Grace Abides: Recent Episodes
Nick Billardello
Join Nick Billardello, Founding Pastor of Abiding Grace Lutheran Church, as he teaches the Christian faith in a relevant and relatable way. He also talks about other stuff.
We are all called to be sent into the world for the sake of God's Kingdom, but how do we that? Nick and Andy give 5 simple ways to proclaim God's love.
On Reformation Day, Nick and Andy talk about what it means to be part of the priesthood of all believers.
Why did God create you? What is your purpose? Nick and Andy discuss these questions and more!
The letter to the church at Thyatira includes the best compliment a church could ever receive, but... There's always a but!
I once heard someone say that you can ignore everything before the "but" -- is that still true when Jesus is the one talking?
Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, but is he in control of everything in between?
In our last episode of the year we talk all about grace.
What is Grace?
Is there a limit to God's grace?
What God's grace do for us?
Jonah's prayer while he is in the belly of the whale and why this part of the story reminds me of the Empire Strike Back.
The unchanging nature of Jesus and the call to show hospitality.
(sorry for the less than perfect audio!)
God has chosen to have a relationship with us based on love, not fear; and what does it mean to be surrounded by a cloud of witnesses?
What is the big difference between forgiveness in the Old Covenant and forgiveness in the New Covenant?
Does the author of Hebrews think everyone is going to heaven?
How can we persevere?
Lots of great stuff in this chapter:
- What symbols do we have for our failures?
- Did Jesus really need to die for God to forgive us?
- Is reincarnation Biblical?
And more!
Questions that are covered today:
Does forgiveness equal salvation?
Can forgiveness be rejected?
What's the main difference between the old covenant and the new covenant?
What do we do with Bible stories that don't make sense and the difference between God's covenant with Moses and God's covenant with Abraham.
The basics of our faith and can someone lose salvation after God has already promised it to them?
God teaches us through suffering and the ability to discern the difference between good and evil.
What will heaven be like and who will be there? Can we walk into the presence of God with confidence?
Why Jesus is more important than Moses and the two things that help us to remain faithful.
Hebrews 2 is a great chapter! Here are some things that it includes:
- Drifting away from God
- The humanity of Jesus
- Why Jesus was died (it's not what you think!)
and so much more!
There is a lot of good stuff in this chapter! Do we have to like our siblings? When is it appropriate to publicly shame someone, and why? Which widows should the church help? Paul answers all of these questions and more!
Paul tells Timothy, "it's going to get worse before it gets better." What makes the world worse? Tune in to find out.
Also, a popular verse for youth groups that may be taken out of context.
Paul has a little bit to say about Bishops and reveals his primary reason for writing this letter to Timothy.
A lesson on prayer and we discuss verses 11-12:
"Let a woman learn in silence with full submission.I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent."
Why did Paul write this?
Should we still abide by it?
What does the rest of the Bible say?
Also, I will be posting my lesson from last year on Deborah as a companion to this podcast.
If you want to eat meat, eat meat!
If you don't, don't.
Let others do what they think is best, and don't judge.
Romans 9 is full of interesting theology. In this episode we discuss predestination, and ask if God is fair.
A study of one of my favorite chapters in all of Scripture, Romans 8. Listen in to find out why I like it so much!
In the seventh chapter of Romans Paul gives us a strange example that makes an important point.
When asked about Romans 5, Martin Luther said "In the whole Bible, there is hardly another chapter which can equal this triumphant text.”
Listen and find out why he felt that way.
In Romans 1 and 2 Paul makes it clear that no one is righteous based on their works. In Romans 3 Paul shares some good news... some great news... and it all starts with a "but."
We are starting a new series on the Book of Romans today! In this episode we study the first chapter, and discuss the following:
- The righteous shall live by faith
- What Paul had to say about homosexuality
We will continue with the second chapter on Thursday.
Life is easier with good friends, and it's important to be a good friend to others, but it's not always easy. Today's episode looks at three Bible passages that teach us how to be better friends.
No one likes to talk about death, but the undeniable truth is that we are all going to die. The Bible has a lot to say about death, and what comes after.
The Beatitudes have comforted believers for generations. Most of us have gone through periods where we were poor in spirit, or mourning. Do you find yourself in one of Jesus' statements right now? If so, be comforted by his promises.
This message of law and gospel is at the heart of scripture. The law is that which accuses us and judges us, while the gospel is that which comforts us and saves us. Does that mean the law is something we don't want to hear? Not at all! The law is wonderful, and here is why!
