The BEMA Podcast
The BEMA Podcast is a walk-through of the context of the Bible and the Text itself, as well as surrounding history. We deconstruct our common readings of the Bible and attempt to reconstruct them through the lens of historical context. The main body of work is contained in Seasons 1–5, and we encourage you to start with episode 0 (or even -1) and continue in order through episode 204. Beyond that, we explore new topics, revisit old topics, and dive deeper into practical ways of living out the things we have learned together. BEMA Discipleship is a ministry of Impact Campus Ministries.
509: The Four Pillars — Don’t Let Go
Brent Billings and Elle Grover Fricks burrow into three different ways to wrestle.
Intertextual.Bible
Sefaria Library
BEMA 120: Truth and Light
BEMA 502: The Four Pillars — Community
BEMA 24: Creating a Space
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508: The Four Pillars — Wrestling
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings begin the last leg of the journey through the Four Pillars, examining the commitment to wrestling.
The Sin of Certainty by Peter Enns
The Evangelical Imagination by Karen Swallow Prior
The Gospel of Being Human by Marty Solomon and Reed Dent
“Gulliver’s Travels: Week 13” by Karen Swallow Prior
Artemis II — Wikipedia
Pontius Pilate Discovers He’s in the Apostles’ Creed — YouTube
Book Tour Dates
Aberfeldy [Scottish town] — Wikipedia
Dunkeld Cathedral — Wikipedia
Fire of Notre-Dame — Wikipedia...
507: The Four Pillars — Discipleship as a Forge
Brent Billings and Reed Dent consider how to create the right conditions for discipleship.
The Pastor by Eugene H. Peterson
The Supper of the Lamb by Robert Farrar Capon
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506: The Four Pillars — Talmid & Morah
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, and Elle Grover Fricks nurture the roots of the third pillar, discipleship.
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505: The Four Pillars — Discipleship
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the third of BEMA’s four pillars, being challenged by the historical setting and practice of discipleship.
The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah by Alfred Edersheim
Nahum M. Sarna — Wikipedia
Shmuel Safrai — Wikipedia
David Flusser — Wikipedia
Quest for the Historical Jesus — Wikipedia
Albert Schweitzer — Wikipedia
Rudolf Bultmann — Wikipedia
Dead Sea Scrolls — Wikipedia
N. T. Wright — Wikipedia
E. P. Sanders — Wikipedia
The Jesus Quest by Ben Witherington III
Second Temple Judaism — Wi...
504: The Four Pillars — Coming Home to Community
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are wrapping their hands around the pillar of community, guided by Elle Grover Fricks.
Sam Goes With Frodo — Scene from The Fellowship of the Ring (2001 film)
Father’s Letter — Scene from Little Women (2019 film)
“Hallelujah” from Handel’s Messiah — Choir of King’s College, Cambridge
Palouse Choral Society
“How far back in time can you understand English?” by Colin Gorrie — Dead Language Society
Dedicated by Pete Davis
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503: The Four Pillars — Japanese Woodworking Joint
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the pillar of community from the perspective of Reed Dent.
“5 Spectacular Japanese Joints” by Emi Shinmura — Fine Woodworking
BEMA 356: Sabbath Practice — Friendship w/ Derrick James Rohr III
“Followers, Not Admirers” by Søren Kierkegaard in Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter
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502: The Four Pillars — Community
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings look at the second of BEMA’s four pillars: the commitment to and experience of community.
About Impact Campus Ministries (Definition of Success)
Loneliness Sucks — Marty Solomon, YouTube
Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
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501: The Four Pillars — Tome at the Center of the Spiral
Brent Billings and Elle Grover Fricks get the big picture about our holy book.
Spiral Dynamics Illustration
The Unseen Realm by Michael S. Heiser
Review of The Unseen Realm — Brent Billings, Goodreads
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500: David Rudolph — Passover
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by special guest Rabbi Dr. David Rudolph, program director and professor at The King’s University, to talk about how the Council of Nicaea affected the dating of Easter and the implications of that for the Church and the Jewish people.
Sign Up for the BEMA Messenger
“The Council of Nicaea, the Dating of Easter, and Its Implications Concerning the Church’s Relationship to the Jewish People” by David Rudolph, Ph.D.
Yachad BeYeshua
Introduction to Messianic Judaism (Zondervan), edited by David J. Rudolph et al.<...
