Dewey Bertolini's podcast: Recent Episodes
Dewey Bertolini
By harmonizing the four Gospels -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John -- we will study the life of Christ in chronological order, from the first utterances of the angels heralding His birth, to His crucifixion and resurrection. It is our sincere hope and expectation that as we immerse ourselves in Jesus' life and ministry, we will fall more deeply in love with Him, and become more and more like Him.
Imagine it! As you will hear in this PODCAST, something so simple can be so revolutionary.
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I am in a quandary as to what exactly to title this PODCAST.
We could call it, “A Pitiful Pot of Porridge.”
We could call it, “Tossed Like a Salad.”
But I settled on, “Time for Us to have a Family Meeting.”
But a rose, by any other name, smells just as sweet.
Be blessed, and be challenged.
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As you are to hear in this week’s PODCAST, you are amazingly and profoundly gifted by God.
You are in for a treat. Enjoy!!!
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As you will hear in this week’s PODCAST, it is indeed today as it was then. His cruelty was the point. Whose cruelty? You are about to be amazed.
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As the title to this PODCAST suggests, you are in for a treat… with a very happy ending!
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In this PODCAST, one heartfelt plea from one heartbroken apostle.
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In this PODCAST, a timeless message for the ages. Especially here and now!
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You are about to be given permission, as you will hear in this PODCAST. A granting of permission that just might change your day, if not your life.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
How perfectly appropriate for this Easter Season is this PODCAST!
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In this PODCAST, the perfect prayer as we enter Holy Week, 2025, together.
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It has happened once again! As you will hear in this PODCAST! Just the right truth at just the right time!!!
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I have no doubt that you, or someone near and dear to you, needs to hear this PODCAST today.
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As you are about to hear in this week’s PODCAST, it is gaslighting on an epic scale. Thank God for His Truth!!!
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As so often happens, as you will hear in this week’s PODCAST, just the right passage comes to us at just the right time.
Enjoy!!!
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“Eventually” — one of the most beautiful words in all the English language, as you will hear in this PODCAST.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, a more sobering discussion you and I will never have.
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Unless I miss my guess, this entire PODCAST will prove to be one extended “Ah-ha moment.”
Enjoy!
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SAFETY and SECURITY. That’s what’s in store for you as you listen to this week’s PODCAST. Enjoy and be blessed!
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It’s all about the pictures. And as you will hear in this PODCAST, what a picture this is!
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As you are about to hear in this week’s PODCAST, this is the Holy Grail of dynamic Christian living. Enjoy!!!
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“Words mean things.” As you will hear in this PODCAST, boy do they ever!
Oh, and while we’re at it, get ready to meet a brand new and precious friend.
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As you will hear in this week’s PODCAST, if you or someone you know and love, has ever experienced a bit of an identity crisis, that crisis is settled once and for all!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I debated with myself about what to entitle this PODCAST.
I could have just as appropriately called this, “The Core of Christian Living.”
Of course, a rose by any other name smells just as sweet. So inhale and enjoy!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Well, as you’ll hear in this PODCAST, as the saying goes (my paraphrase), Norovirus can’t keep a good man down.
Anyways, enjoy!!!
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You could consider what you are about to hear in this final PODCAST of 2024 the New Year’s Reflections of an Old-Time Jesus-Follower.
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Please, oh please, think about THIS the next time you sing O Little Town of Bethlehem.
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In this PODCAST, two words jump off of the pages of Scripture at me. Perhaps they will for you as well.
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As you are about to hear in this week’s PODCAST, it really truly is just this simple.
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This, as you will hear in this PODCAST, is as practical as it gets!
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Thanksgiving is upon us. As you will hear in this PODCAST, I am, in this Thanksgiving Season, especially thankful for this…
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I can’t wait! As you will hear in this PODCAST, neither could Abraham, Moses, Paul, and John.
Neither, I rather expect, can you!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, it will be epic! And we will be there!
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In this PODCAST, the timing of this passage could not be better!
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In this PODCAST, I am thrilled to report that “the mystery of God’s will” is a mystery no more.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, this is so simple that a kindergartener instinctively knows this. And so do we!
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In this PODCAST, one of the most heartwarming, soul-enriching stories you’ll ever hear.
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Pop quiz time! Fill in the blank. As you will hear in this PODCAST, “It is the nature of God to ___________.”
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In this week’s PODCAST, you are about to hear one of the most beautiful words in all of the English language. Enjoy!
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In this PODCAST, get ready to bask in the glow of this glorious truth!
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In this PODCAST, a prayer for the ages.
A prayer that may-well “bless” your life.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this one statement of Paul is profoundly practical, and ever-so-timely. Enjoy!!!
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As you will hear in this week’s PODCAST, five for the price of one!
Five profoundly personal portraits, all yours for investing a few precious minutes as you listen! Enjoy, and be encouraged!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, isn’t it amazing what we learn when we read the Bible?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
A roll of the drums and a blare of the bugles. In this PODCAST we break the seal on our study of Ephesians.
What a treat this will be!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, it’s all about how we end.
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What a week!
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, doesn’t it seem like every week is a What-a-Week kind of week?
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The title of this PODCAST really says it all. Because that’s who and what you are, and ever shall be.
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What a week! In this PODCAST, we will put a final exclamation point—or perhaps I should say a final explanation point—on all of it.
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You know, it’s so strange. For the past week, if you would have heard me, you’d have thought that I was coughing up a lung.
I can’t talk; I can hardly breathe. But I am getting better.
Nevertheless, I decided on the day before yesterday that since I could not record a new podcast, I would publish this specific one as an encore podcast. As I said, day before yesterday.
Then yesterday happened, and I realized how much more needed this message is for us than it has ever been.
Enjoy, and be encouraged.
God bless you richly as you listen.
In the interest of full disclosure, this is an encore PODCAST. For a most-compelling reason. It seems that in recent days, I have encountered So.Many.People who are going through Incredibly.Difficult.Challenges. So much so, that I really truly believe that we all need to be reminded of something that Jesus and His half-brother James, and for good measure the Apostle Paul taught us. Please, be encouraged!
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To everything—as you are about to hear in this PODCAST—there is a season.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, if you want to understand what in the world is going on in the world, read the Bible. “It is today as it was then.”
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, a most timely and timeless message, courtesy of an apostle named Paul. Enjoy!!!
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The title to the PODCAST really does say it all.
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I literally cannot wait for you to hear this PODCAST.
For reasons that will become abundantly clear as you hear it.
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Prepare in this PODCAST to be inspired!
This as we meet a brand new friend.
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The darker the night, the brighter the sunrise. That’s the abiding message you will hear in this week’s PODCAST.
Be encouraged, and enjoy!
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In this PODCAST, my sappy sentimentality is on full display.
Thank you for lovingly indulging me.
And thank you for sharing this message with your family and friends!!!
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Time for us to take another trip!!!
As you listen to this PODCAST, sit back, relax, and let me be your tour guide.
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It’s become, I do fear, a forgotten dynamic of dynamic Christian living.
Let’s be reminded of it in this PODCAST.
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You know, truth be told, every PODCAST of each and every week is on some level autobiographical. Nothing comes out of a vacuum. Including this one.
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Oh my friends. In this PODCAST, get ready for a surprising and dramatic twist at its end.
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In this PODCAST, Paul’s passionate plea; and mine.
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I can almost guarantee you that in this PODCAST, you will hear the strangest Easter sermon you have ever heard.
Strange, but oh so encouraging!
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So many lessons flow out of the Palm Sunday story.
As you will hear on this PODCAST, this one is arguably one of the most important.
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What you are about to hear in this PODCAST is truly remarkable. A rare occurrence, where Paul gets personal; where Paul keeps it real.
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As you will be reminded in this PODCAST, God can do so much with our so little.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, time for us to take a little trip!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, first impressions are often lasting impressions. That being said, first impressions can be dead wrong.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, there is no more powerful picture of the power of God… than this!
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It is the question of this PODCAST: Are you, and am I, a Thessalonians or a Berean?
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As you will hear in this PODCAST — Isn’t it amazing what we learn when we read the Bible?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
A passage—one verse, really—that has marked my ministry for life. That is what you are about to hear in this PODCAST.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, I love, love, love the ironies of history. After this, so will you.
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In this PODCAST, I will do my best to take you into the delivery room and to watch in wonder as a brand new baby church is born.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this one word is arguably the single most important word in all of the New Testament.
And I don’t say that lightly.
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What a remarkable moment—preserved by Luke, explained in the PODCAST.
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In this PODCAST, recorded on Christmas Eve, 2023, I wish you not only a very Merry Christmas, but a meaningful Christmas as well.
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What you are about to hear in this PODCAST — courtesy of Paul, Silas, and Luke — may well revolutionize your life. No kidding.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, the times—they are a-changin’. Or are they?
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In this PODCAST, courtesy of our dear friend Luke, get ready to hear a truth that has set me free.
Perhaps, maybe just maybe, it will set you free as well.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I cannot put into words how excited I am—in this PODCAST—to introduce you to a brand new and wonderfully new friend.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
A perfect PODCAST for this perfect time of year--all, of course, courtesy of Saint Paul.
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As you will hear in the PODCAST, if the Bible contained only one promise of God…
This one promise for me would be enough.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, for the very first time ever, the Gospel comes to Europe!
A monumental moment indeed!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, just in time for All Saints Day, we will give honor to whom honor is due.
And meet a new friend in the process.
Enjoy!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Relax! That’s the abiding lesson from this PODCAST discussion. Relax.
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I hope that you won’t mind me in this PODCAST talking more to myself than I am to you.
I need this. Desperately.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Tell you what. While recording this PODCAST, with all that is going on in the world, it sure was difficult for me to stay focused.
But somehow, some way, focused we were.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As in this PODCAST we break the seal on the new month of October, this message is coming right on time. Be encouraged!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As always, in this PODCAST, so much for us to talk about; so much for us to feel deeply about (forgive the dangling preposition).
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I have a sneaky suspicion that someone needs to hear this PODCAST.
I sure did!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, something IS about to happen. And I can’t wait!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, oftentimes our experiences eerily resemble that of the biblical writers. Amazingly so.
This is one of those times.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Preparing this PODCAST was exactly what I needed to hear.
Perhaps it will be just what the doctor ordered for you as well.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Tell you what. This PODCAST is as practical as it gets!
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I am feeling so thankful. Hopefully, after hearing this PODCAST, you will too.
As well as feeling many other things.
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It’s not often that I get goosebumps while recording a PODCAST.
But I sure did while recording this one.
Enjoy!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, I love love love watching our earliest ancestors in the faith mature and grow in their faith right before our eyes.
This is something to celebrate.
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It almost feels like coming home in this PODCAST. Enjoy!
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A blare of the bugles and a roll of the drums. With this PODCAST, we bring our study of this lovely little letter called James to its conclusion!
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Tell you what. As you listen to this PODCAST, you may get the feeling that you are sitting in on one of my therapy sessions.
Please be encouraged as much by this story as I am.
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As you will be reminded in this PODCAST, the Bible is God’s written record of real people who lived in real places, who had real experiences, all of which point to a real God.
We’re about to go together (virtually) to just one of those real places.
Enjoy!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Spoiler Alert: This is one of those PODCASTS that you might just want to hear more than once.
So.Much.Here!
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A picture is worth a thousand words. But as you will hear in this PODCAST, sometimes one word is worth a thousand pictures.
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An invaluable life-lesson, in this PODCAST, courtesy of James and a misplaced iPhone. Enjoy!!!
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“But most of all…” As you will hear in this PODCAST, words guaranteed to get our attention. Thank you, James!
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In this PODCAST, you will hear what I consider to be the five most beautiful words in all of the Bible.
I don’t say that lightly.
In fact, I am quite confident that you will agree!!!
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As you will hear in this encore PODCAST, the dread disease called Covid has worked its way into the Bertolini household.
Rather than give you an unprepared, or under-prepared message, I’ve reached back into the archives to a story guaranteed to lift your spirits and send your soul a-soaring, just as it has mine.
Enjoy!
In this PODCAST, get ready to meet a man whose heart beats in sync with my own—as well as with your own, I rather suspect.
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I cannot put into words the encouragement I received while preparing this PODCAST. But I will try.
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His name is synonymous with suffering—and coming out the other side just fine, thank you very much.
And as you’ll hear in this PODCAST, courtesy of James, a man whose story rings loud and clear and encouraging, especially today!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
So much needless confusion will be cleared up in this PODCAST. Be encouraged!
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You know what? As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, it’s not all that difficult to change the world. Not difficult at all.
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In this Easter PODCAST, a very special Easter gift (from my lips to your ears); and blessing (from God’s heart to yours).
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I am not one to be easily amazed. But trust me, the picture painted in this PODCAST, courtesy of the biblical writers, is in every sense of the word… AMAZING!!!
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The precision of the Bible, as you will hear in this PODCAST, is breathtaking to behold.
