{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/6622be675594200013592899/6a9e014eeea4f5ac9a0d7e6b?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"EP61 - From Agnostic to Theology Professor: Dr. Paul Eddy on Faith, Truth & Covenant Love","description":"<h3>EPISODE SUMMARY:</h3><p>In this episode of Rooted, hosts Josie &amp; Symone sit down with Paul Eddy, PhD, Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Bethel University and Teaching Pastor at Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Paul shares his personal faith journey from functional agnosticism to a life rooted in Jesus, explaining how God met him powerfully during his time as a Bethel student and led him from medicine into biblical and theological studies.</p><p><br></p><p>Together, they explore what it means to be rooted in truth in a post-truth culture, how Christians can connect both the head and the heart in discipleship, and why community is essential for spiritual growth. Paul also unpacks biblical love through the lens of agape, explaining why real love is not merely emotion-based but choice-based, self-sacrificial, and oriented toward the good of the other.</p><p><br></p><p>The conversation then dives into covenant relationships, marriage, singleness, dating, emotions, spiritual warfare, and the danger of turning romance into an idol. Paul offers wisdom for young adults navigating relationships, reminding listeners that marriage is a gift, but Jesus alone completes us. The episode closes with a powerful truth Paul believes every Christian must be rooted in: God looks like Jesus.</p><p><br></p><p>—----------------------</p><p><br></p><h3>TIMESTAMP SUMMARY:</h3><p><strong>01:40</strong> — Paul’s 32 years at Bethel and why teaching students still matters</p><p><strong>03:20</strong> — How to talk with people who are questioning faith</p><p><strong>07:00</strong> — Paul’s faith journey from functional agnosticism to encountering God</p><p><strong>10:40</strong> — Rooted in truth in a post-truth culture</p><p><strong>13:40</strong> — Balancing head and heart in Christian discipleship</p><p><strong>18:40</strong> — Paul and Kelly’s unexpected love story</p><p><strong>20:40</strong> — Biblical love, C.S. Lewis, and the meaning of agape</p><p><strong>27:00</strong> — Thoughts, emotions, spiritual warfare, and renewing the mind</p><p><strong>31:20</strong> — Discerning emotions, relationships, and the voice of the Spirit</p><p><strong>36:20</strong> — What covenant means and why it shapes the whole Bible</p><p><strong>40:40</strong> — Marriage as covenant, not contract</p><p><strong>45:40</strong> — Grace, Peter, and God meeting us where we are</p><p><strong>48:00</strong> — Encouragement for those waiting for marriage</p><p><strong>53:40</strong> — Marriage, singleness, and relationships as formation</p><p><strong>55:20</strong> — Dating, courtship, and keeping relationships healthy</p><p><strong>58:00</strong> — Dating as brothers and sisters in Christ</p><p><strong>01:00:00</strong> — The truth every listener should be rooted in: God looks like Jesus</p><p><br></p><p>—----------------------</p><p><br></p><h3>NOTABLE QUOTES:</h3><ul><li><em>“Anything that becomes that which I must have to be fulfilled and complete that isn’t Jesus threatens to become an idol in our lives.”</em></li><li><em>“Most idols are good gifts from God that we don’t keep in the place of gift — we let them rise up to the place of God.”</em></li><li><em>“Tell me about the God you don’t believe in.”</em></li><li><em>“If that’s what you mean by God, I’m an atheist too. Let me tell you about a God I think might exist.”</em></li><li><em>“What we’re trying to do is connect the head and the heart.”</em></li><li><em>“As Christians, we should be the world’s leading relationship experts.”</em></li><li><em>“Agape is other-oriented, self-sacrificial, choice-based love that seeks the best and highest wellbeing of the other.”</em></li><li><em>“We must be detectives of our minds.”</em></li><li><em>“God takes people who are not family, and He makes them family through covenant.”</em></li><li><em>“The single most important question any person ever asks themselves is what happens in the synapses of my brain when I hear the word God?”</em></li></ul><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><em>-------------------</em></p><p><br></p><h3>RESOURCES MENTIONED:</h3><ul><li><strong><em>The Four Loves - by C.S. Lewis</em></strong></li><li><strong><em>Breaking the Marriage Idol - by </em></strong>Kutter Callaway</li><li><strong><em>Paul Eddy’s books</em></strong><em> — available on Amazon</em></li></ul><p><br></p><p><em>-------------------</em></p><p><br></p><h3>FOLLOW &amp; SUPPORT ROOTED</h3><p><em>Instagram: https://instagram.com/rootedtoprosper</em></p><p><em>YouTube: https://youtube.com/rootedtoprosper</em></p><p><em>Support: </em><a href=\"https://bio.site/rootedtoprosper\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\"><em>https://bio.site/rootedtoprosper</em></a></p><p><br></p><p><em>-------------------</em></p><p><br></p>","author_name":"Josie & Symone"}