499: The Four Pillars — Truth in Text
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings join Reed Dent to talk about his perspective on the pillar of Text.
Drawing Hands by M. C. Escher — Wikipedia
The Wall Street Journal, September 12, 2001 (PDF)
“September 11” by Scott Cairns
“Trump's name to appear on coronavirus stimulus checks sent to Americans” — Fox News
“Trump Seeks To Stimulate Economy By Sending Rare Autographed Photo To Every American” — The Onion
Reviews of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003 film) — Reed Dent, Letterboxd
Reviews of Wake Up Dead Man (2025 film) — Reed Dent, Let...
498: The Four Pillars — Text
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings launch a new 12-part reflection on the Four Pillars of BEMA.
BEMA 203: You Are Here
BEMA 78: Silent Years — Essenes
Brent on Instagram
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497: Brad Gray and Brad Nelson — The Lord’s Prayer
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by Brad Gray and Brad Nelson of Walking the Text to talk about the Lord’s Prayer and all of the projects they have in the works to cover this foundational practice of our faith.
Walking the Text
The Sacred Thread
The Lord’s Prayer (2025 film)
Bringing Heaven Here by Brad Gray and Brad Nelson
Review of Bringing Heaven Here — Marty Solomon, Goodreads
Review of Bringing Heaven Here — Brent Billings, Goodreads
“Space philosopher Frank White on ‘The Overview Effect’ and hu...
496: Session 10 Intro
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings begin Session 10 of the podcast and discuss what comes next.
“Patient Trust” by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Josh’s Memorial Service [occured on February 15, 2026]
Impact Campus Ministries
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495: Session 9 Capstone
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, Reed Dent, Elle Grover Fricks, and Josh Bossé close out Session 9. This is Josh’s final episode, both in the sense of recording date (October 7, 2025) and release date.
The Gospel of Being Human by Marty Solomon and Reed Dent
Asking Better Questions of the Bible by Marty Solomon
Fiadh Grover-Fricks at 6 months
Fiadh: Like Mother, Like Daughter
Introducing Maple
Maple on Instagram
Josh Bossé on CaringBridge
BEMA 465: Qohelet’s Reflection
Living Unoffended by Brant Hansen
Good B...
494: Vice & Virtue — Love
Brent Billings and Reed Dent close out this series in an unorthodox format, talking about the virtue of love and what it means to be fully known and fully loved.
Wishful Thinking by Frederick Buechner
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493: Vice & Virtue — Hope
Brent Billings, Reed Dent, and Josh Bossé talk about hope and the potential it leans into.
Four Quartets by T. S. Eliot
Wishful Thinking by Frederick Buechner
“Holy, Holy, Holy” by Sufjan Stevens — YouTube
BEMA 430: It’s a Wonderful Life
Hope — BibleProject
BEMA 52: Jonah — Potential
Special Guest: Mitch Lavender.
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492: Vice & Virtue — Faith
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, and Reed Dent talk about the virtue of faith and the idea of trusting the story.
“Bad Theology: A Quiz” by Scott Cairns — America Magazine
Wishful Thinking by Frederick Buechner
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis
The Gospel of Being Human by Marty Solomon and Reed Dent
Asking Better Questions of the Bible by Marty Solomon
Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell
Gravity and Grace by Simone Weil
Zero at the Bone by Christian Wiman
Mark 8 — Reed Dent, Campus Chr...
491: Sandra Richter — Abigail and the Waterfall
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined again by special guest Dr. Sandra Richter to talk about her latest book, Abigail and the Waterfall.
Abigail and the Waterfall by Sandra L. Richter
Stewards of Eden by Sandra L. Richter
Rev. Dr. Ethan Johnson
“My Journey into Coal Country” — Sandra Richter, Substack
“My Journey into Coal Country, II” — Sandra Richter, Substack
[Part III coming soon]
Plant with Purpose
The Great Spiritual Migration by Brian McLaren
Mount Hermon
Mount Hermon Women’s Retreats
490: Seven (Bonus Episode)
Brent Billings and Reed Dent discuss the 1995 David Fincher film Seven.
Seven (1995 film) — Letterboxd
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Year-End Gifts That Keep on Giving
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings share a special brief message about year-end giving, the financial needs of our ministry, and what we hope to do in the future.
Support Our 2025 Year-End Ministry Efforts
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489: Vice & Virtue — Justice
Brent Billings and Reed Dent discuss justice. The regular episode is preceded by some thoughts on Josh Bossé from Marty Solomon and Elle Grover Fricks.
