Episode Summary In Episode 118 of Tearing Down High Places, Pastors Jeff Kliewer and Tim Robinson join Average Joe for a focused 30-minute discussion on how cultural compromise sneaks into the church. After recapping highlights from the recent Truth Conference in Florida (including an upcoming guest announcement), the hosts zero in on one explosive connection: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s new “Office of Economic Justice” and the language of Tim Keller’s influential book Generous Justice. They argue Keller subtly blurred biblical categories of justice and compassion, paving the way for Marxist-style redistribution dressed up as Christian compassion—exactly the framework now being implemented in NYC policy. The episode calls evangelicals to reject this “third way” Hegelian compromise and return to clear biblical distinctions. Show NotesQuick Hits / What You’ll Hear Florida Truth Conference recap + why it was “perfect for Joe” Announcement: David Whitney (biblical roots of the Constitution & sphere sovereignty) joins next week Core topic: Mayor Mamdani replaces “Economic Development” with “Economic Justice” – straight out of Tim Keller’s playbookThe Big Idea: Generous Justice vs. Biblical Justice Tim Keller’s key move: conflates “justice” (what is owed) with “compassion/mercy” (voluntary generosity) Result: “Generous justice” sounds biblical but imports Marxist redistribution and class-warfare categories Hosts show how Keller’s 2014 sermon on James 2 imports the word “justice” where Scripture never uses it Capitalist & Christian critique: forced redistribution is theft, distorts incentives, and makes government the redeemer instead of ChristWhy This Matters for the Church Today Keller’s influence via Gospel Coalition, Together for the Gospel, and major evangelical institutions Slippery-slope warning: small compromises (redefining terms) lead to bigger ones (Alistair Begg, Sam Allberry, etc.) Call to tear down these “high places” of evangelical compromiseKey Quotes “Economic justice is Tim Keller’s language… and evangelicals are not realizing what a big deal that is.” – Pastor Jeff “Keller is so deceptive he can fool Grok.” – Average Joe (after feeding the AI the comparison) “True justice requires gospel-transformed hearts, not political idolatry.”Looking Ahead Next week: David Whitney on the biblical roots of the Constitution Future episode idea: deeper dive into the Gospel Coalition & Sam Allberry