Shows / Story / Symbol / Spirit
Story / Symbol / Spirit
Story / Symbol / Spirit is a podcast about how to make sense of Scripture. The Bible is a beautiful gift from God with the power to help us know God and better understand our lives, identity, meaning, and purpose. But for many people, reading the Bible is difficult. The ancient and confusing nature of the stories within the Bible are often prohibitive to our engagement and learning. How can we make sense of the Scriptures. We believe that Story / Symbol / Spirit is a helpful framework to begin…
Episodes
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
46. The Beginning of “The Sons of Israel” - Gen. 29:31-30:24
This week we see the complicated beginnings of the children of Jacob. Jacob now has two wives and in this chapter we see both wives bear children. These…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
45. Jacob’s Strange Marriage - Gen. 29:1-30
Jacob has been sent to Rebekah’s kinfolk to find a wife and begin his family, but he is soon immersed in way more than he bargained for… What will his…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
44. Thanksgiving Devotional
We have gone through 28 chapters so far this calendar year. As we approach Thanksgiving, a holiday specifically designed to orient our minds towards gratitude…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
43. The Stairway to Heaven - Gen. 28
This week we see Jacob, blessed by Isaac, go to Rebekah’s family to find a wife. As he travels towards Harran, he has a strange dream where he sees a staircase…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
42. Rebekah - Deceiver or Hero? - Gen. 27
This week we see what is commonly described as Jacob’s deception of Esau. But as we will see, it is pretty clear that it is Rebekah’s idea. Why does she move…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
41. Isaac, Like Abraham, Has Done Well - Gen. 26
This week we see more drama between the family of Abraham and Abimelech. How will the seed, Isaac, fare in a famine? Will he walk faithfully and patiently in…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
40. He Gave It All Up for Soup - The Saga of Jacob and Esau - Gen. 25:19-34
This week we see the birth of Isaac’s twin sons, Esau and Jacob. Which one will the promise go through? What are these boys like? Who can God trust with the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
39. The Death of Abraham and Another Genealogy - Gen. 25:1-18
This week we go through the first 18 verses of Genesis 25. We say goodbye to Abraham as he is buried in the Promised Land, and we see the Genealogy of…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
38. A Wife and Family for Isaac - Gen. 24
This week we see Abraham’s senior servant find a wife for Isaac. God’s promises start to materialize as the promised seed (Isaac) begins his family. Why is the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
37. Mile Marker One: Genesis 1-22
This week we pause and recap the Story / Symbol / Spirit hermeneutic, revisit the story that we have covered so far (Gen. 1-22), and answer some listener…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
36. The Life of Sarah and Down Payment - Gen. 23
This week, we say goodbye to Abraham’s wife, Sarah. What will Abraham’s response be? What does this mean for the continuation of the promise? And why does…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
35. The Not Sacrifice of Isaac - Gen. 22
This week, the faith of Abraham is tested in maybe the ultimate way: through a command to sacrifice his son. Will Abraham obey? If he does, what will happen to…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
34. Isaac, Laughter, Exile, and the God Who Sees - Gen. 21
This week we finally see the birth of Isaac - the true seed is here! What does Isaac mean for Ishmael and Hagar? How will God treat them now that the true seed…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
33. Back in Egypt (Gerar?) Again - Gen. 20
This week Abraham and Sarah find themselves in another difficult situation with another tyrant - this time in Gerar. What are the parallels to the Egypt story…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
32. Fire and Brimstone: God’s Judgment of Sodom - Gen. 19
This week we see God’s judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah. Is this fair of God? What is the deal with the angels and the men of the city? What happens to Abraham’s…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
31. Negotiating with God - Gen. 18
This week, God appears! Two angels and God Himself appear to Abraham at his tent, eat with him, make promises to him, and invite him into the divine council to…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
30. Name Changes and Circumcision - Gen. 17
This week we see that God doubles down on His promise to Abram, which is revealed as He changes his name from Abram (exalted father) to Abraham (Father of a…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
29. The Tangled Webs We Weave: Hagar and Ishmael - Gen. 16
This week we look at the story of Hagar and Ishmael. As time drags on and the promised seed of Abram is not yet here, patience has worn thin. What does the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
28. Covenants, Promises, Fire Pots, and Torches - Gen. 15
This week we look at a strange scene when God appears to Abram and officially cuts the covenant with him. What does it mean that Abram goes into a deep sleep?…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
27. The Mysterious Melchizedek
In Genesis 14 there is a brief encounter with a mysterious Priest-King named Melchizedek. While he is only mentioned once and the story only takes up a couple…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
26. Sons of Shem, Sons of Ham, and the War of Nine Kings - Gen. 14
This week we see a multi-pronged war in which Abram’s nephew Lot is captured as spoil by the victorious Kedorlaomer. By the power of God, Abram rescues Lot…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
25. Lot Heads for Sodom - Gen. 13
