to discuss how his cancer diagnosis has affected his spiritual practices, why forgiveness is essential in life and society, the church's resilience amidst increasing secularization, and more.
Our Full Homage to Demand
December 25, 2022 07:00 - 42 minutes - 58.9 MBIn this final episode for the 2022 Christmas series, White Horse Inn hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller unpack the beloved Christmas text, Isaiah 9:6, considering how each phrase is truly good news of great joy: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Gratitude and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
December 21, 2022 07:00 - 7 minutes - 16.7 MB"Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point," said Scrooge, "answer me one question." In this special episode, Michael Horton shares how the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come in Dickens's 'A Christmas Carol' points us to our need for a transformation, but how only the gospel can move us from behavioral change to living a new life of gratitude and joy.
He Came in God the Father’s Name
December 18, 2022 07:00 - 43 minutes - 60.2 MBWhat did Jesus accomplish in his first Advent? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller consider the effects of the incarnation of the Son of God—sin is atoned for, exile is over, and his reign reaches “far as the curse is found.”
Grace and the Ghost of Christmas Present
December 14, 2022 07:00 - 10 minutes - 23.7 MB"Come in! and know me better, man!" In this special episode, Justin Holcomb shares how the Ghost of Christmas Present in Dickens's 'A Christmas Carol' teaches us about grace and peace and the invitation to feast in the Christian life.
Robed in Dreadful Majesty
December 11, 2022 07:00 - 43 minutes - 59.8 MBAs we wait for Jesus to come again, what exactly are we waiting for? What kind of kingdom will Jesus bring? In this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller look back to the expectations surrounding the Messiah’s coming and consider what Christ’s rule and reign look like now and in the future.
Guilt and the Ghost of Christmas Past
December 07, 2022 07:00 - 5 minutes - 13.6 MB“Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!” In this special episode, Bob Hiller shares how the Ghost of Christmas Past in Dickens's 'A Christmas Carol' teaches us about guilt, the law, and how we are freed from its condemnation through Christ.
Death’s Dark Shadows
December 04, 2022 07:00 - 37 minutes - 52 MBThe Advent season reminds us that we’re still waiting. But as we long and wait for God’s promised peace and redemption, we’re tempted to take matters into our own hands. On this episode of White Horse Inn, hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller discuss what Advent is and what faithful longing for God’s peace and redemption looks like.
David VanDrunen and Two Kingdoms
November 27, 2022 07:00 - 42 minutes - 57.9 MBIn this episode, David VanDrunen advocates for the Two-Kingdoms view, which Michael Horton shares. Though they are not uniform in their approaches, this beneficial conversation examines the view of the Two-Kingdoms, the criticisms against it, and its practical application in the church and society.
The Thrill of Orthodoxy with Guest Trevin Wax
November 23, 2022 07:00 - 36 minutes - 49.5 MBIn this special Thanksgiving episode of the White Horse Inn, Justin Holcomb interviews Trevin Wax about his new book, The Thrill of Orthodoxy: Rediscovering the Adventure of Christian Faith.
Gary DeMar and American Vision
November 20, 2022 07:00 - 44 minutes - 61 MBIn this episode, Gary DeMar advocates that America once had a Christian heritage that can and should be recovered and that some of Israel’s civil laws should indeed govern American and Western society.
Susannah Black Roberts and Christian Post-Liberalism
November 13, 2022 07:00 - 41 minutes - 56.5 MBIn this episode, Susannah Black Roberts advocates for the view of “Christian post-liberalism,” defending her position that “the purpose of earthly government is to bring those governed to their natural end: to be virtuous men and women with justice in their souls, who participate in the common good of the city; it also has the purpose of directing us to our final supernatural end, according to its own methods, in a humble way and without stepping on the toes of the church.”
Peter Leithart and Constantinianism
November 06, 2022 06:00 - 39 minutes - 54.4 MBIn this episode of White Horse Inn, Peter Leithart advocates for what some describe as “Constantinianism,” where the church is knit into the civic order, and where civic responsibilities are also carried out by the church and its clergy.
Are You Called to Ministry?
