In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones sits down with Dr. Michael Cooper to talk about his new book, Gods, Emperors, Philosophers, and a New Movement.

Building on his work in Ephesiology, Michael explores how archaeology helps us better understand the early church, the spread of the gospel, and the world Paul and the first Christians inhabited. From Ephesus to Laodicea, they discuss house churches, public gathering spaces, Christograms, the Hall of Tyrannus, and the evidence of Christian movement in the first centuries.

The conversation also challenges church planters to think beyond simple church growth formulas and recover the kind of patient, contextual, culturally engaged mission we see in the New Testament. The early church adapted to real places, engaged real people, and took the time to make disciples who could carry the gospel into new spaces.

If you want to understand first-century mission, think more deeply about church planting, and learn how history and archaeology can sharpen disciple-making today, this episode is for you.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Gods, Emperors, Philosophers, and a New Movement

NewBreed Training

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