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It’s the very first thing to happen immediately to the second after Jesus died on a cross on that not-so-Good-Friday afternoon.
And as you’ll hear in this PODCAST, it’s all you need to know about God’s heart at that very moment.
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It’s all about hearing the echoes.
In this PODCAST, you’ll be hearing lots of echoes. Attention-grabbers each.
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They say (whomever “they” are) that a picture is worth a thousand words.
Well, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, sometimes one word is worth a thousand pictures.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, with your kind indulgence, I get to fulfill a fantasy. To our mutual benefit, of course.
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I’m so glad that God created a thing called “next week.” Because last week, there was a glaring omission in our discussion. One that we address in this week’s PODCAST.
And in addressing it, we will once again see and hear the beautiful heart of a gentle Jesus.
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If ever there was a PODCAST you just might want to listen to twice, this would be it.
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As you are about to learn in this PODCAST, what James asks of us is so clear, so concise, and so uncomplicated that a child can hear it and do it.
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They say that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” But as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, one word can be worth a thousand pictures.
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As our title implies, and as this PODCAST will explain, and as James and Jesus understand…
When someone hurts us, it’s not as easy as forgive and forget. There is so much more to this story.
Have you ever been hurt? Deeply wounded? If so, you are about to receive a boatload of healing and hope.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Money-back guarantee (Of course, that’s not saying much, since the PODCAST costs you nothing!) if you are not super-encouraged.
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Are you ready to think? If this PODCAST fails to get you to think, then I don’t know what will. So, so much to talk about! Enjoy!!!
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As you listen to this PODCAST, keep the seemingly unrelated words—acquisition; submission—at the forefront of your mind.
Trust me. They are inextricably related.
You’re in for a treat!
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The merriest of Christmases to you!!! As you will hear in this Christmas morning PODCAST, as we focus on Jesus’ first coming, I’d like to shift our focus ever so slightly to the hope that I hold in my heart every morning of every day—His long-anticipated second coming.
Enjoy!!!
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Allegiance and Focus. That’s what this PODCAST is all about.
Infinitely and eternally more significance, allegiance and focus—that’s what our lives are all about.
Be ready to be challenged.
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As you prepare your heart and mind to hear this PODCAST, get ready for a massive Ah-ha moment. That courtesy of James.
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“It is today as it was then.” As you are about to hear in this PODCAST—Boy, oh boy, is it ever!
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You could call this PODCAST A Tale of Two Worlds.
In which of the two do you live?
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For reasons that you will hear in this PODCAST, its timing could not be better. Thank you, James!!!
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I hope you brought your spiritual appetite to this PODCAST. You are in for quite a bountiful banquet, all courtesy of James.
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Get ready to meet a brand new friend.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, she is the very picture of remarkable.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, we stand on the shoulders of giants. The names of several of whom will become quite clear as you listen.
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If a picture is worth a thousand words, just wait until you hear the picture painted in this PODCAST, courtesy of James.
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After listening to this PODCAST, it’s quite possible that you will never think of the name—Jesus—the same way again.
I sure don’t.
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An epic story for the ages.
That is what you’ll hear in this PODCAST, courtesy of James and the wide window he opens for us.
Enjoy!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, that “thing” of exquisite beauty is really a person of exquisite beauty.
And that person is you!
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A most practical PODCAST message that isn’t in the least bit complicated.
Simple in its meaning; world-changing in its impact.
Enjoy!!!
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Sometimes—oftentimes—the least complicated truths of the Bible are its most profound.
As you will hear in this PODCAST.
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Isn’t it AMAZING what we learn when we read the Bible.
As we will be reminded in this PODCAST!!!
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Oh, to have been there, to witness the scene with our own eyes.
Well, in the PODCAST, courtesy of John and his eyes, we can.
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Well, my dear brother James, I am listening.
To my many PODCAST friends, I respectfully ask, Are you?
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More than a play on words in that title, I assure you.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, when we refuse to refuse? Well, let’s just say that that never ends well. Ever.
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He surely did! And as you will hear in this PODCAST, He still does.
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A bit of an unusual PODCAST, given the fact that it’s been a bit of an unusual week.
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Pretty pointed words about a pretty serious subject.
As you will hear, James paints a pretty picture in this PODCAST.
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A picture worth thousands of words. That’s what you will hear/see in this PODCAST.
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“It is today as it was then.” Tell you what. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, #ItSureIs!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, the title tells it all.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the Bible doesn’t get any more practical than this!
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It could well be considered the single most beautiful symbol in the entire Bible.
You’ll hear all about it in this PODCAST.
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Sixty-six.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, one phrase (along with its equivalents) is used by the biblical writers a full complement of sixty-six times in the 27 books of the New Testament.
A most important phrase indeed.
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As you are about to hear in the PODCAST, it’s all a matter of perspective, isn’t it?
POV—Point of view. Ours, or God’s?
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Ready to meet a new friend?
In this PODCAST, you will.
And your life will be all the richer for having known him.
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Listening for the echoes. That’s what you and I will be doing in this PODCAST. It’s all about the echoes.
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Just how intimately personal is the Bible to you?
As you will hear in this PODCAST, this intimately personal.
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It’s only one word. Oh, but what a word.
As you will hear on this PODCAST, one word that might just breathe new life and refreshment into your otherwise parched soul.
It sure did into mine.
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“It is today as it was then.” Boy, is it ever. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST.
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We, my friends, in this PODCAST, courtesy of our old friend Luke, are about to make a brand new friend.
A friend well-worth meeting, knowing, and loving!
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In this PODCAST, courtesy of our old friend—this historian Luke—we actually can be a fly on that wall.
And oh, what sights we will see; and what sounds we will hear.
Sounds that continue to reverberate throughout the Millennia of Church History, all the way to our day and into our souls.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
What a celebration then.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, what a celebration now.
A beautiful promise, indeed. The most beautiful of all of God’s promises.
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What a difference a day makes. As you will hear in this PODCAST!!!
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You want to talk about “turning a 180”?
In this PODCAST, we are going to watch just that, in the most unlikely of people.
Enjoy!!!
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As you listen to this PODCAST, may your heart overflow with thanksgiving for these blessings!
Enjoy!!
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Sing it with me: “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.”
Just how amazing is God’s grace. As you will hear in this PODCAST, this amazing!!!
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You have perhaps heard of three-dimensional pictures?
Well, in this PODCAST, you get to view a five-dimensional portrait.
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As you prepare yourself to listen to this PODCAST, get ready to feast upon a bountiful banquet table filled to overflowing with Scripture.
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Put your thinking caps on, my friends.
In this PODCAST, we not only have much to talk about; we have tons to think about.
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You could call this PODCAST, “The Eyes Have It.”
You’ll “see” why as you hear it.
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May I be so presumptuous as to suggest that we each have our own issues?
Well, as you will hear in this PODCAST, I certainly do have mine. And this is certainly one of them.
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“What does the Good Book say?”
Well, truth be told, it has a lot to say. Including this that you will hear in this PODCAST.
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“It’s the little things in life.”
Well, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this may be a little thing in terms of effort, but it’s a massive thing in terms of its impact.
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So.Much.Here, in this PODCAST for us to digest.
A veritable banquet table of truth, courtesy of Paul and Jesus—not necessarily in that order.
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And maybe, just maybe, time for you to practice it too.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
THIS, my dear PODCAST-listening friends, is as real as it gets.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It’s one of the most practical passages in the entire New Testament.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, a great place to begin our New Year 2022 together!
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What a woman.
What a story.
I dare say that after hearing this PODCAST, you may never think of Dear Mother Mary the same way again.
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A manger scene. As you will be reminded in this PODCAST, a manger scene has become the iconic picture of Christmas.
Which prompts to ask and answer this one question:
How does the first—genuine, authentic, as described in the Bible—manger scene compare with our store-bought manger scenes?
The answer will bring to you a bright and beautiful understanding of that very first Christmas Day!!!
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A healthy dose of some—much-needed, I think—Christmas cheer, courtesy of this PODCAST, and the inspired pen of the historian, Dr. Luke.
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A special treat—for reasons that you will hear in this PODCAST.
A one-off, recorded just this morning for your enjoyment and edification.
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Oh dear friends. As you listen to this PODCAST, get ready to think!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
A dual blessing in the form of a PODCAST.
Just in time for this Thanksgiving season!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, we are going to consider together the answer to one of the most commonly asked questions, at least as far as people have asked me.
The implications of the answer are—to say the least—staggering in their significant, for each of us.
You are truly in for a treat.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Isn’t it amazing how one word—that you will hear repeatedly in this PODCAST—can change someone’s life, forever?
Perhaps even your own.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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What a glorious truth you are about to hear in the PODCAST!!!
Seriously, I can’t wait for you to embrace and internalize this.
HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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A two-for-one proposition.
One of my favorite cities; and one of my favorite sages.
After hearing this PODCAST, you will love them too.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It may be one word that is oh-so-small (a minuscule 3 letters, really—tōv)…
But as you will hear in this PODCAST, one little word that looms so large—in the Bible AND in our lives.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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THIS is why I follow Jesus.
In this PODCAST, you will hear a story and see a Scriptural snapshot of just who Jesus was, and is.
He certainly and without a doubt is THIS to you!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It’s not that complicated. AND, as you will hear in this PODCAST, it costs us nothing!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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From my sizable soul to yours, may this humble little PODCAST be to you a blessing.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Get ready for a massive “Ah-ha” moment.
Perhaps as you listen to this PODCAST, several of them.
If I could shout this message from the housetops, I would.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, a more fantastical tale has never been told.
Fantastical, but fantastically true.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Let the good times roll.
They’ll roll, alright. But as you will hear in this PODCAST, they’ll roll… for only a little while.
And in the end, Jesus wins. And when He wins, we win.
You win!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It’s been a week of so much bad news.
In this PODCAST, you are about to hear the best news!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It is THE gold standard. As you will hear in this PODCAST, the Holy Grail.
So elusive.
BUT… it doesn’t have to be.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Sounds like the end of a song, doesn’t it? “No matter who you are.” But as you will hear on this PODCAST, it’s really the end of a story.
A heartwarming story that you will come to love and to cherish, I promise you. No matter who you are.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Settled! As you will hear in this PODCAST, “settled” is such a wonderful word.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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A tough week? A tough week for someone you know and love?
If so, then this PODCAST is for you!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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One fruitful discussion—as you will hear in this PODCAST—for just such a time as this.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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One of the most blessed—yet misunderstood—truths in all of Scripture.
That’s what you’ll be learning about in this PODCAST!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, I’m coming off of an exhilarating camp high—literally.
Having just spent the past week with the most precious and special students you’d ever want to meet, I’m on Cloud 9 as I now record and share this 49th message from Galatians with you.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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You are going to enjoy this! 100%. Guaranteed.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, I am speaking this week at a place near and dear to my sizable soul. Holy Ground. A place where God has sovereignly chosen to touch the earth.
It’s called Hartland Christian Camp. And I will be spending my week with 250 precious Junior High/Middle School students.
But I have not left you podcast-less. So take this message to heart, look up, wait eagerly, anticipate enthusiastically.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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In this PODCAST, you will hear Paul’s desperate, heartfelt plea.
And mine.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, this one thing is not just a very important thing.
This one thing is the MOST important thing.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, three cheers and a Hip Hip Hooray!!!
We have reached a major milestone—Paul’s pivot-point in this lovely little letter we call Galatians.
A pivot-point to this letter. Perhaps… Perhaps a pivot-point in our lives.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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I needed encouragement this morning.
So I turned to the one verse of Scripture that through the years has sustained me as no other.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, perhaps it will be an enormous encouragement to you as well.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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What a picture.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, truly did Rabbi Jesus paint for us a masterpiece.
A painting, a portrait guaranteed to make your life freer and lighter.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Such a beautiful word, it is.
I'll give you a hint. The title of this message notwithstanding, the word is not "grace," beautiful as that word may be.
In this PODCAST, you’ll hear all about it.
Enjoy!!!
And thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!! It means the world to me.
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What a story.
As you will hear in this PODCAST…
Is he a caricature? No. A living, breathing human being? Yes.
One whose tortured life teaches us much today.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, with his faith in a free-fall, our old friend John the Baptizer asked Jesus The. Most. Important. Questions that anyone has ever asked.
Questions that every human being who has ever lived has asked.
Questions, perhaps, that you have asked.
Questions that I have asked.
Jesus’ answer to which was brilliant beyond words.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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"Real people who lived in real places…"
Ready to meet one?
You will, in this PODCAST. And by meeting him, I promise you that you will never forget him.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Can you hear them? Cheering you on?
I’ve got a feeling that after hearing this PODCAST, you will!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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You are in for a treat (if I do say so myself).
As you will hear in the PODCAST, a veritable banquet table of culinary delights, every tasty morsel of which comes courtesy of the Apostle Paul and his original Galatian readers.
Take a deep breath, pull up a chair, make yourself comfortable… and enjoy!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God’s amazing grace costs us nothing.