This week we look at the separation of Abram and Lot. Lot goes toward Sodom and Abram goes toward Canaan. How does Lot’s decision reflect the Fall in Gen. 3?…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
24. Egypt, Pharaoh, and the First Exodus - Gen. 12:10-20
This week we see that Abram’s faithfulness takes him towards the promised land, but a drought sends him down to Egypt. In this foreshadowing of the Exodus, we…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
23. The Call of Abram and Biblical Faith - Gen. 12:1-9
This week we look at God’s initial promise to Abram. He will become a great nation. His name will be made great. He will be blessed. And through him all the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
22. Abram’s Genealogy and Ur of the Chaldeans - Gen. 11:10-32
This week we go through the genealogy that leads to Abraham. In this genealogy, we see how God begins His process of restoration and redemption. There is also…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
21. The Tower of Babel(on) - Gen. 11:1-9
This week we go through a well-known story called the Tower of Babel. What does it mean that the people spoke one language? Why did they try to build a tower…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
20. The Table of Nations: Geography and Genealogy - Gen. 10
This week we go through the Table of Nations. This is technically a genealogy of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japeth. Who are these nations? Where did the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
19. Nakedness and The Fall of Ham - Gen. 9
The flood has subsided and God has given His promise to Noah and his sons. What happens when they get off the ark? Will they remain righteous or will there be…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
18. Ravens, Doves, and God’s First Covenant - Gen. 8
God “remembers” Noah, and the flood subsides. Does this mean Noah had slipped His mind until He remembered? And what is the deal with the birds that Noah sends…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
17. The Flood Begins - Gen. 7
This week, we begin the story of the Flood - Noah has faithfully constructed the ark and all of the seeds of new creation are in this ark. It rains for 40 days…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
16. Who are these giants (Nephilim)?
Last week we mentioned a strange story about the Nephilim - the Sons of God (angelic beings) have reproduced with the daughters of men and produced a race of…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
15. Giants, Arks, and Chaos Waters - Gen. 6
This week, we begin the flood story. Human wickedness has destroyed God’s good world, the Sons of God (angelic beings) have started reproducing with human…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
14. Death and Really Old Patriarchs - Gen. 5
This week we tackle Genesis 5, which is the genealogy from Seth to Noah. What does this genealogy tell us about the story? And why are the people listed in the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
13. The Spiral of Depravity, Exile, and the Grace of God - Gen. 4:11-26
This week we continue the story of Cain. After slaying his brother, he is cursed from the ground. What does this mean? What is his future as a wanderer? What…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
12. Murder, Death and Sacrifice - Gen. 4:1-10
This week we begin the story of Cain and Abel - why does God not look upon Cain’s sacrifice with favor? What is ritual sacrifice? Why was this so central to…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
11. Talking Snakes and The Tragedy of the Fall - Genesis 3
What exactly happens in the Fall? Why is there a talking snake? Why does this one act of humanity fracture everything in the created world? This week, we…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
09. A Second Creation Story? - Genesis 2:4-13
This week, in a special two-part episode, we look at Genesis 2 - Genesis 2 is a second account of Creation that zooms in on the creation of man. It gives us a…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
10. The Woman and the Trees - Genesis 2:14-25
In part two of this week’s episode, we see the creation of woman and the pre-fall sacrament of marriage. We will also look at The Tree of Life and The Tree of…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
08. “Let US” - The Trinity and the Divine Council
After repeatedly saying, “Let there be…” prior to creating, before the creation of humans God says, “Let US make…” (Gen. 1:26). Who is the “us?” Is it the…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
07. God Fills the Emptiness - Genesis 1:14-2:3
This week, we continue our journey through Genesis 1. On the first three days of creation, God took a chaotic world that was not fit for life, and He brought…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
06. God Orders the Disorder - Genesis 1:1-13
Let’s begin! This week, we start our trek through the Bible with the creation story. In the first three days of creation, you will see God take a world that is…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
05. Why is Jonah so mad? - Jonah 1:1-4:11
This week we dive into the book of Jonah and go through it from beginning to end. Why does Jonah flee from the call of God? Why is he so mad that the Ninevites…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
04. Jonah Introduction - Who is Jonah?
This week and next we will apply the Story / Symbol / Spirit grid to the book of Jonah. These two episodes will be a teaser to show how this will work as we go…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
03. Is the Bible Reliable?
The Bible is an ancient book that has been passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years. We do not have the original manuscripts of any…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
02. What Is the Bible?
Before we start to read the Bible, we should first define what kind of book it is. As Christians, we believe that the Bible is the divinely inspired, inerrant…
- Story / Symbol / Spirit
01. Do I really need to read the Bible?
Why is it so hard to read the Bible? Even if I want to read it, how do I do that? Without an effective framework, reading the Bible will prove to be very…