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Join Jo Frost and Peter Lynas for a conversation asking what it really means to be human. Listen in as they discuss some of the biggest issues of our day, all the while exploring how we can ensure that it’s God’s story that ultimately defines who we are and how we live our lives.
Episodes
Thursday Jan 21, 2021
Thursday Jan 21, 2021
Are all of our disagreements about justice in the world simply power struggles? Our global and neighborhood communities seem to constantly clash over imbalances and injustices. It seems as if we are watching a stage play where different actors constantly switch the roles of victim and oppressor.
The standard of true justice in the God story is not contingent upon the shifting sands of power struggles. Rather, we see that real justice is rooted in morality and defined by the character of God. In the Bible we see the improbable mingling of justice and mercy in the person and cross of Jesus Christ.
Join Peter and Jo in this week’s episode of Being Human, as we seek to understand an often-contested word.
Introduction (0:00)
00:15 Follow us on Twitter or check out our website http://beinghumanproject.co.uk
02:08 People in a society have to trust that there is a fair place to resolve disagreements, and yet we clash over our definitions of justice.
Act I (3:40)
03:50 Our conversations about justice today are inescapably shaped by Karl Marx’s understanding of power as a limited resource.
06:36 Perceived power imbalances of many different kinds drive our political involvement and clashes over justice.
08:56 The role of victim identity becomes a key strategy in our social power maneuvers and twists our capacity to realize true justice.
Act II (12:07)
12:18 Though our culture cannot seem to agree on a standard, the Bible always roots justice in morality.
14:30 The God story tells us that justice is defined by the character of God.
17:26 The two Biblical concepts of justice are beautifully joined in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
19:46 According to God’s design people must not treated differently according to class. But God incredibly moves beyond the reductionst vision of power justice to mercy and grace.
Act III (23:06)
23:18 Biblical justice invites us into lives of radical sharing and generosity.
25:16 Every human bears God’s image and deserves equal justice and human rights.
27:16 The God story links invests us with responsibility, both corporate and individual.
Thursday Jan 14, 2021
Thursday Jan 14, 2021
What does it mean to live in relationship? Culture today governs our relationships through the ideas of choice, consent and contracts. As individuals, we relate to ours on our own terms and break relationships when they fail to meet our needs. We see these stories bubble up in marriages, international commitments and through the latest hashtag #cancelculture.
The God story invites us into covenant relationship with God and his people. The books of Joshua and Judges present a robust alternative to cancel culture and consumerist choice in managing our lives together.
Join the conversation as Jo and Peter explore another facet of what it means to be human in light of the God story.
Introduction (0:00)
00:15 Follow us on Twitter or check out our website http://beinghumanproject.co.uk
02:34 The post-modernity story tells us human freedom and autonomy from restrictions and oppression.
08:08 In all this deconstruction, have we lost something central to what it means to be human?
Act I (09:06)
09:17 The notion of marriage as commitment is losing traction in our culture.
13:39 Our consumer culture is driving our approach to relationships as choice.
15:53 Terminating relationships has become popularised as “cancel culture.”
Act II (19:17)
19:28 The books of Judges tell us how God’s people learned to live in community.
21:10 The Bible describes relationship with God and one another as “covenant.”
24:08 The idea of covenant offers an alternative to choice, contracts, and cancel culture.
Act III (26:23)
26:34 What it means to be humans in relationship is hotly contested in our day.
28:46 Followers of Jesus have an opportunity to live with integrity in our relationships.
Thursday Dec 17, 2020
Thursday Dec 17, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has restricted so many of our personal liberties and limited our daily choices. Does that mean we are no longer free? Join hosts Peter and Jo in this week’s episode of Being Human as we look at a foundational God story of what it means to have freedom.
The great novelists always seem to worry human beings risk losing their freedom, but they don’t always agree what that will look like. Recent conversations about social media has have suggested we worry so much about losing our privacy, we don’t even notice when we lose our freedom.
God set his His people free in a costly display of power. Yet, this freedom came with responsibilities.
Join us as we discuss what it really means to be free in 2020, even in times when we can’t do everything we’d like.