Jesus said that we should "love our neighbor as ourselves." Mr. Rogers spent his life being a good neighbor. What can we learn from them to be better neighbors? Find out in today's episode.
We are living in angry times, and we see ager motivating people to do all kinds of things. Is our anger justified, or is it manufactured for someone else's profit? What should Christians be angry about, and how should we express our anger?
In today's episode we talk about the power of forgiveness.
Forgiveness is hard. We get used to living with anger and hurt, but does the emotional baggage take a toll on our life? What if we could let it go?
Forgiveness is not something we do to make someone else feel better about their mistake, it's something we do to help ourselves feel better.
The heroes of the Bible all had one thing in common. They weren't perfect. They weren't righteous. What made them special was their trust in God gave them the courage that they needed to do God's work.
Our world could use more grace, and each of us can be the source of that grace. This episode gives 7 simple ways to add more grace to the world, and our lives. These 7 steps are useful for Christians and non-Christians alike. Anyone who wants to have better relationships can benefit from them.
In today's episode we look at the history and theology of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" and ask "why is the presence of God important?"
In this episode Nick, with some help from Vanessa, look at the history and theology of the popular Christmas hymn "O Holy Night." Plus, Vanessa sings it for us.
In chapter 8 Amos uses the imagery of ripe fruit to describe Israel, he writes about doing business with the wrong motives, and emphasizes the importance of God's words.
Everyone has questions about heaven and hell. What makes hell so bad? What makes heaven so great? Who is going where? What do I need to believe to be sure that I am going to heaven? What about people who died before hearing the Gospel? What about people who died before Jesus was born?
This podcast was a three part series that has been condensed to one episode that explains in detail what the Bible has to say about every question above, and more.
This episode has a "Learn Something Guarantee" which means if you don't learn anything new, you will get your money back. (Yes, the podcast is free, but still, you'll learn something that you can use in theological debates with friends.)
A lot of people think that salvation comes from a combination of God's grace and our good works, but Paul (and Luther) clearly disagree.
Martin Luther loved Galatians. In fact, he referred to it as "Catherine von Bora" (his wife) because he said "I am married to it."
In this episode we talk about grace, peace, other gospels, and life as a pastor.
In this episode we continue talking about the rapture, and we talk about how we read the Bible. Specifically, all verses are important, but which verses should we build our faith on, and why?
The "Left Behind" series of books brought the Christian understanding of the rapture into the mainstream. But where did the idea of the rapture come from? Is the rapture coming soon? What about the tribulation and the millennium? In the episode we talk about these theological concepts, and more.
How do we grieve? As people of faith, and even as people who struggle with faith, what do we do with pain, or emptiness?
Grief is a bigger part of life than we want to admit. Our grief is obvious when we lose a loved one, but less obvious at other times. Good things can even cause us to grieve, like moving for a better job, becoming an empty nester, and retiring.
In this episode we talk about all of this and more.
What does the Bible say heaven is going to be like?
What are we going to when we get there?
Will we know others?
Will we see our loved ones?
In this episode we take a look at these great questions, and more.
What's the deal with Philemon? It's a personal letter from Paul to a friend, asking for a huge favor. Why is it in the Bible? This short letter (only 1 chapter) brings up a lot of interesting questions.
Thanks for listening.
In this episode we take a close look at Barnabas, and the impact that he had on the early church by encouraging others. Do you know anyone in need of encouragement? How can you be a Barnabas for them?
In this episode we look at the following questions:
- Is the Bible the inerrant word of God, or the inspired word of God?
- Why are some books including in some Bibles, but not others?
- Which translation is best, and why?
Jesus died for our salvation and for the forgiveness of our sins, but what does that mean? Could we have been forgiven without his death? Was his death a ransom, or did he pay a penalty on our behalf?
In this episode, we take a detailed look at five different atonement theories, and ask, which one makes sense to you?
Jesus tells us to love our neighbor, but how do we do that? Here are 14 ways to show love, according to 1 Corinthians 13.
Sports are great! They are great to play, and great to watch, but do we take them too seriously? Are we defined by winning and losing? Do we worship great athletes? What can we learn from sports that is relevant to the Christian life?
It's election season, and that means we are all talking about or thinking about politics. The Bible has something to say about politics, and so does Martin Luther. Today we look at a couple important questions:
- Can we love our country too much?
- What are the characteristics that Martin Luther would look for in a political candidate?
And a lot more.
Jesus said a lot of things that we struggle with. He told someone to sell all they had and give the money away before they could follow him. He told people to gouge out their eyes. He said that he came to bring division. He even called a woman of another race a dog.