As you will hear on this PODCAST, God’s amazing grace cost Him everything… in ways that we cannot even begin to imagine.
But we will try.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It’s arguably the single most beautiful word in all of the Bible.
And as you will hear in this PODCAST, its meaning and significance continues to reverberate throughout the world, directly into your life today.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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I can say with absolute assurance that the scene to which we refer in this PODCAST, was and is the single most dramatic moment in all of human history.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Ready for a wild ride?
As you will hear in the PODCAST, from Earth to Heaven, back to Earth, and up again into Heaven. We are in for quite a ride, to be sure.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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“Perhaps the time has come…”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, perhaps the time has come for you…
“Perhaps the time has come for me to do what?” you may ask.
The answer to that question will free you and me in ways that we can only imagine.
Enjoy!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You know what? If you were going to listen to one and only one of my PODCASTS, this is the one I would want you to hear.
A rather bold statement. But one that is true.
Get ready to be massively encouraged, uplifted, and liberated.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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So.Much.Here. In this PODCAST.
So much here for us to ingest and digest.
So much here that will give you So.Much.Hope.And.Encouragement.
Enjoy!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Isn’t it amazing how often in our PODCAST studies together, just the right passage hits my life at just the right time?
I have a feeling that this one will hit your life, too, at just the right time.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Finally!!! My power is back on; my internet is working; I have heat in my home; AND the ability to post this PODCAST!!!
Worth waiting for, I believe.
Enjoy!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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THIS is who we are.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this is who YOU are.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
There isn’t a whole lot in this troubled world of ours about which we can be certain.
But as you will hear in this PODCAST, you can be certain of THIS!
And thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
This PODCAST is being published one day late… for a very good reason.
Hopefully you will find it worth waiting for. Enjoy!!!
And thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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“They” do indeed "know.”
In this PODCAST, you will learn who knows, and what they know.
And I am happy to report that you are on the right side of this discussion.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Forgive me. At the considerable risk of sounding self-absorbed, in this PODCAST I am speaking to myself.
Yes, I do—on occasion—talk to myself. And they wonder why I am in therapy.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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I prepared this PODCAST for you.
Little did I know how much it would mean to me.
Get ready to get encouraged.
I sure am!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You want to talk about a Gentle Jesus…
As you will hear in the PODCAST, there is no clearer picture of Jesus’ gentle heart than this, courtesy of Paul and his Galatian readers.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It is THE iconic image of Christmas.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, a picture—it’s always about the picture.
Straight out of Galatians. Straight from my heart. Straight into your soul.
Enjoy!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Need some hope?
This PODCAST is for you.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Words fail me to convey to you the awesome wonder that I am feeling now.
In this PODCAST, you’ll no doubt hear that wonder expressed through my voice’s intonations and verbal expressions.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this season of Thanksgiving, as you are about to hear on this PODCAST, we have MUCH for which to be thankful.
Especially for THIS!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Oh my dear friends…
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST…
In this season of Thanksgiving, we have so much for which to be thankful. Not the least of which is this: God’s promise for the ages.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You want to talk about timely…
In this PODCAST, courtesy of the Apostle Paul, you are about to hear #One.Timely.Message. Enjoy!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It is a picture for the ages.
As you listen to this PODCAST, get ready for an ah-ha moment that you will never forget.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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It is the ONLY vote that matters, as you will hear in this PODCAST.
Let not your heart to be troubled.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Ever feel like beating yourself up?
Well, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, so do I.
Get ready to be encouraged, and to have this burden lifted from your shoulders once and for all.
Thank you for listening, and for SHARING this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
If that title—O Holy Night—calls to your mind my favorite holiday of the year (Christmas), guess again.
In this PODCAST, we’re going to talk about my second favorite Holy-Day of the year, this courtesy of Paul and his Galatian readers.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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“…which I have always been eager to do.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, more meaningfully telling words Paul could not have uttered.
THIS is what it looks like to follow Jesus.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
We each have them.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, the “them” in that sentence refers to what I call “Unfulfilled Longings.”
But will they remain unfulfilled forever?
Guess again!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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Remember the song, “With a Little Help From My Friends”?
In this PODCAST, your number of friends is going to grow by two.
Two remarkable individuals who are about to enrich your life greatly, as they have mine.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, you are about to hear a story.
Clear. Concise. And compelling.
A story, just like your own.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
The premise of this PODCAST is simply this:
The Christian life is not that complicated.
I would humbly suggest that from a purely biblical point of view, vibrant, dynamic, victorious Christian living is a pretty straightforward proposition.
Despite all of the endless books, sermons, lessons, blogs that load up a believer with their own unique lists of spiritual disciplines—each of which we MUST each incorporate into our daily lives in order to please God—I would humbly suggest that vibrant, dynamic, victorious Christian living can be summed up in one word.
One word that flows right out of Galatians 1:10.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
This may well be a PODCAST that you will never, ever forget.
We are going to take a little trip together. And we will learn to think Middle Eastern along the way.
Perhaps it’s a good thing that we have a holiday weekend to digest all of this.
Thank you for listening, and for SHARING this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, my heart is about to burst with overflowing joy.
May this God-given joy flood your life as well, as the burdens of your own soul are lightened as you listen.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Ready for a good old fashioned heart-stirring, soul-elevating, and spirit-encouraging Bible study?
You’re about to hear one, right here in this PODCAST.
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
This was a big deal.
This IS a big deal.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this is a Very.Big.Deal, even today. Even for us.
Be encouraged!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Do the words, “Safe” and “Secure,” mean anything to you? Well, after listening to this PODCAST, they sure will.
Guaranteed!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
A blare of the bugles and a roll of the drums. This PODCAST breaks the seal on a brand new study.
A brief interlude in our ongoing series entitled Paul in High Definition.
Welcome to Galatians in High Definition!!!
Thank you for listening, and for sharing this message!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, we have come to a defining moment in Early Church History—one precious period of time, two events of staggering significance—of which you and I are the direct beneficiaries.
This will explain so much, and put so much into its proper perspective.
Thank you for listening and for sharing this message.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this most-encouraging PODCAST, I get a wee bit personal and autobiographical with you. Not without purpose, I assure you.
We are all in this together. I feel that deeply. And I want you to feel it with me.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
The 4th of July was one week ago. As you will hear in this PODCAST, so much has happened this week in our world and in our nation that the 4th of July seems like it was months ago.
If I may dangle a preposition, dare I say that we have a lot to talk about.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
What a week!
Our world is reeling.
I rather suspect that some of your lives are as well.
I promise you that for your investment of just a few minutes in listening to this PODCAST, you will reap a return on your investment in the form of some much needed encouragement.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
We stand on the shoulders of giants. Two of whom you will meet in this PODCAST.
Men to whom we owe an enormous debt.
Enjoy!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I am so ADHD that honestly, I don’t know what to entitle this PODCAST. I’ve got, like, 10 different titles coursing through the frontal lobe of my mind.
“You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” would work.
How about “A Bride Adorned for Her Husband”?
Or “God’s Best Kept Secret”?
Maybe “There’s a New Day Coming” would capture it.
I almost called it “Moving Day.”
But I’ll stick with “Glorious Scenes and Grand Sensations.”
If a rose by any other name smells just as sweet, I hope you’ll find much sweetness as you listen in.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Thank you for joining me once again in the cozy confines of my garage. Before we get into this week’s PODCAST, I wanted you to hear my heart. A heart that is overflowing with deep feelings of compassion and understanding...
I am so excited for you to hear this latest PODCAST.
So many questions will be answered.
So much confusion will be addressed.
So many mysteries will be resolved.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
A good subtitle to this PODCAST would be, God Always Keeps His Promises.
During these days of societal and personal distress, my prayer to God is that this study will bring enormous encouragement to your soul, as it has my own.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Questions abound, as you will hear in this PODCAST.
Is there really truly a sin for which there is no forgiveness, either in this life or in the life to come?
If so, what it is?
Have I committed it?
Is it possible that I ever will commit the unpardonable or unforgivable sin?
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Oh how I.LOVE.This.Stuff!
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I am happy to announce that in this PODCAST, THE question is answered; THE problem is solved; THE mystery is revealed.
Enjoy!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this Mother’s Day PODCAST, a redemption story.
One guaranteed to flood your soul and fill your heart with hope.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, I am amazed.
Gloriously so.
My hope and prayer is that after hearing this, you will be amazed too.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Just the fact that you are choosing to listen to this PODCAST is proof-positive that you haven’t given up.
We have one most-compelling reason never to give up.
Hear what that reason is right here.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Habakkuk’s psalm of praise fits our current circumstances as perfectly as they fit his. A more timely prayer could not be offered.
Want to know how to pray during a pandemic? Here’s a prayer-clinic, courtesy of Habakkuk, and of Paul who quoted him.
Enjoy!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
HAPPY EASTER!!! Or perhaps there’s something better—far more meaningful, way more picturesque—by which this day should be known. Listen to this PODCAST, and hear it for yourself. An Easter message overflowing with bright optimism—for your future and mine.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
God is on the move.
In this PODCAST, you will hear in just what direction, and with what purpose, God is moving.
You’ll also discover His method to this incredible madness which we are all enduring, as well your purpose during these amazing days.
Be encouraged, my friends. Our brightest days are about to dawn!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Well, it isn’t pretty. But this PODCAST is enormously encouraging.
Recorded in the privacy of my home (as I hunker down under a mandatory “shelter in place” order), as you will hear, we are BACK IN THE BOOK OF ACTS!!! (Three cheers for that!)
Cumbersome as it may be to record this without the benefit of a “live” audience, I’ll do my best to deliver you brand new, delightfully fresh, intensively insightful content each week as we work our way ever so slowly but surely through Paul in High Definition.
Enjoy!!!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
So here’s the plan. As you will hear in this PODCAST, we are still under lockdown. So for this week, Part 2 of our Signs of the Times series that we began last week. My goal is to put today’s troubling headlines into the broad context of biblical prophecy in order to underscore the fact that Jesus knew all about COVID-19 long before we ever heard about it. No need to panic. No need for fear. He’s got this. Not only does He “got” this, but it’s all a part of His prophetic plan as it unfolds in real time right before our wondering eyes.
Next week, it’ll be back to Paul in HD as I record a brand new podcast in the cozy confines of my office.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
The Coronavirus has come to Safe Haven. Our venue (an activity room at a retirement facility) has been placed on lockdown.
NEVERTHELESS, in this encore PODCAST, you will hear the answer to the question, Where does the Covid-19 fit in prophecy?
Here is the big picture. As you hear it, be encouraged.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
If you will permit me to quote myself, “It is today as it was then.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST: Boy, is it ever today as it was then.
May God use the words of an ancient Prophet to elevate your soul, as they have my own.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
“With all of the religions in the world, how do you know that Jesus is the real deal?”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, I am asked this question every summer at Middle School and High School Camp. Every summer.
Well, courtesy of the Apostle Paul, and his first-ever recorded sermon in the New Testament, you will hear the answer.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
The good news is that it’s NOT the Coronavirus. The bad news is that whatever this bug may be, it has knocked me flat for a week.
But fear not, my friends. I have NOT left you without a PODCAST.
In fact, as I reach back into the massive archive of podcasts, I’ve selected THE sermon that planted the seed of salvation in the soul of Saul-turned-Paul.
NOT my sermon, to be sure. But the sermon of Stephen. THE sermon overheard by Saul-now-Paul as he aided and abetted the stoning of this precious man.
For without a Stephen, there likely never would have been a Paul.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
There is So.Much.Here in this PODCAST that I don’t know how even to tease this properly to compel you to listen.
Let’s just say that you are standing at a veritable banquet table of Truth, all courtesy of the Apostle Paul who will now turn Paul-the-Preacher.
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I LOVE this man.
After hearing his story in this PODCAST, trust me. You will love him too.
“Real people, who lived in real places, who had real experiences (Boy, did he ever!), all of which point to a real God.”
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, our bountiful banquet table of Truth is overflowing.
A spiritual smorgasbord guaranteed to challenge your thinking and rock your worldview.
Get ready for this delectable culinary delight, courtesy of Messers Paul, Barnabas, and Mark.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, two tectonic shifts—unprecedented in their scope and intensity—rocked Church History.
Those two sudden jolts have now rumbled all the way into your world—more significantly, into your life—today.
And may I add that what the Devil means for evil, God will always use for your good. Hear that message loud and clear!
Get ready to be super encouraged.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You are about to meet two individuals, remarkable each. YET, as you are about to hear on this PODCAST, they were both utterly invisible, completely anonymous, hidden in the shadows.
Invisible, anonymous, hidden to everyone but God.
Do you ever feel invisible? As if, when all is said and done, your life might count for very little? Or nothing at all?
Encouragement for your soul is one click away!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
How does God turn a destroyer of all-things-Jesus into arguably the world’s leading ambassador for Jesus?