October 30, 2022 06:00 - 42 minutes - 58.6 MBIn this special episode concluding our White Horse Inn series on vocation, Michael Horton and Justin Holcomb sit down to discuss the call to vocational ministry. Drawing on their experiences as ordained ministers and seminary professors, they answer questions like: What are the qualifications for pastoral ministry? How do you know if you’re called to ministry? When should you go to seminary? And how can we encourage those in our midst we think may be called?
The Forgotten Discovery of the Reformation
October 23, 2022 06:00 - 35 minutes - 49.5 MBDuring the Reformation, “the priesthood of all believers”—considered one of the most important discoveries of the Reformation—countered the clericalism of Rome and restored the dignity of ordinary vocations. So what does the daily office of “Christian” look like today? And how are laypeople meant to engage in the work of ministry? In this episode of White Horse Inn, Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and special guest Walter Strickland discuss the priesthood of all believers, consid...
Your Labor Is Not in Vain
October 16, 2022 06:00 - 36 minutes - 50.7 MBThe apostle Paul tells us that in light of Christ’s resurrection and in view of our own, our work is not in vain. It has meaning and purpose. So how do we navigate the goodness and the promises of work in the context of a world where sin has plagued our vocations? What does the doctrine of vocation say to a generation of people who are unsatisfied, burning out, and just plain tired? Listen to Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and special guest Walter Strickland continue their discu...
Living Under God’s Pleasure: The Christian Employee
October 09, 2022 06:00 - 43 minutes - 59.1 MBIs there a distinctly Christian way to go about our day jobs? In this episode of White Horse Inn, Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, Bob Hiller, and Walter Strickland consider what makes our work valuable. They challenge the human tendency to search for ultimate significance and satisfaction in our work, pointing listeners to God’s design for believers to live out their vocations under God’s pleasure, in the power of the Spirit, and within the rhythms of work and rest that he provides.
Called to Work
October 02, 2022 06:00 - 39 minutes - 54.8 MBWhen we talk about work, it’s easy to jump right to the Fall and consider how work is frustrated by sin. But how does the pre-Fall creation narrative shape our understanding of vocation? And what does that mean for a post-Fall reality? In this episode of White Horse Inn, Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller are joined by special guest Walter Strickland in a new series examining the doctrine of vocation. This episode looks at the goodness inherent to work, what it looks like to imag...
What Happened to the Queen of the Sciences?
September 25, 2022 06:00 - 34 minutes - 47.7 MBConcluding our series on the intersection of faith and science, White Horse Inn hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller venture into the social sciences, considering how disciplines like psychology and sociology fit within the Christian faith. As they do, they examine topics like primary and secondary causes, mental illness, and what happens when we have an over-realized eschatology.
Creation: Miracle and Providence
September 18, 2022 06:00 - 38 minutes - 53.2 MBWhat happens when our understanding of the Bible’s creation narrative contradicts current scientific theory? In this episode of White Horse Inn, Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller continue their discussion of faith and science by considering God’s two ways of speaking in creation: divine fiat and providence. As they consider the compatibility of various scientific views with the biblical account, they also outline what is essential for Christians to affirm when it comes to creati...
Genesis: Just Another Creation Myth?
September 11, 2022 06:00 - 37 minutes - 51.6 MBThe first few chapters in Genesis are some of the most hotly debated in Christian circles. What did Moses intend for his readers to understand when he penned the Bible’s creation narrative? What did he know about the creation myths of the surrounding nations, and how might that impact our understanding today? In this episode of White Horse Inn, Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller model charitable disagreement as they represent and discuss different interpretations of Genesis 1 and...
Is Christianity Opposed to Science?
September 04, 2022 06:00 - 38 minutes - 53 MBThough faith and science are often pitted against each other, this wasn’t always the case. In fact, in the Middle Ages, theology was known as “the queen of the sciences.” So, what’s changed? White Horse Inn hosts Michael Horton, Justin Holcomb, and Bob Hiller are kicking off a new series examining the relationship between faith and science. In this episode, they consider the historical relationship between these disciplines, examining what has caused growing skepticism towards the sciences a...