Listen Again: The Mystery of God with N.T. Wright

Everything Happens with Kate Bowler

Kate Bowler

Society & Culture, Religion & Spirituality, Health & Fitness

4.8 • 5.1K Ratings

🗓️ 26 May 2026

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Scripture can become a weapon in the hands of the ultra-certain. As if every pain or suffering is part of “God’s divine plan.” So how should we understand and apply the Bible to our real lives with our real-life problems? NT Wright, a New Testament scholar, is a trusted expert to help us understand what truths resound across time and circumstance and which don’t. In this conversation, Kate and Tom dig in especially on Romans 8:28 which is the Pauline version of EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON. Is that what Paul intended to say? Is there maybe another, more life-giving way to interpret it instead? Kate and NT Wright also discuss: The importance of lament as a response to the human condition Why we have such a low tolerance for uncertainty Which scripture to turn to when life comes apart (and which to avoid) What our response should be to others who are in pain or experiencing tragedy This is a bit of a Bible-nerd out, but I would trust no one else to help us better make sense of where is God when we’re suffering than NT Wright. This clip originally aired in October 2023. Watch clips from this conversation, read the full transcript, and access discussion questions by clicking here.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Lemonada.
0:05.7	Hi, it's Kate.
0:07.1	And if you're looking for another podcast that tackles life's big questions,
0:10.6	I have the perfect recommendation for you,
0:12.9	the Signal Award-winning podcast, No Small Endeavor.
0:16.2	No Small Endeavor explores one of life's biggest questions.
0:19.3	What does it really mean to live a good life?
0:21.8	Each episode, host and award-winning theologian Lee C. Camp sits down with thoughtful guests
0:27.1	like happiness expert Gretchen Rubin and New York Times bestselling author Jen Hatmaker
0:31.9	to explore the ideas and habits that help people flourish. Follow No Small End endeavor on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever
0:39.0	you're listening now. My name is Kate Bowler, and this is Everything Happens.
0:49.4	I think I may have specialized myself out of answering jeopardy questions when it comes to the Bible.
0:56.4	And that might surprise people who think that I, oh, and thank you if you think this,
1:01.8	that I'm just a fond of Christian wisdom.
1:04.4	But it's so strange that that's what academia does.
1:08.5	You are really trained to stay in your lane and everything else
1:13.2	you can email a very esteemed colleague about who wrote a very detailed dissertation on that
1:18.4	exact topic and here are 12 articles about it. But then I got sick and people started using
1:26.4	scripture against me as ways to explain my suffering or justify my pain
1:32.4	as part of God's divine plan. And I didn't really have a rubric for how to handle that. I love God.
1:41.0	I love the Bible. I love the Psalms. But there are just parts that felt, I don't know,
1:47.0	like I didn't want to answer things that weren't in my wheelhouse. I would find myself saying
	...

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