Theology in the Raw

Are evangelicals really defined by Donald Trump, culture wars, and the pursuit of political power? Or are we missing a much bigger picture?
Bonnie Kristian joins Preston to discuss her book, In Defense of Evangelicalism: A Response to Its Cultured Despisers. A journalist and deputy editor at Christianity Today, Bonnie offers a defense of evangelicalism while openly criticizing its failures and explaining why she isn’t a Trump supporter.
We explore what “evangelical” actually means, the accusations leveled against the movement, and why Bonnie believes some critiques overlook the ordinary faithfulness of millions of Christians. We also discuss evangelical support for Trump, what voting statistics can and can’t tell us, and the difference between voting for a candidate and embracing everything that candidate represents.
The conversation also tackles Christian nationalism, the line between voting your values and imposing your beliefs, evangelical attitudes toward war, and Bonnie’s disagreements with Jesus and John Wayne. Can we take evangelical hypocrisy seriously without reducing an entire movement to its worst examples? And can we criticize someone’s politics without dismissing their faith?
CHAPTERS
00:00 Critiquing politics without condemning people
00:30 Are evangelicals really that bad?
03:50 Introducing Bonnie Kristian
06:45 What does “evangelical” actually mean?
10:31 Why hesitate to call yourself evangelical?
11:41 Five accusations against evangelicalism
16:35 Are evangelical faith and Republican politics inseparable?
18:24 Putting the “81 percent” statistic in context
20:18 Why evangelicals vote for Trump
24:13 Culture wars, political power, and voting your values
27:12 When does voting your faith become Christian nationalism?
33:28 Defending evangelicals without supporting Trump
35:45 War, conscience, and rejecting both parties
39:28 Why do evangelicals support war?
43:48 Torture, the Golden Rule, and the influence of faith
45:58 Pushback on the book and Jesus and John Wayne
50:42 Why Bonnie won’t denounce evangelical Trump voters
53:36 Criticism, reform, and contempt for evangelicals
54:40 Engaging critics and knowing when to step away
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What does faith look like when healing doesn’t come? And how can churches move beyond welcoming people with disabilities to creating genuine belonging? Cameron and Annie Horner join Preston to explore disability, marriage, suffering, and what the church misses when disabled voices are sidelined.

Cameron and Annie share how they met at the Exiles in Babylon conference and how vulnerability shaped their relationship. Together, they challenge assumptions about disability and offer practical ways churches can remove barriers to worship, community, and leadership.

Cameron Horner is a quadriplegic pastor, speaker, and ministry leader who became paralyzed from the chest down at age 18 after a diving accident. Annie Horner is a mental health therapist with Living Whole Hearted, a clinic based in Portland, Oregon. Together, they lead Accessible Grace, equipping churches to move beyond inclusion to genuine belonging for people with disabilities.

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CHAPTERS
00:00 Faith when healing doesn’t come
00:45 Why disability belongs in the church conversation
03:36 Meet Cameron and Annie Horner
04:22 A love story that started at Exiles in Babylon
07:18 Annie’s story: abuse, faith, and finding hope
11:40 From Ireland to a marriage proposal
12:47 Dating, disability, and assumptions about relationships
16:37 Building a relationship on what matters
19:33 Sponsor: Western Seminary
20:30 What people misunderstand about their marriage
21:24 Purity culture and the “ideal spouse” checklist
24:06 How vulnerability made room for love
26:46 When disability happens during a marriage
29:59 Disability and the church: where do we start?
32:08 Accessibility beyond ramps and parking spaces
35:21 Seeing disability as part of the body’s diversity
38:48 How church culture can exclude families
40:59 Who gets to lead in our churches?
43:12 Cameron’s calling to pastor and teach
46:03 Moses, disability, and God’s accommodation
48:11 “Stand if you’re able”: why language matters
52:31 Disability theology and the resurrected Jesus
56:18 How should we talk about disability?
58:29 A first step for church leaders: listen
61:09 What disability teaches us about being human
62:48 Celebrating faithfulness without a miraculous ending
65:18 Cameron and Preston’s marathon rivalry

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When does church leadership become spiritual manipulation? And how do you disagree with a pastor who says, “God told me”? Preston talks with New Testament scholar Joshua W. Jipp about how even well-meaning Christian leaders can cross the line from serving people to controlling them.
Drawing on his book, How (Not) to Be a Tyrant, Josh explores what the Bible’s worst rulers reveal about power, ambition, and the temptation to use God’s authority to advance our own agendas. We discuss why charisma and results aren’t enough to identify a healthy leader, how fear can become a tool of control, and what makes Jesus’ approach to leadership radically different.
We also wrestle with church leadership structures, Paul’s use of authority, Romans 13 and Revelation 13, and when Christians should submit, push back, or leave. Along the way, we consider the faithful pastors whose humility and service rarely make the headlines.
Joshua W. Jipp (PhD, Emory University) is associate professor of New Testament at the University of Notre Dame. He is the author of several books, including his most recent book, How (Not) to Be a Tyrant: Ten Lessons on Life and Leadership from the Bible’s Worst Rulers (Brazos Press).