Introduction (0:00)
00:20 Welcome back! Thank you for listening and check out our website.
02:22 The pandemic has once again raised the question: What is freedom?
Act I (03:43)
03:53 Novelists George Orwell and Aldous Huxley had different fears about the future.
07:01 We think the big issue of today is our privacy, but it’s really our freedom.
Act II (15:46)
15:57 True freedom isn’t about choice, but about being who you were meant to be.
16:56 God’s freedom and liberation is a foundational story for the people of God.
20:39 The 10 Commandments transform freedoms into responsibilities.
Act III (30:53)
31:03 When we don’t know what it means to be human, we are vulnerable to being enslaved.
34:02 The practice of examen is one way we can cultivate freedom.
35:10 We worship our way out of bondage and into freedom.
Thursday Dec 10, 2020
Thursday Dec 10, 2020
Being human in a networked world - Part 2
Are conspiracy stories the real pandemic of 2020? Stories like QAnon have spread with just as much vigor and speed as the novel coronavirus. What parables can Christians hear in recent events?
Mark Sayers, author, thinker, speaker, podcaster, and pastor from Melbourne, Australia, joins Jo and Peter for a two-part conversation around what it means to be human in the global network of connections we find ourselves in today.
Listen now to part two of our bonus episode.
Act I (00:00)
01:38 Why is QAnon gaining a global following when it is based on US politics?
08:12 In our age of information overload, we crave prophets and interpreters.
13:58 We are learning more about the power of community in the spread of ideas.
Act II (17:01)
17:12 The global church has an opportunity to offer better communities and stories.
24:15 Crisis elevates and exposes our insecurities and questions.
Act III (25:58)
26:08 How can Christians make sure this crisis moment isn’t wasted?
31:23 Let the British church be the British church, without copying others.
35:47 Churches are learning to “play chess without their Queen” and adapt strategies.
Thursday Dec 03, 2020
Thursday Dec 03, 2020
Being human in a networked world - Part 1
The COVID-19 virus has shown us all just how connected our world has become. Just like a tiny virus can spread across the globe, our connected societies have shown us that stories can travel with just as much speed and impact.
Mark Sayers, author, thinker, speaker, podcaster, and pastor from Melbourne, Australia, joins Jo and Peter for a two-part conversation around what it means to be human in the global network of connections we find ourselves in today.
Listen now to the first of two bonus episodes – part two out next week.
Act I (00:00)
00:20 Meet our guest, Mark Sayers.
02:45 The rate of change is accelerating with the internet and connectedness.
06:10 Globalisation is decentralising and fragmenting power, with surprising results.
Act II (10:05)
10:17 Stories are clashing more than ever in our connected world.
12:50 We are also becoming more suspicious and critical of our stories.
15:24 Cultural and personal narratives are much more fluid in our complex world.
20:00 We have a unique opportunity to live out a story in real-life community.
Thursday Dec 03, 2020
Thursday Dec 03, 2020
S2E03: The problem is me
What’s wrong with our world? What drives us apart? Things get gritty in this week’s episode of Being Human, as Peter and Jo wrestle with the conflict driving our story forward.
We all seem to know something is off, but in the stories we listen to, what carries the plot along? If conflict is the engine, who is driving the car? Are we the heroes in the stories we tell ourselves, and if so, who is the villain?
The God story surprises us with an inconvenient narrative. The real problem we feel isn’t outside us but comes right from within us. Sin deceives us with the poisonous idea that God cheats us, and we can do better without Him. This lie drives a wedge between us and God and between our fellow human beings as well.
Join us as we consider how the God story gives us a more compelling explanation for the conflict in our heart and in our world.
Introduction (00:00)
00: 17 Welcome back! We’re still in lockdown.
01:55 All good stories have conflict.
Act I (05:17)
05:27 What is the conflict that’s driving our story forward?
09:25 How do we explain horrors like the holocaust?
12:57 In the stories we tell ourselves, are we the hero? Who is the villain?
Act II (16:17)
16:27 The real problem is not outside us but inside of us.
19:15 The original lie is that God is our problem.