In this PODCAST, you will discover the answer to that—and so many more—question.
An answer guaranteed to amaze.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, you are about to hear One.Amazing.Story.
A story about One.Amazing.Individual.
Though I would sincerely doubt that he saw himself as amazing.
See what you think.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
In this PODCAST, you will hear the parting words of a dying man.
Peter’s last will and testament, in his own words, are as applicable today—to your life and mine—as the day Peter wrote them. Perhaps even more so.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, how ironic that Peter should invoke this image, and we discuss it, on the evening of the Winter Solstice, 2019.
As we bring the lovely little letter called 1 Peter to a close, you are in for copious amounts of much-needed encouragement.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Oh, my friends, you are in for an intellectual and spiritual treat, a veritable banquet table of biblical truth.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, THIS is where I live.
I rather suspect, if I may be so presumptuous, that this is where you live as well.
Get ready for a massive amount of encouragement, courtesy of our old friend, Peter.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
This humble little PODCAST offering represents an essential, easy-to-follow clinic on how to stand firm against the devil.
All courtesy of Peter, of course.
A most-practical “how to” on which your spiritual life and mine depends.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
(Fun Fact: Of all of the thousands of messages I have given over the years, THIS one is my devoted daughter's all-time-favorite!)
“It’s the holiday season.”
A statement, as you will hear on this PODCAST, that cuts two ways.
For far too many of us, this is not “the most wonderful time of the year.” For you, or someone you know, it’s the loneliest time of the year.
But it does not have to be.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, it all comes down to one phrase, three simple, yet-when-taken-together profound words.
Get ready for you weekly dose of enriching encouragement. All courtesy of Peter, of course.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, you and I arrest the attention of the entire Trinity when we come to be characterized by THIS.
Want to know what the “this” is in that sentence above? Keep listening.
You are in for a blessing for sure.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
More than a PODCAST; this is a wee bit of a glimpse into the depths of my sizable soul.
And perhaps into yours as well.
All courtesy of Peter, of course.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
This PODCAST will cause you to gather your loved ones a little closer to you, and to hug them a little tighter.
A remarkable story indeed, courtesy of our dear old friend, Peter.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
May I make a prediction?
My prediction is this: As you listen to the PODCAST, you will be awash in waves of encouragement.
As you’ll hear, a crazy night to be sure. But one in which Peter’s message of hope and healing came through loud and clear.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You are about to meet, courtesy of Peter and this PODCAST, one of the most remarkable individuals in all of the Bible. A supremely godly servant; yet, a man horribly conflicted.
We’ve entitled this message, “The Man Who Forgot to Remember.”
We could just as well have entitled it, “Payday Someday.”
You are in for a treat and a blessing.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST—IRONICALLY and ESPECIALLY in light of the fact that just two days ago was “National Coming Out Day”—Peter’s message to us today could not be more needed, nor more timely.
PLEASE listen with an open mind and an open heart.
And please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will read in the book of Hebrews, and hear on this PODCAST, “Jesus learned obedience from the things he suffered.”
Wait! What???
How could Jesus, who was always consistently obedience, learn obedience?
And what does that mean for us, in our lives, today? And every day?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
The picture that you are about to hear me paint in this PODCAST is my Single. Favorite. Scriptural. Snapshot of Jesus, second to none.
Courtesy of our old friend, Peter, who was onsite and who witnessed this up close and far too personal in real time as it happened.
I have a hunch that after hearing this, you will never think of Jesus in quite the same way again.
May my stuttering and stammering words be a blessing in your life.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
You—YOU!!!—are being prayed for. Right now. Today. Every day. Every minute of every day.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, you are being prayed for.
What a glorious truth.
What a soul-sustaining reality.
What a blessed assurance.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I mentioned it only briefly, in passing really, last week.
Time to talk about it in earnest this week.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, THIS is our hope.
A bright and beautiful hope indeed!
BTW, the cheering you will hear in the background are the precious high school students whom I met at Hartland Christian Camp in July. A better group of students you will not find. Anywhere.
May it be a blessing, to you as it was to them. Enjoy.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
One final picture.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, there is embedded within the pages of the Old Testament one standout picture (one among so many) that we must consider together.
50 chapters were devoted to the painting of this one picture. (By way of contrast, do you remember how many chapters are devoted to painting the picture of the creation of the world? Two!)
When it came to painting the picture of Christ dying for our sins once for all time, God—forgive the cliché—spared no expense in painting this one.
This podcast—my stuttering, stumbling, verbal depiction of this painting—is singularly dedicated to the enrichment of your soul.
Enjoy!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, there is no more precious a proclamation, made by Peter to us, in the entire Bible than this one.
Nor is there a more precious a picture, painted by God Himself, of this proclamation, than this one.
My earnest prayer is that this message may be a blessing in your life today.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Once again, while I am away speaking (at my final conference of the summer), I have not left you Podcast-less!
Welcome to Decision Night at Hartland Christian Camp.
As you will hear in the PODCAST, even though this message was not delivered at Safe Haven, it is the perfect followup to last week’s discussion of Passover.
I mentioned last week, and will remind you now, that before His arrest, Jesus had to keep a divine appointment in the Garden of Gethsemane. I didn’t explain that then; I do explain it now.
If you want to know what it meant for Jesus to bear the weight of your sin (and mine), this is THE picture of exactly what that meant.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, a more precious and precise portrait of Jesus has never been painted.
A picture worth thousands of words.
Here you will hear a few hundred of mine.
Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of Me.”
May we remember never to forget.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
“Once for all time.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, a more precious premise has never been written.
“Once for all time.”
What does it mean to you? What does it mean to me?
If it’s meaning doesn’t send your soul singing, nothing will.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It is without a doubt one of the weirdest passages in all of the Bible.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Peter’s words in 1 Peter 3 present to us a theological oddity, certainly a curiosity, an enigmatic phrase that focuses our attention on that time frame between Not-So-Good-Friday and Easter Sunday, and for good measure invokes the memory of Noah and the Flood.
What in the world is going on here? And what does it mean to us today?
Get ready for a fantastical journey from which Jesus emerges victorious. He wins! And when He wins, we win!
Enjoy!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
I’m coming off of an absolutely exhilarating week with some of the finest high schoolers you’d ever want to meet. This at a place near and dear to my heart called Hartland Christian Camp.
For this week’s PODCAST, this is my Wednesday morning message from last week at Hartland.
Enjoy!!!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
While you are enjoying this PODCAST, I have the privilege of speaking to the greatest group of High School students you’d ever want to meet—the heaven-sent and happy campers at Hartland Christian Camp.
Be encouraged. There is hope. Hope for anyone and everyone who has ever appeared to be beyond redemption.
You are about to see a snapshot of Jesus that you will hopefully never, ever forget.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
You’re gonna love this!!! At least, I sure do.
As you will hear on this PODCAST, Jesus’s words, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light” freed me from YEARS of enormous guilt.
Think of this as Peter Puts on a Personal Evangelism Clinic, all in just two simple-yet-profound sentences.
Oh, and for good measure, at no extra charge, we will reduce all of Jesus’ teaching regarding our character as Christ-followers to one salient soundbite of but a lean-and-mean four, one-syllable words.
Trust me. You’re gonna LOVE this!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
I am in Carson City this weekend, honored to perform the wedding of my beloved niece, Amanda. (CONGRATULATIONS Amanda and Andrew!)
But as you will hear in this PODCAST, this encore message is as timely and needed and comforting and encouraging and hope-sustaining today as it was when I first gave it so many months ago.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Do why DID Peter have to write this?
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, why do we need to read and heed this?
We’ve hit a milestone in our 1 Peter in HD series. This marks the halfway point. 2 1/2 chapters down; 2 1/2 chapters to go!
Four times in 2 1/2 chapters, Peter makes this heartfelt plea. He does so for a very good reason.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, there is a myth so commonly taught that it has almost become cliché. So universal is this teaching that if I echoed it in this message, very few would even question it.
Yet, it is one of the most exhaustingly exasperating, or self-exalting teachings we could ever hear.
And in that sense, it can often be diabolically defeating for any Christian. Perhaps even for you.
Give this a listen, and see what you think.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
While I am both honored and humbled to teach some precious people at camp, I have not left you PODCAST-less.
THIS is one of the most powerful and profound messages in all of Scripture: How to Survive—Yeah, verily—to THRIVE in the desert.
You are in for a life-altering, paradigm-shifting tour of the biblical stage that will change the way you read and understand your Bible.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
While I am speaking at a summer camp this week, I have not left you without a PODCAST.
You are about to meet a most-remarkable woman, and a not-so-remarkable man.
Most importantly, through this encounter, you will meet a gentle Jesus whose love is the most remarkable aspect of this story.
Enjoy!!!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
For reasons that you will hear in this PODCAST, this past week has arguably been the single most emotionally-challenging period in my precious bride’s and my 43 years of marriage.
Consequently, in God’s good providence, Peter’s words in 1 Peter 3 came at just the right time.
For my family.
And very possibly, for yours.
Enjoy.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in the PODCAST, I do have a dream.
A modest dream. Yet modest though it may be, an increasingly illusive-if-not-impossible dream.
Won’t you please help my dream to come true?
Ironically, your response to this message will either nudge my dream to its fulfillment, or cast my dream upon the ash heap of impossible dreams. (No pressure!)
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST…
It is today as it was then.
Sadly so.
Tragically so.
Abusively so.
BUT (I am thrilled to say) UNNECESSARILY so.
May this much-needed change begin right here, right now, with us.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
I’ll make this brief and to the point.
If you, or anyone whom you know, has and/or is being abused by another, you/they need to hear this PODCAST.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
What you are about to hear in this PODCAST is a masterful, masterful example of how two apostles—Peter and Paul—addressed a thorny issue that confronted the first generation of Christ-followers.
The issue of slavery.
Paul in particular will seize upon a teachable moment, presented to him by a runaway slave, and use this moment spectacularly to develop an entire New Testament theology of slavery. AND what it all has to do with us today when it comes to our own thorny social issues which threaten to divide us.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST...
A futile night of fishing…
A breakfast on a beach…
A cringeworthy conversation…
Changed EVERYTHING.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Let’s take a walk together.
More precisely, let’s you and me take a walk together with Jesus.
After hearing this PODCAST, you will never think of Jesus’ final steps the same way again.
That’s a promise!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
His name was Pontius Pilate. And as you will hear in this PODCAST, he was not a nice man.
This is the man to whom Jesus was handed over to be crucified.
This is the man who will live long in infamy.
This is the man who caved to political pressure in order to preserve his position of power, even if it meant crucifying an innocent man who though He was God, held no position.
This is the man who metaphorically drove the nails into Jesus' hands and feet, and a stake through the heart of Peter. Peter, whose faith would fail spectacularly in the face of Jesus' trumped-up charges.
There is a lot going on here, every salient detail of which will enhance your Easter season enormously.
May God bless you richly as you listen.
In our run-up to Easter, please join us in this week’s PODCAST as we follow Jesus step-by-step on this Virtual Israel Study Tour through the final hours of Jesus’ life.
Last week, we joined Peter in the seclusion of the Garden of Gethsemane. This week, we’ll meet again in the courtyard of the High Priest.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Easter is almost upon us. Consequently, for the next four weeks, I would like to take you on a virtual tour of four places that factored most prominently in Jesus' final hours.
In this PODCAST, we will visit the Garden of Gethsemane together.
From there, we will move in the coming weeks to the house of the High Priest, the Antonia Fortress, and finally--on Easter weekend--we will walk together on the stones of the Via Dolorosa.
I will be privileged to serve as your humble, awestruck tour guide. My prayer is that with every step we take, we will again and again be reminded that the Bible is God's written record of...
Real people who lived in real places, who had real experiences, all of which point to a real God.
This morning I am (once again!) literally walking where Jesus walked.
But I have not left you PODCAST-less.
Here's a glimpse into my sizable soul during my two years of wilderness wandering.
IOW, how I lost my faith completely, and got it back vibrantly.
May my story be an encouragement to your own. God bless you as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, it’s always been a delicate and debatable dance — a Committed Christ-Follower's relationship to the government.
This tension forms a theme that meanders throughout the pages of the Old Testament. It spills over into the Gospels and Acts. It's certainly mentioned in several epistles, as it is here in 1 Peter.
Fortunately for us, the Bible is quite clear, concise, and unambiguous on this topic.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
May these words, humbly offered, be a blessing to and in your life.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about two minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_31.mp3
So many questions.
And as you will hear in this PODCAST, so many stunning answers.
Just to whet your appetite, just a few of the questions (that will indeed be answered in this podcast):
- Did God engage in genocide—the wholesale slaughter of innocent men, women, and children?
- What does the Bible actually say about homosexuality?
- What is the real reason that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah?
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about a minute and a half? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_30.mp3
May I share with you an observation?
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the observation is this: The precision of Bible is nothing short of awe-inspiring.
A precision that goes down to the level of its individual words and phrases.