CHAPTERS
00:00 When spiritual authority becomes control
00:39 Introducing Joshua W. Jipp
02:19 Why study the Bible’s worst rulers?
07:04 Leadership and power throughout the Bible
09:55 Did God want Israel to have a king?
13:32 Sponsors
15:53 The temptation facing well-meaning leaders
17:47 Using God to advance a leader’s agenda
18:59 Why success and charisma aren’t enough
23:16 Does the Bible prescribe a church leadership structure?
28:29 How can a servant leader exercise authority?
34:58 Subtle warning signs of controlling leadership
37:57 When disagreeing with a leader means disagreeing with God
39:46 Can other leaders genuinely push back?
40:59 How fear becomes a tool of control
42:18 Submitting to bad rulers: Romans 13 and Revelation 13
47:30 When should you push back on church leadership?
51:13 The faithful pastors who don’t make headlines
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Are Christians being fair in how we understand Islam? Palestinian Christian scholar Dr. Daniel Bannoura joins Preston Sprinkle to explore Islam and Christianity, religious violence, what the Quran says about Jesus, and the treatment of women.

In the fourth and final episode of our Understanding Islam series, Daniel helps me process my conversations with Javad Hashmi, Gabriel Said Reynolds, and Fariza Gulomikova, including some of the pushback the series received.

Daniel grew up in the West Bank and earned his PhD in Islamic Studies at Notre Dame, focusing on the biblical subtext of the Qur’an. We discuss the relationship between the Quran and Hadith, Islamic teachings about Jesus and the Trinity, and Daniel’s interpretation of the Quran’s passage on the crucifixion.

We also wrestle with Christianity’s own history of justifying violence and how politics, culture, and education shape Muslim communities. And I press Daniel on whether Christianity and Islam offer distinct visions for the treatment of women.

It’s a challenging conversation about real theological differences, our own assumptions, and what it means to love our Muslim neighbors faithfully.

Watch or listen to Extra Innings at https://patreon.com/theologyintheraw, where Daniel and I tackle your questions: Is Islam animated by dark spiritual forces? Is it a Christian heresy or a separate religion? What can Christians learn from Muslims? And how should we respond to fears about Sharia law in America?

CHAPTERS
00:00 A Palestinian Christian’s experience of violence
00:31 Understanding Islam: The series finale
02:22 Meet Dr. Daniel Bannoura
05:13 Learning to love Muslim neighbors
08:31 Reflecting on the Islam series
12:31 Was Javad Hashmi representative of Islam?
18:22 The Quran, Hadith, and Islamic scholarship
24:22 What does Islam teach about Jesus?
28:27 The Quran and the Trinity
30:08 Does the Quran deny Jesus’ crucifixion?
35:43 How religious traditions develop
38:14 Why focus on violence and women?
40:27 Comparing Christian and Muslim violence
44:30 Muslim diversity beyond the stereotypes
45:43 Colonialism, politics, and religious extremism
48:37 Women, culture, and education
52:08 Do Christianity and Islam treat women differently?
55:00 Jesus’ countercultural treatment of women
59:41 Your questions answered in Extra Innings
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Watch our Extra Innings conversation on Patreon, where John Mark Comer shares his evolving views on women in church leadership and the questions he’s still wrestling with: https://www.patreon.com/theologyintheraw
What is constant noise doing to our souls? And why can being alone with God feel so uncomfortable?
John Mark Comer joins Preston to discuss his latest book, Into the Quiet: Following Jesus in a World of Noise. We explore how noise affects our capacity to love God and others, what surfaced during John Mark’s 21-day solitude retreat, and why silence often brings us face-to-face with the pain we’ve been avoiding.
John Mark also shares why quiet doesn’t come naturally to him, how to practice solitude within the demands of everyday life, the difference between solitude and loneliness, and the surprising structure of the small church he helps pastor.
John Mark Comer is the New York Times bestselling author of eight books, including Practicing the Way, which was named the 2025 Christian Book of the Year by the ECPA, and The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, which has sold more than a million copies and been translated into over 20 languages. His latest book is Into the Quiet: Following Jesus in a World of Noise, which forms the basis of our conversation. John Mark is a pastor and the founder of Practicing the Way, an organization working to see the renewal of apprenticeship to Jesus in our time.
CHAPTERS
00:00 Why solitude is so hard
00:49 Introducing John Mark Comer
03:57 Running, ministry, and friendship
07:24 Why your body matters for spiritual formation
10:27 Writing theology that people can understand
12:53 Noise is a threat to our souls
13:48 Sponsors
15:45 How noise affects our bodies and relationships
21:47 John Mark’s 21-day solitude retreat
24:32 What we learn when distractions are stripped away
27:36 Jesus’ rhythm of retreat and return
30:49 Becoming a person of quiet in an anxious world
34:45 Solitude for busy people and extroverts
38:39 Finding quiet within the life you actually have
42:08 The difference between solitude and loneliness
44:56 Inside John Mark’s small church community
47:51 Extra Innings: Women in church leadership
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