Andrew Rillera

a baby is crying while being held by a woman in a crowd . ALT: a baby is crying while being held by a woman in a crowd .

Just found out an article I submitted on Jesus’s death and resurrection in Luke “has provisionally been approved for publication in JBL” (Journal of Biblical Literature)!

Missiles launching [your kingdom come], soldiers marching [your will be done], enemy combatants getting vaporized [on earth], war crimes being committed [as it is in heaven].

Yeah, this is blasphemy.

This conversation with @andrewrillera.bsky.social gave me so much to think about!

I think you will enjoy listening to what he has to say & if you haven’t yet read Lamb of the Free, it is well worth your time.

Podcast: www.buzzsprout.com/2463181/epis...

Book: wipfandstock.com/978166670304...

Thanks for inviting me on, Marissa!

Can't wait to read her and @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social’s book, The Myth of Good Christian Parenting: How False Promises Betrayed a Generation of Evangelical Families (out Oct 14, 2025)!

Thank you to @andrewrillera.bsky.social for joining me in the church library for a bonus episode.

Such a thought-provoking conversation about his book Lamb of the Free, his thoughts on penal substitutionary atonement & what we can learn from the conceptual framework of the sacrificial system. 1/3

"This book is groundbreaking."
Ehrman's endorsement for The Hypothesis of the Gospels.

You can pre-order: a.co/d/6ADGpLl

Well, I blurbed @andrewrillera.bsky.social's book, so I may as well chime in on the brewing controversy.

It's not *Jesus'* penal substitutionary atonement, it's *your* constructed theory about the meaning of Jesus's death. Andrew dismantles the supposed foundations of this theory.

Read the book!

🤛🏽

No :/

The way children in families are treated is the way ppl in churches will be treated is the way ordinary ppl in communities will be treated.

Ppl who envision themselves as agents/mouthpieces of God & believe God wants them to procure compliance via top-down force are dangerous.

Screenshot of @johnmarkcomer ‘s IG story sharing a picture of him holding the book, Lamb of the Feee: Recovering the Varied Sacrificial Understandings of Jesus’s Death by Andrew Remington Rillera, with a textual overlay that says: “One of the most important academic books I've read in years. Next I'll read rebuttels, but this seems to be the final biblical/exegetical knock out blow to PSA. Who would've guessed it would have come not from "liberals" but from scholars of Leviticus?! Highly recommend for your thoughtful consideration.”

this is cool from John Mark Comer

A university prof who is also a serial killer chooses their victims from a pool of people who say things like 'Must be nice to have summers off,' 'What do you get paid to publish articles?,' and similar phrases.

Thanks, Trey! Glad Lamb of the Free has proven to be helpful for so many.

Thanks for reading!

With me being the guy who’s very literally never too shy to tell you that Penal Substitutionary Atonement is AWFUL, death-dealing, life-stealing theology, people sometimes ask me for reading recommendations.

The answer is always to start with @andrewrillera.bsky.social’s Lamb of the Free.

I came across you because you got mentioned by a dude who wrote a book called Lamb of the Free. Bought your book and followed you. Been listening to your sound bites and dude you’re stirrin my heart. Thank you man. The crucial “atonement” reframe you’re giving is so needed. People don’t realize the implications of theologizing as small as PSA. Your language is really helping me absorb a cleaner, fresher gospel. PSA hasn’t sat well with me for quite some time. Thanks for pushing the conversation Trey.

The only thing keeping me on social media (besides serving in an online community of faith 🙃) is the hope that I can make this sort of impact.

I wanna see everybody free.

And shoutout to @andrewrillera.bsky.social. Lamb of the Free is a game changer.

Thank you for these!

Excellent! Thank you!

Thank you!

Thank you, Andy!

What did God do to that world power that feared its growing immigrant refugee population so much it implemented a targeted infanticide against them and started slave camps to keep them at bay? What happened to that king who feared political rivals so much he was willing to kill innocent children?

Questions for Christian supporters of MAGA: Which nation did the prophets condemn for doing too much for the poor and the foreigner? Which nation did the prophets condemn for having too large of a social safety net? Why does Ezekiel say that Sodom and Gomorrah went up in smoke?

(Btw, in an ever more depressing & bleak world, I think w the right intentionality the refusal to quit playing is a powerful form of resistance to cultivate & maintain hope.)

Crowd source: I’ve been asked to brainstorm a course on a theology of sports/play/leisure. Any reading, activities, projects, etc. suggestions welcome! TIA

I’m reading thru Sports & Play in Christian Theology (eds Tucker & Halstead) & Jeffrey Crittenden’s Leisure Resurrected.

Thanks again for having me on, Jared! We recorded this convo a while back and I haven't listened to it back, but I just remember having a fun time chatting about sacrifice, atonement, & the saving significance of Jesus's death w Jared! Here's the Apple podcast link (below is YouTube audio):

YouTube video by It Means What It Means Podcast Episode 80: Lamb of the Free with Andrew Rillera

The full audio episode of my conversation with @andrewrillera.bsky.social on his book Lamb of the Free is available wherever you get podcasts! It is also available in video for $5 a month on Patreon. Thanks to the folks at Cascade for the copy!

Weirdly my journey of deconstructing psa in my theology began with the "substitution" part. And then @andrewrillera.bsky.social wrote a book that validated my questions and gives a really good case for why psa isn't just distasteful but also not supported by biblical data in the OT or NT

Happy to hear about the impact Lamb of the Free had for you. Thanks for reading and sharing!

The Trump administration is building a national citizenship data system The Department of Homeland Security, with help from DOGE, has rolled out a tool that purports to be able to check the citizenship status of almost all Americans.

Per @npr.org, the Department of Homeland Security, in partnership with the White House U.S. DOGE Service, has built a searchable national citizenship register with data from the Social Security Administration & immigration records— without public notice & comment.
Infrastructure for a police state.

YouTube video by It Means What It Means Podcast Blood in Sacrifice: Life, Not Death #podcast #biblepodcast #newtestament #sacrifice #atonement

You can hear or watch my conversation with @andrewrillera.bsky.social now for $5 a month on Patreon! Look for the full audio episode everywhere else next Wednesday. Thanks to the folks at Cascade for the copy of Lamb of the Free!