Support for Sophia and Ronen after the loss of Josh — GoFundMe
For Josh — Text in Us
Lament for Josh ft. Reed Dent — Text in Us
“Justice” by George MacDonald, Unspoken Sermons — The Literature Network
Brent reads “Justice” by George MacDonald on Instagram
Justice by Nicholas Wolterstorff
Stewards of Eden by Sandra L. Richter
The Prophets by Abraham Joshua Heschel
Just...
488: Vice & Virtue — Courage
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, and Reed Dent discuss courage. The regular episode is preceded by some thoughts on Josh Bossé from Reed and Brent.
Support for Sophia and Ronen after the loss of Josh — GoFundMe
For Josh — Text in Us
Remembering Josh Bossé — Brent Billings
“When I Am Among the Trees” by Mary Oliver in Thirst
“The Peace of Wild Things” by Wendell Berry in The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry
Daily Prayer with the Corrymeela Community by Pádraig Ó Tuama
The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
...
487: Sitting Shiva for Josh Bossé
Brent Billings marks the beginning of our mourning by sharing a final update about our beloved Josh Bossé.
BEMA Messenger #79
BEMA 465: Qohelet’s Reflection
BEMA 405: Practical Shabbat — Keeping
Josh’s Cancer Journey on CaringBridge
Support for Sophia and Ronen after the loss of Josh — GoFundMe
“How to Sit Shiva” by Anita Diamant — My Jewish Learning
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486: Vice & Virtue — Temperance
Brent Billings, Reed Dent, and Elle Grover Fricks talk about the virtue of temperance.
A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again by David Foster Wallace
“A Thousand No’s for Every Yes” — YouTube
Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis
The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
The Cardinal and the Deadly by Karl Clifton-Soderstrom
Face with Steam From Nose — Emojipedia
Dedicated by Pete Davis
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485: Vice & Virtue — Prudence
Brent Billings, Reed Dent, and Josh Bossé dive into the virtues by talking about prudence (or wisdom).
Teaching a Stone to Talk by Annie Dillard
Asking Better Questions of the Bible by Marty Solomon
The Gospel of Being Human by Marty Solomon and Reed Dent
Inspired by Rachel Held Evans
BEMA 454: Qohelet Goes Off
Ordet (1955 film) — Letterboxd
The Cardinal and the Deadly by Karl Clifton-Soderstrom
Reed on Instagram
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484: Dallas Jenkins — It Would Have Been Enough (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are back again with Dallas Jenkins to mull over the questions that arose from Seasons 4 and 5 of The Chosen.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
This Is Not a Pipe — Wikipedia
Roundtable Discussion on the Women’s Supper
The Chosen Adventures (2025 TV series)
Dayenu in Many Languages — The Chosen, YouTube
Special Guest: Dallas Jenkins.
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483: Annie F. Downs — That Sounds Fun
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings are joined by special guest Annie F. Downs, bestselling author, speaker, prolific podcaster, and “Queen of Fun.”
Annie’s upcoming events (Tour with Cain, etc.)
Let’s Read the Gospels Podcast
That Sounds Fun Podcast
That Sounds Fun 965: Jonathan Roumie
Annie’s Recommended Episodes
That Sounds Fun 906: Jonathan Merritt and Dr. James Merritt That Sounds Fun 964: John Eldredge That Sounds Fun 898: John Eldredge That Sounds Fun 388: John Eldredge That Sounds Fun 281: John Eldredge That Sounds Fun 210: John Eldredge That Sounds Fun 877: Esau McCaulley That Sound...482: The Chosen S5E8 — “The Upper Room, Part 2” (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings bring the analysis of Season 5 of The Chosen to a close with a discussion of the eighth episode.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
Leil Shimurim — Chabad
Gethsemane — Blue Letter Bible
“Flee as a Bird” by Mary S. B. D. Shindler (1842) — A Cappella Hymns, YouTube
“Flee as a Bird” by Mary S. B. D. Shindler (1842) — The Cyber Hymnal
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481: Vice & Virtue — Sloth
Brent Billings, Reed Dent, and Josh Bossé talk about the capital vice known as sloth—or rather, acedia.