Case in point—The. Precise. Phrase that Peter used here in 1 Peter 2:11 to describe us as committed followers of Jesus. Peter wrote, "You are foreigners and strangers on this earth."
As you will hear, a most remarkable statement, the depths of which we will only begin to plumb in this message.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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I will simply say that if you want to know what it should look like to be a committed follower of Jesus, This.Is.It.
In this PODCAST, you will hear the Apostle Peter highlight what is IMHO the attribute of God most often overlooked.
My preparation for this message was for me life-changing. As you hear this message, may it be a blessing in your life as well.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about 2 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/Jesus_in_HD_Encore_28.mp3
Snowpocalypse 2019 has hit the PNW. Which means that out of concern for the safety of our precious Safe Haven people, we encouraged each one to stay home, be safe, and be warm and cozy.
But despair not, my friends. I dug through our massive archives--5 years back, to be accurate--to pull out one of the most helpful PODCASTS I've ever done.
So many answers to so many of your questions will be made crystal clear as you listen.
Please feel free to share the link to this podcast with your friends -- http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/Jesus_in_HD_Encore_28.mp3.
And do remember that depending upon your web browser and connections speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.
Enjoy, and be blessed.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about 2 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_28.mp3
I don’t usually give you the takeaway of a lesson up front, preferring to spring it on you at some point unexpected in each lesson.
But as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, given the fact that there are two takeaways tonight, I’ll give them to you upfront, at the very beginning.
Takeaway #1. You really are some-one and some-thing special.
Takeaway #2. Jesus truly is gentle, and His burden really is light.
Meaning that we have one singular sublime and simple purpose.
Meaning that victorious, effective, God-pleasing Christian living is not difficult, nor is it complicated.
If you are ever tempted to feel as though the Christian life is a heavy burden, then this is for you!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about a crisp and compact 4 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_27.mp3
God’s timing is perfect!!!
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this passage for me (and I have no doubt for some of you) has come at just the right time. Let me explain.
Simply put, for some time I have been experiencing something of identity crisis. I have been haunted by this one question: “Where do I fit?”
When it comes to this whole Christian scene, our contemporary Christian culture, at the risk of sounding overly maudlin—a great word that means self-pitying, tearfully sentimental—I honestly don’t know where I fit anymore.
Well, thanks to Peter, that’s not true any more!!!
I now know exactly where I fit. And soon, so shall you!!!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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Here’s the thing: As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, at precisely 6:13 this past Monday morning, I had an epiphany.
Fact is, between last Saturday night and Monday morning, I was stymied by one perplexing question: “Here in 1 Peter 2, why in the world didn’t Peter use the word for stones that is his name? Petros?”
Or to put that another way, “Why did Peter here in 1 Peter 2 use the word for stones, Lithos?
They are, after all, synonyms—Petros and Lithos—at least in English. Both are translated “stone.” So why didn’t Peter refer to himself—and to you and me—as a Petros? Why a Lithos?
Oh, my friends, the answer to that question is breathtakingly beautiful. Beautiful indeed.
As are you!
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You are in for a real treat, I do believe.
As you are about to hear in this week’s PODCAST, it’s one of the most basic principles of proper biblical interpretation, the ground rule of hermeneutics.
Ready? Here it is: “The Bible is the best commentary on itself.”
Ever heard that before? Well, you’re going to get a classic example of that rock-solid (pun intended) truism right now.
Let’s start with this: Peter, it seems, was obsessed with stones and rocks. And that for a very good reason.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Matthew referred to it as “this parable.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, as Jesus taught “this parable,” He effectively signed His own death warrant.
After “this parable,” nothing would ever be the same again.
It certainly left a lasting and indelible impression on the mind and heart of Peter.
May it leave a lasting and indelible impression on our minds and hearts as well.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
His name was John Mark. A man of whom the world was not worthy.
But as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, he was a man in whom the Apostle Paul saw no worth.
None.
Zero.
Nada.
But here’s the thing: He may have had no worth to Paul, but John Mark had infinite worth to God.
Paul would not use him, but God certainly did.
Spectacularly.
Ever feel as though you have little-to-no worth? Guess again.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? Can you give me just 3 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here:
http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/Christmas_in_HD_4.mp3
He is the unsung hero of the Christmas story.
In a classic case of gross understatement, may I say that Simeon was a most-remarkable individual. In this PODCAST, you will hear his inspiring story in his own voice.
A truly unforgettable Christmas meditation—one that not only looks back to the way things were, but forward to your bright and beautiful future as things soon will be!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? Can you give me just 3 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_23.mp3
In 1 Peter 2:5a (NLT), Peter painted this amazing picture. Speaking of you and me, he wrote, “And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple.”
Living stones. As you are about to hear in the PODCAST, Peter may have been an uneducated fisherman. But he was inarguably the master of the metaphor.
Last week, he referred to us as “priests”—a metaphor rich with a wealth of meaning once we understand the role of priests throughout the biblical narrative.
For this week, “living stones.” What a meaningful metaphor that is—“living stones.”
As we are about to learn, this is perfect for us to consider as we close out 2018—a year that has dealt with most of us in a remarkably unkind way. The challenges we have faced, the trials we have endured, the obstacles we have overcome… And yet, and yet, like “living stones,” you are still standing. And for that, I applaud you!
Now to the point at hand: Does anything strike you about Peter’s reference to “living stones”?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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Twitter has become the bane of my daily existence.
(You’ll discover why as you listen to this PODCAST.)
How I LONG—with every fiber of my being, with every beat of my hyperactive heart—for a kinder, gentler Christianity.
So did Peter.
So did Paul.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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Welcome to our third and final installment of Bible Bootcamp.
As you will hear in the PODCAST, with due deference to Peter’s challenge to you and me—1 Peter 2:2 (KJV), “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.”—we thought if beneficial to take a bird’s-eye view of the entire Bible. An overview. A survey. The box top to the biblical puzzle.
This so that we can understand how each individual piece fits into the whole.
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Don't have time for the full podcast? How about a smidge over 3 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/Christmas_in_HD_3.mp3 (Note: Hear our old friend, John the Baptizer, tell his story in his own voice. Enjoy!)
In honor of this Christmas season--now officially upon us--let’s go back to the beginning.
In this PODCAST, you will hear from the one, the prediction of whose birth shattered 400 years of a deafening silence and started the Christmas ball rolling—our old and dearly beloved friend, John the Baptizer.
This is his compelling story, as told in his own voice.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about a smidge over 3 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_20.mp3
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Jesus is in every book, 39 out of 39 books, in the OT.
Genesis: Jesus is the Seed of the woman (3).
Exodus: Jesus is the Passover Lamb (12).
Leviticus: Anointed High Priest (8).
Numbers: Brazen serpent (21).
Deuteronomy: The Promised Prophet (18).
Joshua: Captain of the Lord’s angelic army (5).
Judges: Angel of the Lord (2).
Ruth: Our Kinsman-Redeemer (2).
1 Samuel: The coming Messiah (2).
2 Samuel: Seed of David (7).
1 Kings: Thick cloud of God’s glory (8).
2 Kings: The Lord God of Israel (19).
1 Chronicles: The God of our salvation (16).
2 Chronicles: The God of our fathers (20).
Ezra: Lord of heaven and earth (1).
Nehemiah: God who keeps His Covenant (1).
Esther: The God of providence (Esther).
Job: Our Risen Redeemer (19).
Psalms: The King of glory (24).
Proverbs: Personification of wisdom (8).
Ecclesiastes: The God to be obeyed (12).
Song of Solomon: The one who loves selflessly (SoS).
Isaiah: The Suffering Servant (53).
Jeremiah: The Lord our righteousness (23).
Lamentations: The faithful / compassionate God (3).
Ezekiel: Lord who dwells with His people (48).
Daniel: The Son of Man (7).
Hosea: Picture of God’s redemptive love (3).
Joel: Giver of the Holy Spirit (Joel 2).
Amos: The plumb-line by which all is measured (7).
Obadiah: Destroyer of the wicked (1).
Jonah: The God of second chances (2).
Micah: Messiah to be born in Bethlehem (5).
Nahum: The Lord who is slow to anger (1).
Habakkuk: The Rock of our salvation (1).
Zephaniah: The King of Israel (3).
Haggai: The One who will bring peace (2).
Zechariah: King riding on a donkey (9).
Malachi: The sun of righteousness (4).
No wonder, then, that as Peter wrote in 1 Peter 2:2 (NASB), "Like newborn babies, (we) long for the pure milk of the word (including the so-called OT!), so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation."
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about 3 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_19.mp3
Welcome to a well-deserved pat on the back.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, I am thrilled to be able to look you in the eyes (metaphorically speaking) and say to you (literally speaking) with absolute confidence and conviction that you fulfill the mandate of Peter’s words to a degree that would delight the apostles’s heart, as well as my own.
The fact that you as a precious podcast listener have taken the time to click on a link to this podcast given the enormous numbers of online distractions proves that you “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.”
My friend, we have so much to talk about.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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Life is short.
People are fragile. So very, very fragile.
We who have committed our lives to a Gentle Jesus should of all people be a cascade of kindness to others.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, that is Peter’s message to you and me today.
Pretty basic. In a perfect world (which ours is not), this should not even need to be said.
But sadly, it does need to be said. And we need to be reminded that…
Life is short.
People are fragile.
We who have committed our lives to a Gentle Jesus should of all people be a cascade of kindness to others.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about 105 seconds? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_17.mp3
It is the single saddest day on the Jewish calendar.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, that statement, purposely given with the present tense “is,” is true today.
It was equally true for Peter’s original Jewish readers.
One day each year, indelibly imprinted on the collective psyches of our Jewish friends then and now.
“It is today as it was then.”
A day which reads in English, “the ninth day of the month of Av” (usually around our month of August).
In Hebrew it is called, Tisha B’Av.
If we don’t understand what this day is all about, we will not understand what the closing verses of 1 Peter 1 are all about. For Peter’s original readers. And for us!
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There is a play-on-words in 1 Peter 1:22.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, an insightful play-on-words that we miss to our peril.
Coming as it does from Peter’s pen, I can assure you that this play-on-words is most-intentional. Pregnant with meaning poignantly personal to Peter, and to us as well.
This play-on-words is a bit of a pun—not humorous at all, but serious in the extreme—that goes straight to the heart of what it means to be committed-Christ-follower now, today, in our current Christian culture.
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It is one of the most beautiful words to appear anywhere in the Bible.
So beautiful, as you will hear in this PODCAST, that the biblical writers invoke this word one hundred one times.
Peter will employ it in 1 Peter 1:18 when he writes these 3 amazing words: "You were redeemed."
That is a declarative sentence, causing us to ask, What’s the picture??? The biblical picture of redemption.
I’ll give you a hint: It all has to do with one of the so-called Minor Prophets. Minor in terms of his book’s length; MAJOR in terms of its message.
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What does it mean to “be holy”?
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the answer is remarkably simple and practical. So simple and practical that you don’t need a seminary degree to understand this.
And yet, were I a betting man, I would be willing to wager that “be holy” means something vastly different than many of us have been led to believe it means.
You, my friend, are in for a treat!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about less than 3 minutes? Enjoy! Hear the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_13.mp3
Of all of the things that Peter could have told his unsettled refugee readers, why in the world would he challenge them to “be holy”? Oh my friends, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the answer is far more profound than we could ever imagine.
Seriously.
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What you are about to hear in this PODCAST is Peter’s most powerful appeal. One born in Peter’s greatest failure.
It is true that our most powerful life-message comes not out of our spectacular successes, but rather out of our epic failures.
So be encouraged.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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Peter wrote that the prophets “searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances (of the predicted) sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow.”
That time had now come. And as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, it was amazing!
Last week, we made the point that the portrait of Jesus painted in the Old Testament, by the Old Testament prophets, was dramatically detailed and stunningly complete. Just reading the Old Testament leaves the reader with nothing left to the imagination as far as Jesus is concerned.
Oh sure. The New Testament adds a bit of color here, some contours there. Think of the Old Testament as a black & white photo of Jesus in contrast to a New Testament color image—vivid color at that!
The New Testament is not so much new revelation about Jesus—His incarnation, ministry, crucifixion, resurrection—as it is a magnifying glass that allows us to see a bit more detail that was already there on the canvas of Old Testament.
So we are now going to unveil for you that Old Testament canvas, allowing you to see it in all its prophetic glory.
Imagine a blank canvas before you. With each biblical brushstroke, a bit more of the portrait will gradually emerge. Are you ready?
We’ll start with this stunner, right out of the gate.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, eight times in only three verses—1 Peter 1:10-12—Peter draws our focused-attention to “the Prophets.” Referring, of course, to the Old Testament Prophets.
Individuals—many of whom paid for their prophecies literally with their lives.
Individuals to whom we owe our heritage as committed followers of Jesus.
Individuals who painted a stunningly complete portrait of exactly who Jesus is centuries before a certain baby boy was born in Bethlehem.