23:43 The sin inside us has broken our relationships and our world.
Act III (25:55)
26:05 We are in danger of consuming new ideas faster than ever before.
28:01 The stories around us tell us that the problem is in someone else.
Thursday Nov 26, 2020
Thursday Nov 26, 2020
S2E02: Foundation stories
What are the stories that we build our lives on? Are they strong enough for us to build our purpose, identity and behaviour upon? Join us for a new episode of Being Human as our hosts Jo and Peter examine the different stories that are trying to frame the deepest parts of who we are.
Some of the narratives promoted by public figures in our culture—from David Attenborough, to Marie Kondo, to Jordan Peterson—may offer some helpful advice or call us to do good and noble things. But underneath all of their “what?” and “how?” answers to our questions about being human, they leave us hanging and fail to provide a satisfying answer to the deepest “why?” questions.
The opening to the God story was written to challenge other ancient foundation stories, and ultimately teaches us that humans are made in the image of God. We are earthlings made from the earth, and because we are part of God’s good creation, we matter. As God’s image bearers, we join him in caring for our fellow humans and the rest of God’s creation.
Join us as we consider how Jesus brings order to the chaos and is the author of the only sufficient foundation story for us to build our lives upon.
Prologue (00:00)
00:19 We’re back for episode 2! Recap of last week: Whose lives matter?
02:43 Introduction to foundational stories
04:28 The bigger Being Human project: rival stories about what it means to be human
Introduction (05:12)
05:12 Stories shape help who we are and how we view the world around us
06:51 Foundational stories: the stories upon which we build our lives
Act I (09:29)
09:38 Sir David Attenborough’s foundation story
14:55 Marie Condo, Jordan Peterson, and our responses to chaos
17:33 The cracks in our foundation stories are showing
Act II (18:47)
18:56 Our witness statement: the Biblical vision for a renewed humanity
23:19 Human beings in the image of God, earthlings from the earth
25:02 The foundational story that tells us why human beings exist
Act III (27:32)
27:42 Jesus brings order to our chaos and gives us purpose
29:25 Sometimes the God Story has been misused
31:05 The quest for control in a chaotic world and Sabbath rest
Thursday Nov 19, 2020
Thursday Nov 19, 2020
S2E01: Whose lives matter? Through the global pandemic, black lives matter and political crises, why does it feel like the protection and affirmation of human rights is a zero-sum game? Diving in at the deep end, Jo Frost and Peter Lynas are back for a new season of the Being Human podcast.
In this episode we compare two very different stories that offer an answer to the question, whose lives matter? The world tells a story of “utilitarianism,” which claims that useful lives matter. Jo and Peter help us to start considering the serious flaws in this story and questioning its basic assumptions.
In the God story, we see a very different answer to the question, whose lives matter? Human lives matter because they are all created in the image of God. Even more importantly, God gave human life unspeakable dignity when he himself took on humanity in the person of Jesus Christ.
Join us as we consider the discipleship opportunities for this intersection God’s story and the world’s story.
PROLOGUE (00:00)
00:18 Welcome back! What have we been up to over break?
03:24 We’re back for season 2 and launching the Being Human website
04:53 Introductions: Who are your hosts? Peter Lynas and Jo Frost
INTRODUCTION (05:33)
05:33 Episode Intro: Whose lives matter?
10:44 What are the stories we tell ourselves?
ACT I (12:44)
12:56 What are the world’s stories about whose lives matter?
16:27 The story of utilitarianism
19:23 What are the main flaws of this idea?
ACTII (26:24)
26:37 What does the God Story tell us about which lives matter?
29:03 The image of God in Jesus Christ and his new humanity
32:06 Wrapping it up: How is Jesus encountering our cultural moment?
34:52 What are some discipleship opportunities for us?
Monday May 18, 2020
Monday May 18, 2020
Being Human in lockdown; special edition. Peter and Jo are back! With a series of specials looking at the effects of the coronavirus crisis on the fundamental questions we ask about who we are and how we are to live. In this episode we look at dignity and the value of life.
Thursday Mar 19, 2020
Thursday Mar 19, 2020