David Hume’s Moral Philosophy: The Natural Virtues — Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Making All Things New by Henri Nouwen
Inside Out 2 (2024 film)
Glittering Vices by Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung
Acedia & Me by Kathleen Norris
The Message in the Bottle by Walker Percy
BEMA 2: Knowing When to Say “Enough”
1 Corinthians 3 — Reed Dent, Campus Christian Fellowship
BEMA 400: Talmudic Matthew — Salt
BEMA 401: Talmudic Matthew — Light
BEMA 402: Tal...
480: The Chosen S5E7 — “The Upper Room, Part 1” (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings continue analyzing Season 5 of The Chosen with a discussion of the seventh episode.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
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479: Vice & Virtue — Wrath
Brent Billings and Reed Dent talk about wrath (and anger and revenge).
“Goodbye Earl” by The Chicks — YouTube
Slow to Anger — BibleProject
“Justice” by George MacDonald, Unspoken Sermons — The Literature Network
Brent reads “Justice” by George MacDonald on Instagram
Glittering Vices by Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung
Steve Holt! — YouTube
The West Wing S1E3, “A Proportional Response” (Part 1) — YouTube
The West Wing S1E3, “A Proportional Response” (Part 2) — YouTube
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478: The Chosen S5E6 — “Reunions” (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings continue analyzing Season 5 of The Chosen with a discussion of the sixth episode.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
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477: Vice & Virtue — Envy
Brent Billings and Reed Dent talk about envy.
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999 film) — Letterboxd
Glittering Vices by Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung
“The Other Six Deadly Sins” by Dorothy L. Sayers
The Cardinal and the Deadly by Karl Clifton-Soderstrom
No Exit (1944 play) by Jean-Paul Sartre — Wikipedia
BEMA 39: A King After God’s Own Heart
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476: The Chosen S5E5 — “Because of Me” (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings continue analyzing Season 5 of The Chosen with a discussion of the fifth episode.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
Jesus and the Victory of God by N. T. Wright
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475: Vice & Virtue — Vainglory
Marty Solomon, Brent Billings, and Reed Dent talk about pride (or, rather, vainglory).
The King of Comedy (1982 film) — Letterboxd
Wishful Thinking by Frederick Buechner
There Will Be Blood (2007 film) — Letterboxd
Whiplash (2014 film) — Letterboxd
Soli Deo Gloria — Wikipedia
John Chrysostom — Wikipedia
“This Is Water” by David Foster Wallace (YouTube)
“This Is Water” by David Foster Wallace (Amazon)
Glittering Vices by Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung
Jesus and the Victory of God by N. T. Wright
The Weight of Glory by C. S. Lewis
Raid...
474: The Chosen S5E4 — “The Same Coin” (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings continue analyzing Season 5 of The Chosen with a discussion of the fourth episode.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
Dayenu — Wikipedia
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473: Vice & Virtue — Greed
Brent Billings, Reed Dent, and Elle Grover Fricks talk about greed.
Wall Street (1987 film) — Letterboxd
Glengarry Glen Ross (1992 film) — Letterboxd
The Wolf of Wall Street (2013 film) — Letterboxd
Wishful Thinking by Frederick Buechner
“Is Greed Good? On God and Wealth” by Donald Goergen — Church Life Journal
To Have or to Be? by Eric Fromm
Fight Club (1999 film) – Letterboxd
BEMA 356: Sabbath Practice — Friendship w/ Derrick James Rohr III
The Cardinal and the Deadly by Karl Clifton-Soderstrom
BEMA 314: Parables — The Barn Builder
La Pachanga M...
472: The Chosen S5E3 — “Woes” (Bonus Episode)
Marty Solomon and Brent Billings continue analyzing Season 5 of The Chosen with a discussion of the third episode.
The Chosen
The Chosen (TV Series) — Wikipedia
The Chosen (2017 TV Series) — IMDb
Jesus and the Victory of God by N. T. Wright
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471: Vice & Virtue — Gluttony
Brent Billings and Reed Dent gorge themselves on gluttony and its many forms.
“Living Lent” by Barbara Cawthorne Crafton in Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter
Glittering Vices by Rebecca Konyndyk DeYoung
The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis
When Harry Met Sally (1989 film) — JustWatch
The Cardinal and the Deadly by Karl Clifton-Soderstrom
“Hungry Mungry” by Shel Silverstein in Where the Sidewalk Ends
“The Satisfactions of the Mad Farmer” by Wendell Berry in The Mad Farmer Poems
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