Individuals worthy of our time and attention.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
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If you want to watch in wonder as God brings beauty out of someone’s ashes, you’ve come to the right PODCAST.
Her name was Tamar. And oh what a story she has to tell.
Another talk from my Hartland High School Camp this past summer.
(1 Peter in HD will resume next week!)
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May I ask you a personal question? As you will hear in this PODCAST, the exact same question that I asked of a couple of hundred of the best high school students you’d ever want to meet. Here’s my question:
Do you want to live your life in the midst of God’s blessing?
If your answer to that question is “Yes,” THIS is what God’s blessing means; THIS is what a God-blessed life looks like.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Don't have time for the full podcast? How about 127 seconds? Enjoy! (Listen to the entire podcast here: http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/Jesus_in_HD_Bonus_6.mp3)
If you have ever wondered how I present the Gospel to a camp filled with some pretty precious High School students, you can hear it for yourself in this bonus PODCAST.
This message was delivered just one month ago at Hartland Christian Camp. Please join them and me at the foot of the cross, listening to Jesus’ final seven sayings from that cross.
THIS is what a gentle Jesus sounds like, even while He’s dying—for you and for me.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, it is one of the most, if not the-most-blessed, doctrines in all of the Bible.
So naturally, theologians have to come along and muddy it all up to the point where today it is MUBAR—Messed Up Beyond All Recognition.
I’m talking about the blessed doctrine of—fancy name—imminence. As in the imminent return of Jesus. As in the clear and (as you will hear in mere moments) unambiguous Bible teaching that Jesus could return at any time. As in the glorious truth that nothing needs to happen to precede Jesus’ return.
The “blessed hope” for which we do hope, every single day.
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Paul wrote to the believers in Rome, “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all his demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity.”
Never was the need for Paul’s plea more evident than in what you are about to hear here in this PODCAST.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Peter will write this extraordinary sentence:
“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.”
Trials, I will remind you, that cost Peter’s readers everything.
How did they do it? How was it possible for them—How is it possible for us?—to rejoice when they/we are experiencing the crushing weight of heavy-hearted emotion?
You are only 45 minutes away from knowing the answer.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I am coming off of an exhilarating week with the BEST high school students you’d ever want to meet.
In this PODCAST, you will hear my opening night message at Hartland Christian Camp. Believing that “openness begets openness,” I get very open, very real, very fast—with them, and now with you.
May my words be a blessing.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Think of it. As you will hear in this encore PODCAST…
(An encore because I am speaking at one of my all-time favorite places in the world, Hartland Christian Camp)...
Promptly at 3 PM…
Exactly at That.Very.Moment when Jesus breathed His last…
Precisely to the second when Jesus exclaimed, “It is finished. Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit”…
This happened:
“Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.”
Do you have any idea what that means? It will take the remainder of this discussion for us even to begin to understand What.That.Means.
Why did God tear the veil?
It was obviously God who ripped it. No human hand could possibly tear it. That veil was an elaborately woven fabric that stood 60 feet high, equal in height to a seven-story building. No one could tear that curtain. Only God could tear that curtain.
Which only amplifies the question, Why?
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the time has come for us to have a sensible discussion about an issue that has been grossly misunderstood, and consequently grievously mis-taught, in far too many Christian settings. All of this causing so much harm spiritually, mentally, and emotionally to so many.
Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Oh, my dear friends, get ready to be set free!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear this PODCAST, it was a night that Peter would never, ever forget.
Nor should we.
For embedded within the events of this night is a blessedly-enduring word of hope and assurance. Hope and assurance for you. Hope and assurance for me. And certainly hope and assurance for someone or someones whom you and I deeply love.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
You can feast on the entire PODCAST here.
http://traffic.libsyn.com/thesafehaven/1_Peter_in_HD_4.mp3
“And just when you thought all was lost…”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, after his customary-yet-warm greeting, Peter could have begun his first foray into his rather short-lived, two-letter, dual-epistle-writing career with these words:
“And just when you thought all was lost…”
Because for Peter’s original readers, All.Was.Lost!
For these now-“scattered abroad exiles” had just been forcibly removed from their homes, had their lives permanently disrupted, and their families dramatically displaced.
Many-if-not-most of them were barely holding on, more surviving than thriving. Precious people precariously perched on the precipice of the abyss of uncertainty, just trying to make it through yet-another threatening day.
All of that to say that Peter could have begun this First Epistle of Peter with the words,
“And just when you thought all was lost…”
Because that was how they felt.
Just.Like.Some.of.Us.
Our challenges may not actually be as dire as theirs. But it sure feels that way some days, doesn’t it? Like we’re just barely hanging on? Like we’re more surviving than thriving? Like we’re maybe one step away from giving up?
“And just when you thought all was lost…”
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God bless you richly as you listen.
OK, dear friends. In this encore PODCAST (while I am away speaking), we are about to leap off of the high dive into the shark-infested waters of what has become today an unnecessarily emotionally-charged, needlessly controversial issue among many of our so-called evangelical/fundamental churches.
One that has done immeasurable damage to the precious women in far too many congregations.
It absolutely sickens me to think how so many of us men have depreciated the value of women in the work of God.
And as you will hear ever-so loudly and clearly, it sickens Jesus too.
Who would have thought that women, specifically the role of women within the work of God on this earth, would become a hotbed of controversy? But it has.
And just in case you are wondering here at the “get-go” whether or not I am a complimentarian or an egalitarian on this issue. I am neither. Oh how I hate labels. Words that mean different things to different people (usually inaccurately so) with little or no nuance. Words that carry so much baggage.
That said, I have but one agenda: To let the Bible speak for itself with minimal commentary from me. All to make this one undeniable point as loud and clear, crystal clear as we can:
God has dramatically used, presently uses, and will continue to use women to further His purposes on this planet. Both inside and outside of local churches.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Peter begins his first lovely little letter literally with a literary explosion. It’s as if he has so much that he wants to say so quickly, that the syllables come pouring out of him like a waterfall of words.
Believe it or not, verse 3 all the way to verse 12 is one long and winding and wondrously scenic sentence. You heard that right. A grand total of 315 words (in the NLT), all of which form one single sentence. Only the first part of which we will discuss now, with so much more rich and glorious truth to follow in the coming weeks.
There is an life-altering, soul-stirring insight embedded in verse 3 that we would do well to consider. Since verses 1 & 2 serve as Peter’s greeting, the letter itself actually begins with Verse 3. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
A rather remarkable statement given dire circumstances in which Peter’s original readers were living. We’ve already detailed them for you in the previous two podcasts. I’ll simply remind you that due to circumstances beyond their control—an empire-wide persecution at the bloody hands the infamously ruthless Nero—these were precious people—committed Christ-followers each, each our ancestors in faith—who had literally lost everything.
Even to the point of potentially losing their freedom and even their lives.
Theirs were the darkest of clouds with no silver linings.
A very fragile people living on the precipice with no safety net, clinging to their lives lived under the capricious actions of an unpredictable madman.
So if you were Peter, someone who fully understood and appreciated their seemingly insurmountable challenges—fears, insecurities, uncertainties—why would you begin your letter to them with the words,
“Blessed be the God & Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”?
Does that not sound like a typically empty Christian cliché?
What prompted Peter to write with such audacity as to command his readers—including us—to bless God:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Even in the absolute worst of circumstances?
Obviously, Peter’s words, “Bless be the God,” did not come out of a vacuum. Fact is, there is a long and rich history to these words, and the life-altering, soul-stirring insight embedded within them.
Peter’s opening line was anything but a cutesy little Christian cliché. Not to his original readers. After hearing this podcast, not to us.
Although this does raise one intriguing question:
Bless God?
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ"?
I thought God blesses us.
How in the world do you and I bless God?
The answer to that question will change your life.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, all you need to know about the precious people to whom Peter wrote is summarized in three telling terms. One phrase, really.
One phrase that so accurately described them.
One phrase that so accurately describes each of us.
ἐκ-λεκ-τοῖς παρ-επι-δή-μοις διασ-πορᾶς—literally, “elect foreigners in the diaspora.”
Now why in the world would Peter begin his first letter with this carefully crafted first phrase?
“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect foreigners in the diaspora.”
Because the one question looming in minds of Peter’s distressed audience was this:
Has God abandoned us?
Not to get too personal with you, and at the risk of invading your private space, I cannot help but to wonder if you have ever asked of yourself that exact same question:
Has God abandoned me?
And Peter wanted them—and us—and you!—to know that as he penned this epistle, that same question was looming large in his own mind and his own soul.
Peter knew his audience.
Peter knew them.
Peter knows us.
Peter knows you!
Peter feels our pain.
Peter asks our questions.
Peter understands our doubts.
Peter feels our fears.
Peter can relate.
Peter “gets” it.
Peter “gets” us.
And I, for one, am profoundly grateful that he does.
And in “getting” us, he will assure us in this podcast that NO!!! God has NOT abandoned you. He has NOT turned His back on you. He will NEVER stop loving you. He will NEVER leave you. He will not now or EVER forsake you.
In a word, we are SECURE in His omnipotent hand.
Aren’t you glad?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
What perfect timing!!! This PODCAST coming not a moment too soon!
Last week you might remember, I referenced the fact that so many of our precious Safe Haven family—You, not to put too fine a point on it—are going through profoundly challenging and difficult times.
Well guess what? In God’s perfect timing, that just happens to be the theme of 1 Peter.
“God’s Sustaining Strength Through Our (Your!) Sustained Sufferings.”
Be it physical, mental, emotional, relational, or spiritual—I know that many of us come stumbling into Safe Haven on a Saturday night, or click the link to this podcast—some of us feeling as though we are teetering on the breaking point.
Here is what I want you to hear: So did Peter’s original readers. This is a letter written specifically to them/to us/to you!
Get this: In the five short chapters that make up this beloved little letter, Peter will reference the suffering of his readers (including you!) 16 times.
“God’s Sustaining Strength Through Our (Your!) Sustained Sufferings.”
By way of this podcast, welcome to Peter’s world.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Did you know that Adolph Hitler survived at least six—SIX!—assassination attempts?
As you will hear in this PODCAST, these six assassination attempts occurred in 1921, 1938, 1939, two in 1943, and the final attempt on July 20, 1944.
Get this: Any one of which, if successful, would have either prevented World War II—as well as the wholesale slaughter of six million of our precious Jewish friends—or brought both the war and the Holocaust to a screeching halt.
The older I get, the more questions I have.
As but two examples:
First: Why did God allow each of these six assassination attempts to fail?
I’m not now going to debate the ethics or lack thereof of political assassination in a time of war. Whether or not as Committed Christ-Followers we should support or condemn such actions is way beyond the scope of tonight’s discussion.
I’m simply asking: Would not our world have been a better place if just 1 of those attempts had succeeded?
What possible purpose could have been served by God allowing the likes of Hitler to live and to continue to torment the human race?
The failure of the final attempt on Hitler’s life is to me especially curious given the facts that A) Just 9 months and 10 days later—on April 30, 1945—Hitler killed himself in his bunker in Berlin.
And B) Tried and executed as a conspirator to that final, failed attempt on Hitler’s life? A man of far greater and more positive influence than I could ever hope to have, a man—to quote Hebrews—“of whom our world is not worthy.” I’m talking about the German pastor, theologian, and prolific writer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. A precious, priceless servant of the Lord summarily executed by hanging a mere three weeks before Hitler bit into a cyanide tablet and shot himself in the head.
Had Hitler killed himself just three weeks earlier, would not Bonhoeffer’s life had been spared? Could not Bonhoeffer have then continued—perhaps for many, many years—to instruct and inspire the lives of countless Christ-followers the world over with his positive influence?
Why did God spare the life of a servant of Hell named Adolph Hitler just long enough to cost the life of a servant of Heaven named Dietrich Bonhoeffer?
God does not owe an explanation. But He does allow me to ask the question. So ask it, I will and I do.
That’s my first question. My second question is this:
Why did God allow a King named Herod Agrippa—a Jew who sold his soul and sold out his own people to the Romans in a cynical quest for power, position, and popularity—to live just long enough to destroy countless lives of Jewish Christ-followers in Jerusalem, as well as kill someone as stellar as the Apostle James? Brother to the Apostle John. Member of Apostolic trio—Jesus’ inner circle—Peter, James, and John? A man—to quote Hebrews—“of whom our world is not worthy.”
God does not owe an explanation. But He does allow me to ask the question. So ask it, I will and I do.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, last week as I was rushing at the end to complete on time our discussion of Peter’s release from prison—an effort at which I failed miserably, BTW—we mentioned-in-passing two noteworthy individuals, each of whom deserve far more than passing-mention.
Mary, a generous homeowner and gracious hostess who opened her home for going on-fourteen years by the time of this story to the earliest, first generation followers of Jesus, our ancestors in the faith.
Mary also happened to be the aunt to our old friend Barnabas, and a very close and personal friend of our even older friend, Peter.