What are we to do with these difficult statements? We shouldn't ignore them, and we shouldn't try to explain them away. In this episode, we talk about those difficult statements, and suggest a different way of understanding them.
Do you know someone who has stopped praying, or stopped worshipping?
People Are Leaving the Church in staggering numbers. In the past twenty years the number of Americans who attend a church has dropped by 20%. Statistics say that 25% of Americans are Christians but aren't members of a church.
What has the church done wrong? What can we do better?
Many people are worried. In this time of pandemic we are worried about our families, our finances, our jobs, and our world.
Does worrying help us?
What does the Bible say about worrying?
How can we love people without worrying about them?
The theology of "What A Wonderful World" by Louie Armstrong.
There is a lot going wrong in the world today, but there are also a lot of wonderful things. Which wonderful things point us to God?
Hymn Theology - "The Old Rugged Cross" & the 5 Crowns
Why do we cling to the cross?
What trophies do we need to lay down?
Are we going to get a crown?
What is echoing in your soul?
Are you at peace right now?
If so, do you know why?
If not, do you know why?
In this episode we look at a beautiful hymn that gives us a glimpse of the new creation to come, and offers us a reminder of the power of God's peace.
Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" is a masterpiece. It's a song about life, and love, and sex, and loss... but is it about God?
A hymn about the average Christian day. Joy in the morning, strength for the day, a loving welcome in the evening, and peace at bedtime. What is missing though?
Today we study God's faithfulness as we take a close look at "Great Is Thy Faithfulness."
Today we study "Blest Be the Tie That Binds" and talk about Christian unity. Definitely a timely topic.
This song serves as a reminder for all of us to look around and see God at work in the world, and in our lives.
Who were the religious leaders who called for Jesus's execution, and who executed Stephen? Were they all bad? And, what could they have learned from Game of Thrones?
Deborah is the only female judge in the Book of Judges. She was given the responsibility at a time when Israel was oppressed, but she solved that problem with the help of Jael. This is an amazing story -- I hope you enjoy it.
Jezebel was a priestess of Baal who became queen of Israel. She did terrible things to the people of Israel, threatened Elijah, and died in a way befitting an evil queen. I hope you enjoy this story from 1 Kings and 2 Kings.
Herod the Great was as evil as they come. He killed his wife and children. He killed every male in Bethlehem under two years of age. Find out how he gained power, and how he kept it, even though he was universally despised.
Today's episode is all about Mary and Martha, sisters, who with their brother Lazarus, were friends of Jesus. Mary wants to learn, but Martha wants help clearing the table. Martha is not afraid to confront Jesus when he is too late to save Lazarus -- but she still has faith. They are sisters, and while they are different, we can learn from both.
In today's episode we tell the story of Ruth, and discuss some really big themes that emerge, such as, do the bad things in life happen for a reason? Is it all part of God's plan?
Mary brought the Savior into the world, and watched him die. She was a woman of faith, and courage; she experienced joy and grief. After Jesus ascended into heaven, she was a member of the early church. In this episode, we discuss how Mary fits into our theology, and her impact on the world.
Tune in to hear what CS Lewis has to say about miracles, love of country, and slackers!
Plus, a little more about divine omnipotence.
Tune in to hear what CS Lewis had to say about the following:
Who was Jesus?
What is faith?
How powerful is God?
Tune in to hear how CS Lewis became a Christian, and find out what CS Lewis book is the most helpful for making sense of the Christian faith.
In this episode we discuss the Bondage of the Will, the Sacraments, and Luther's lasting impact on the world, including influencing the US constitution. It isn't all great however -- many people have died, in part, because of what Luther wrote. And we ask, would Luther be popular today?
Luther had a lot of theological questions to answer when he started a new church. His answers have stood the test of time, and are still helping people understand who God is. Here is part one.
What happened after Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the Wittenberg door? A lot!
Tune in to hear the incredible story of how one German monk changed the world.
What is the Force? What does it do and do we have a "force" in our life that does that same thing?
Tune in to find out!
In today's episode we talk about the 15th century in Europe -- it was a wild time. People were ready to leave the Middle Ages behind, but who would lead them out?
Of all people, it was a German Monk.
"Everybody wants to go heaven... but not right now"
According to the Bible, what is hell like?
According to be Bible, what is heaven like?
What about everyone else?
What about people who died before hearing about Jesus?
What about people who heard about Jesus but never believed?
God gets to decide who is invited into heaven.
What does the Bible say about who is invited?
What does the Bible say about Satan?
Satan does four main things... tune in to learn what they are.