And then there is Mary’s son and Barnabas’ cousin—as well as Peter’s protege—John Mark.
With glistening credentials such as these, they both do indeed deserve our special attention. Especially given the fact that immediately upon his miraculous release from prison, instinctively Peter made his very first stop to announce his release at Mary’s home.
Even more especially given that this is Mother’s Day weekend.
For this is in every sense of the word this is a Mother’s tale.
Specifically, how God in His matchless, infinite, and eternal grace melted and mended a mother’s broken heart.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
When we last left our old and dear friend, Peter, he was in Jerusalem, languishing in a Roman prison cell, awaiting what he thought was his certain execution.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Peter had been held in that prison for up to eight long, arduous days—the week of Passover.
So to help you feel this story—if I may put it that way—I need you to think back to one week ago.
It was exactly one week ago when we—in Peter in HD Podcast #51—met the notorious-King Herod Agrippa.
And I need you to consider two compelling/colliding realities now coming into play as far as Peter’s state-of-mind-and-heart while in prison was concerned.
My dear friends, SO MUCH for us to talk about (please forgive that dangling preposition).
And please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Acts 12 begins with this poignant—or pregnant with meaning—phrase, Κατ᾽ἐκ-εῖ-νον δὲ τὸν και-ρὸν, “About that time...”
Words that, as you will hear in this PODCAST, could just as well have been translated, “At the same time.” “In the meantime.” Or “Meanwhile.”
- Meaning that while our old friend from last week, the Prophet Agabus, was in beautiful downtown Antioch 300 miles to the North, warning of a coming famine to Jerusalem and Judea in the South…
- Meaning that while the predominantly non-Jewish believers in Jesus were taking up a love offering to help to alleviate mass starvation and woeful suffering among their Jewish brothers and sisters in Jesus in Jerusalem and throughout Judea…
- Meaning that while this gloriously beautiful unity of all of these first-generation Christ-followers was being realized throughout Israel and beyond…
Κατ᾽ἐκ-εῖ-νον δὲ τὸν και-ρὸν, “In the meantime,” much was going on in Holy City of Jerusalem itself—gut-wrenching, faith-challenging, life-altering events that rocked the world of these early believers. Profound challenges that had nothing to do with Agabus’ future famine about which they didn’t yet know.
Our passage tonight—a modest four verses in total—goes to the very heart of the #1 longing of every human heart—including our own.
As well as the #1 question that has plagued the human race since time immemorial.
Four short verses that describe what was going in lives of early believers particularly, and the residents of Jerusalem generally.
“About that time…”
All of this, ALL of this, so insightful for us, today, in our time.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
On its surface, storyline in these final verses of Acts 11 is really pretty simple.
And as you will hear in this PODCAST, this story is as heartwarming as it is simple.
This story is also—and so importantly—equally trend-setting. So much will be set in motion that affects how we do things (or ought to do things) even today!
So.Much.Here, my friends, to give you and me pause to ponder, to think, to process.
Trust me. You are in for a rich and rewarding excursion into the depths of God’s Holy Word.
So get ready for your personal edification to take an exciting and exponential leap forward.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
The year is circa AD 44.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, a tectonic shift began to rumble through the region approximately 300 miles due North of Jerusalem.
A movement of God’s Spirit that ignited a gloriously-spectacular conflagration that began to combust in Antioch, that has since swept the world-over, kindling a flame of God’s glory that today burns brightly even in your own soul.
A blaze that should give each of us an overwhelming, soul-sustaining sense of hope.
Is it not amazing that this story focuses upon such an influential hub of activity known as Antioch—then in Syria, today in Turkey? Why amazing?
Oh, my friends, you are about to hear an amazing story indeed.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Spoiler Alert: As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, one of the disadvantages of words on a page is that we cannot hear tone; we do not see body language nor facial expression.
In this message, I am attempting tonight to place myself in Peter’s sandals, sit myself at Luke’s writing table, and to teach tonight’s passage—one of most important in NT—in the tone and with the emotions with which Peter confronted a potentially explosive situation; with which Luke recorded this nearly-catastrophic confrontation.
I do not think it a stretch that Peter was caught completely off guard, taken totally aback, disheartened and likely exasperated by the severe reaction he received upon his return to his beloved Jerusalem.
So on the one hand, I speak to you from a broken heart, as I believe Peter’s was broken too.
On other hand, this story in Acts 11 has a glorious ending; and so shall we! God will bring beauty for these ashes! As He always does. As He ALWAYS does.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
It is one of the most enigmatic statements in all of Scripture.
Ironically, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this mysterious statement follows one of the clearest, most-unambiguous and glorious proclamations in all of Holy Writ.
Two statements--one perplexing, one perfectly understandable--both written by our old friend Peter.
Timely statements each, given that the Easter season is upon us.
Two statements that beg us to answer two compelling questions:
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Where did Jesus go during the hours between Friday night and Sunday morning?
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What did Jesus do during those hours between His crucifixion and resurrection?
My friends, you are about to hear an amazing story seldom talked about precisely because it is so enigmatic—“difficult to interpret or understand; mysterious.”
Words that, when understood properly, bless our lives immeasurably.
You are in for an Easter treat.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Peter didn’t write much.
No surprise here. As you will hear in this week’s PODCAST, the hyperactive-apostle could not sit still long enough to put pen to parchment.
There is one of the four Gospels credited to Peter—but even that he could not write himself. Peter employed Mark to record his recollections. And no surprise that in reading what could-well be entitled, The Gospel According to Peter as Told to Mark, the one word that jumps out at us in Peter’s fast-paced, out-of-breath memoir is the adverb “immediately.” (Mark uses it 42 times).
All of which is to say that on the rare occasions when Peter did park himself at a desk to inscribe his insights (only twice—1 and 2 Peter!), we should sit up and take notice.
Case in point: 1 Peter 3:15. “If someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way.”
Words, BTW, that define for us a biblical approach to personal evangelism—AKA witnessing, soul-winning, sharing your faith.
When they ask, we explain.
A principle that Peter learned, and learned well, here in Acts 10.
The asker—Cornelius. Explainer—Peter.
Problem was—and it’s a HUGE problem indeed—Cornelius was an unclean Gentile centurion living in the unclean pagan city-capital city of Roman occupation of Peter’s land. This was for Peter One.Huge.Problem on multiple spiritually-threatening, faith-testing levels.
In order to understand, I need to put you into Peter’s sandals. And in order to put you into Peter’s sandals, I need to alert you to what has historically been the Greatest.Single.Threat to Judaism, and BTW, to us.
Now, allow me to lay out dots, and then connect these dots.
This entire discussion centers around one divine injunction, repeated several times in the Torah.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Embedded deep within the pages of the Old Testament we find one of God’s most precious promises.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this bright ray of hope-filled sunshine was written to Jewish exiles in Babylon who were at the time experiencing their darkest hour.
It was written by the weeping prophet Jeremiah, who himself desperately needed a stabilizing reassurance from God that He had not, did not, and would not ever, no matter what, abandon His people.
Even though they had dramatically abandoned Him.
This unbreakable promise is found in Jeremiah 29:13, and is as true today as it was then, as true for us as it was them.
Hear it in the NIV, words worthy of memorization: “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
What’s the key word? Seek. בָּקַשׁ ḇâqaš. A rather intensive word that means “to seek or pursue earnestly.”
This word goes way beyond idle curiosity or a casual pursuit. Bâqaš speaks of a wholehearted desire.
Bâqaš The exact same word David used in Psalm 40:16, “But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who—Listen!!!—long, long for your saving help always say, ‘The Lord is great!’”
This is the very same image that Jesus invoked in the Sermon on the Mount when He said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”
This is Hebrews 11:6, that reads, “He who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently (earnestly, sincerely) seek Him.”
I can assure you—and as you are about to see—one Cornelius, a centurion from Caesarea, was in every sense of the word a diligent, earnest, sincere seeker.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
I want you to imagine for a moment this scenario. (As you will hear in this PODCAST, a potentially familiar biblical story to you.)
That being said, see if you can guess the name of its principle player.
His people were ravaged by a barbarically blood-thirsty Empire, the armies of which decimated his land, desecrated his holy places, and butchered his people.
His hatred for these pagan barbarians flamed in his guts with the white-hot fury of volcanic rage. A smoldering-just-beneath-the-surface-anger that could have understandably erupted into a deadly confrontation at the slightest provocation.
But God is a God of mercy, isn’t he?
So He asked this man to set aside his prejudices, to extinguish the fiery rage that blazed within him. And in the face of the mountain of abuses he and his people suffered at the hands of these hedonistic heathens, these merciless marauders, to travel into the very power-center of this occupying power in order to share with the people there the Good News of God’s redemptive love.
The notion that he would engage these interlopers on any level was utterly repugnant to him. Not to mention his absolute inability even to entertain the slightest possibility that some such as these might spend an eternity with him in Heaven.
He didn’t want God to save them; He wanted God to obliterate them.
So down to the seaport city of Joppa he went (that’s your clue to this mystery man’s identity) where he confronted a personal crisis of faith unlike he had ever experienced before.
Does he walk away in rebellion against God? Does he get into a boat and sail away, in direct defiance of God’s revealed will?
Or does he submit himself to the task to which God called him, knowing full-well that in doing so he may-well place himself squarely in the crosshairs of his sworn enemy?
To whom am I referring? Who was this singularly-selected servant of God, forced to face such a potentially life-threatening, history-altering choice?
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
I cannot think of a more beautiful tribute to committed Christ-followers everywhere—including YOU—than Jesus’ words here in the Sermon on the Mount: “You are the salt of the earth.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Jesus, ever the master of the metaphor, came up with a doozie with this one. “You are the salt of the earth.”
I am excited about this for a couple of compelling reasons:
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The rich and rewarding meaning of this metaphor, which we will get to in a moment.
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“You are the salt of the earth” provides us with a wonderfully enriching teachable moment, one where I get to take you behind the scenes, as it were, and demonstrate for you in real time how we arrive at the proper interpretation of a passage—this passage in Matthew 5—and from there how to make an appropriate application of a passage—any passage—to our lives today.
So you’re getting a two-for-the-price-of-one in this podcast -- What the passage means, and how we arrive at its meaning.
Because truth be told, one of the reasons the Church in America is, IMHO, sadly diminishing its influence in our world today is precisely because of a misunderstanding and misapplication of this beautiful verse, “You are the salt of the earth.”
So we have a lot going on here in this Jesus in HD Encore Podcast—an encore because I am currently leading a Study Tour in Israel, returning to Peter in HD next week.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
In this week’s PODCAST, we engage in a most important discussion that flows directly out of Matthew 18:15-17 -- one of the most important passages in all of the New Testament, the so-called “Church Discipline” passage.
Church Discipline, a teaching in many local churches that really rose into prominence in the late 1970’s and became quite the trend.
I can remember attending church leadership conferences back then and hearing pastors -- I’ll use word “boast” -- of the fact that they recently removed an individual or individuals from their churches, thereby “preserving the purity of their churches.” Others would then oooh and ahhh at the boldness of the pastor in confronting the sin in his church and taking decisive action in order to preserve the purity of his church by the process of Church Discipline as outline by Jesus here in Matthew 18.
Today, one of this nation’s leading Church Discipline proponents insists that church discipline, as outlined in Matthew 18, is one of the marks of a healthy church. He writes this on his website, clearly articulating the prevailing view of Church Discipline, and indeed includes this as one of his main talking points as he addresses pastors’ conferences throughout the country, encouraging them to do the same:
“Church discipline is the act of correcting sin in the life of the body, including the possible final step of excluding a professing Christian from membership in the church and participation in the Lord’s Supper because of serious unrepentant sin."
Consequently, it has become (and in many places still is) standard practice to remove or “exclude” or excommunicate (you choose the term) unrepentant sinners from their local churches. Or if not standard practice, this notion of Church Discipline is certainly included in most of our churches' bylaws.
Well, in light of the above definition -- More importantly, in light of Jesus’ words in Matthew 18 -- I must ask, Is that really what Jesus taught to His disciples and to us?
Let’s find out together in this Encore Podcast, an encore because I am presently leading a Study Tour in Israel.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
Her Hebrew name was Tabitha.
And as you will hear in this PODCAST, Dorcas was her Greek name.
“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
Well, she may have had nothing to do with Romeo and Juliet. But fact is, Tabitha by any other name, AKA Dorcas, would still be as sweet, kind, and beautiful. For both Tabitha and Dorcas both mean “Gazelle.” Distinctly beautiful names each, both of which speak to the inner beauty and kindness and sweetness that radiated from this singularly special woman.
So special that Luke singled her out in order specifically to tell her exemplary story. As did Peter, who at news of her untimely demise literally—at a moment’s notice—dropped everything in order to be at her bedside within hours of her passing.
- What was it about this woman that would cause the lead apostle to rush to her side upon hearing sad news?
- What was it about this woman that brought life in the prominent seaside town of Joppa to come to a screeching halt at the moment of her death?
- What was it about this woman that so profoundly challenges each of us today to ask ourselves one profoundly challenging question, the answer to which is so stunningly simple?
Are you ready to meet Tabitha, the graceful gazelle?
I believe the best way to proceed is simply to read to you her story as recounted/recorded by Luke, inserting clarifying commentary along the way. This in order to add the colors and contours that Luke’s original readers would have enjoyed that we
might otherwise miss.
Trust me. As you meet her, you will never view your life the same way again.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
I need to read Acts 9:35 to you its context.
As you are about to learn in this PODCAST, there is so much more here than meets the eye. At least that meets our eyes.
Acts 9:35 is a truly remarkable statement for original readers of the book of Acts. It will soon be truly remarkable for us. For this one verse exposes the underlying reality in the spiritual climate of the Land that you and I might easily miss. As well as the ongoing spiritual battle for our souls that is being waged every minute of every day in our lives today.
A truly remarkable verse.
So hear it as I begin at verse 32. “Meanwhile, Peter traveled from place to place, and he came down to visit the believers in the town of Lydda. There he met a man named Aeneas, who had been paralyzed and bedridden for eight years. Peter said to him, ‘Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you! Get up, and roll up your sleeping mat!’ And he was healed instantly.”
Now verse 35, “Then the whole population of Lydda and Sharon saw Aeneas walking around, and they turned to the Lord.” Anything jaw-dropping strike you about those words? Are we missing anything here? I’ll give you a hint: Yes! We are missing a ton! All of which has to do with these two telling locations: One a town—Lydda; the other a region—Sharon.
Foreign to us; all-too-familiar to the people of that land at that time.
It’s the old story: We cannot understand the biblical play if we don’t understand the stage on which the play is performed.
So in this podcast, I’ll take you on a fascinating tour of the stage.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
It had to be a rather rude awakening to be sure—Paul’s initial introduction to the unenviable life of an apostle.
As we will learn in this PODCAST, there is much—much more than we could possibly imagine—behind Paul’s otherwise enigmatic statement in 1 Corinthians 4:9, a rare moment of personal reflection (and dare-I-say exasperation and frustration) in the writings of this most-prolific apostle: “I sometimes think God has put us apostles on display, like prisoners of war at the end of a victor’s parade, condemned to die. We have become a spectacle to the entire world—to people and angels alike.”
Well, here in Acts 9, the Apostle to us Gentiles endured quite the humiliating spectacle indeed.
It was hardly the homecoming our new friend, the Apostle Paul, had anticipated as he entered archway in the main gate leading to Straight Street in Damascus.
Was his heart all a-flutter? Mine would have been.
After a three-year absence from its legendary landscape, his formal training as an apostle now complete. I have to believe that Saul-now-Paul had much upon which he would have liked to reflect.
- Perhaps a quiet, private, personal rendezvous with the spot on the road where he first met Jesus?
- Maybe a knock on the door of Judas’ house, where he was graciously housed for three days as a man-struck-blind?
- How about cup of Turkish coffee with Ananias, the man tasked with, and understandably fearful of, being first follower of Jesus to approach just-converted Saul?
- Possibly some visits to the synagogues where he first preached, “Jesus is indeed the Son of God”?
Paul’s heart had to be pitter-pattering with excited anticipation as he once-again approached the storied city.
But alas. A happy homecoming wasn’t in cards that fate dealt this soon-to-be-suffering servant of Jesus.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
Do you know what I love about Bible?
Well, truth be told, there are a lot of things that I love about the Bible. Far too many to tell in this PODCAST.
But certainly residing at or near the top of my rather lengthy list is this: The window the biblical writers open to the growth and maturity of its principle players.
Case in point: The Apostle Paul.
Paul did not emerge from his road to Damascus encounter with Jesus a wholly-mature believer. Nor did Paul burst on the scene armed with a fully-formed theology that would become the capstone of his prolific writings. Paul had to grow in his faith as a committed Christ-follower just like the rest of us.
I love that!
Paul moved from a measurably primitive understanding of Jesus to a remarkably profound comprehension of who Jesus was and is and all that Jesus did and accomplished. This growth, this development, this maturity takes place right before our wondering eyes ever to behold in all of its spiritual splendor.
In short, Paul was a person in process, just like us! A process well-documented in the New Testament that as we are about to learn slowly-but-surely took place over many, many years.
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I believe that I can say this without equivocation. See if by the end of this PODCAST, you agree with me.
My unequivocal observation? He is the single-most important person in the New Testament of whom you have never heard.
There is an overarching theme to tonight’s discussion, born out of this story. One that relates directly to something that Jesus said.
You talk about Paint the picture, Rabbi. This story here in Acts 9 paints THIS amazing picture.
Jesus said, “But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.” That was in Matthew 19.
So important is this principle that Jesus repeated it in the very next chapter: “So those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.”
Whatever did Jesus mean? More to the point: What does this look like? Paint the picture, Rabbi.
Fortunately for us, Jesus is about to paint this picture—as beautiful a picture as you’d ever want to see—courtesy of Saul here in Acts 9, as illustrated so wonderfully in the lives of two otherwise anonymous individuals.
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You talk about a rising star.
You are about to meet him in this PODCAST, up close and personal: Saul of Tarsus. Disciple of the renowned Rabbi Gamaliel. One of the Jerusalem-based Pharisees. Soon to become a voting-member of Israel’s Supreme Court—the Sanhedrin.
This was a guy whose career-path was rocketing skyward in an ever-ascending trajectory to greatness.
In terms of his religious tradition, passed on to him by his Pharisee-father, Saul was a guy who had it all—A rapidly-increasing influence. A growing respect among his peers. Certainly the pride of his parents. The possibility of fortune to go along with his ever-expanding fame.
And, of course, to his way of thinking, the super-abundant approval of God, along with all of God’s bountiful blessings that Saul though he deserved, and that allowed Saul to justify to himself his murderous rage.
Indeed, Saul had it all.
And consequently, Saul had it all to lose.
And lose it, he did. In the blink of an eye, literally.
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Hate is a horrible thing.
Hate unbridled and unchecked is a murderous thing.
Hate in name of God is terrifying and terrorizing thing.
And as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, hate in the name of God is indeed a terrorizing thing because such religious hatred is actually viewed by the hater as a righteous thing.
Just ask a certain Pharisee—emphasis upon that lofty religious title, Pharisee, since it goes to the very heart of this story—named Saul. Yes! Saul was a Pharisee.
On the night before He was executed, as Jesus and His now-eleven disciples were slinking through the dark alleys of Jerusalem, literally one step ahead of His betraying-disciple Judas, the Temple guards, and the Roman cohort that Judas was leading to arrest and ultimately to crucify Jesus, Jesus made this chilling statement which should have given His disciples pause, assuming that in that desperate hour they had presence of mind to pause.
It’s found in John 16:2, where Jesus said this: “The time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God.”
A prediction, a prophecy that has historically come to pass in our day—the bitter result of religious extremism—far too many times to count. Bloodshed in the name of God. Be that blood shed at the hands of the Christian Crusaders, Muslim suicide bombers, or a now-ranking member of Sanhedrin—keep that label in mind; it too goes to heart of this story—Saul.
From where did Saul’s unbridled fury, his murderous hatred for Jesus and all things Jesus-related come?
Tonight, we will consider together much of what is often overlooked in any discussion about Saul-to-become-Paul’s background.
All of which will expose the degree to which God went when preparing His “Apostle to the Gentiles.”
Indeed, Paul will write in wonder in Galatians 2:8, “For by God's power I was made an apostle to the Gentiles.”
That power was clearly at work in Paul’s/Saul’s past. And as you are about to hear, that power was equally at work in Saul’s present here in Acts 9.
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Throughout His life and ministry, Jesus made some absolutely amazing statements, as only He could do!
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus was able to pack into just a few words the most deeply profound theological truths, the implications of which have taken the most incisive theological minds centuries to unpack.
Case in point: This otherwise obscure little gem buried deep within the Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, AKA “The Feeding of the 5000.”
Jesus said in John 6:44, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me.”
An absolutely remarkable statement that underscores our gloriously precious theological proposition known as Divine Election, along with its sister doctrine of Sovereign Predestination—sadly, with all of its attendant questions and endless theological wranglings, divisions, and separations that these blessed concepts unnecessarily generate.
Trust me, courtesy of Philip and an unnamed Ethiopian Eunuch, this is a cause NOT of confusion, but of cerebration!
For as you are about to hear, this eunuch’s story is your story.
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It has become THE iconic image of Christmas: a Manger scene.
- So readily recognizable that its image graces the fronts of so many of our Christmas cards.
- So singularly significant that churches throughout country often display what they call a Living Nativity.
- So emotionally effusive that the mere suggestion of placing a Manger Scene on the steps of a City Hall can stir up a cauldron of contention.
- So famously familiar that many-a-home have a Manger Scene proudly/prominently displayed on a table or mantle.
And as you will hear in this PODCAST, so iconic that hand-carved Manger Scenes are far-and-away the #1 hot seller when I take people to my favorite olive wood shop in Bethlehem.
A Manger Scene.
Even though everything about it is absolutely wrong.
No knock on the artisans who hand-craft these treasured keepsakes. But you see, it’s all about a picture. An iconic picture.
Manger Scenes paint pictures in wood.
Luke painted a picture in words. And Luke’s picture, when properly understood, is SO MUCH MORE POWERFUL than any hand-crafted manger scene could ever hope to be.
It is simply an undeniable fact, an inconvenient truth, that from Luke’s quill and parchment to our wooden manger scenes today, so much has been lost!
And we are the poorer for it.
But not anymore. Not after hearing this podcast.
Merry Christmas, from my heart to yours.
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The Christmas story is without a doubt #QuiteAStory.
A familiar story. A profound story. An oft-repeated story.
So familiar is this story that I really do not need to comment on it.
Or do I?
As you will hear in this PODCAST, the principal parts of the story are well-known. The principal players in this biblical drama are names everyone has heard -- Mary, Joseph, Jesus.
Yet, with all of that familiarity, there is one little tidbit of information -- one word, really -- that absolutely jumps off the page at me.
- One word that puts the entire Christmas story into its proper perspective.
- One word that goes straight to the heart of who Jesus was, who God is, what the Gospel is all about.
- One word that goes straight to the heart of who we are.
One word…
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You’ve perhaps heard the old line, “Things aren’t always as they appear to be.”
Well, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, sometimes things are exactly as they appear to be.
Case in point, Peter’s exposé of Simon the Samaritan Sorcerer.
Kudos to Peter. The apostle properly diagnosed the terminal condition of Simon’s tortured soul with pinpoint accuracy.
A diagnosis that, were I to be honest with you, hits me way too close to home. For as much as I am ashamed to admit it to you, I have battled this very demon too.
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If this doesn’t send shivers up your spine, I don’t know what will.
In this PODCAST, you are about to hear an absolutely amazing story about a most-remarkable individual, whom we barely met last week—Simon the Samaritan Sorcerer.
A man, BTW, whose eternal destiny—when all is said and done—remains a question mark, shrouded in mystery.
For of Simon we read, “Then Simon himself believed and was baptized” (Acts 8:13). So far, so good!
But then we read a mere 8 short verses later, “But Peter replied… ‘Your heart is not right with God.’” Uh oh.
Simon the Samaritan Sorcerer—A living, breathing contradiction—as we might expect from someone trafficking on dark side.
There is so much to this story that it is hard to know where to begin. So we will start with this…
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His legacy is set in stone, indelibly etched in granite as Simon the Sorcerer.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Simon the Sorcerer is the very first person we meet outside of the cozy confines of the Holy City, Jerusalem. #ThisIsHuge!
You talk about a guy who had the deck stacked against him, meet this Simon the Samaritan Sorcerer.
That gasp you just heard was the rush of disbelieving air exploding out of the collapsing lungs of Luke’s original readers. Trust me: We should gasp too!
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His name is Saul of Tarsus.
To us, he will forever be memorialized as the celebrated Apostle Paul. Though, as you will hear in this PODCAST, he would reject out of hand that lofty adjective “celebrated.”
We celebrate Paul because we owe to him more than we could ever hope to repay. For starters, thirteen epistles preserved as New Testament Scripture. Which, when taken together, form 23% of NT.
It is true that our old friend Luke was actually the more prolific of the two—Luke wrote slightly more of the New Testament in terms of word count, 27%. (And BTW, in case you are interested, the Apostle John gets the bronze medal—John’s Gospel, 3 epistles, Revelation combine for 20% of the New Testament.)
It is to Luke we owe a huge debt of gratitude for his compelling biography of Jesus and his gripping history of the ancestors in our faith, in whose glow we bask each week as we study this great book of Acts.
But it is really Paul who more than any other biblical writer lays for us theological foundation for our faith.
So while we do indeed, and for good reason, celebrate the vaunted apostle, he would describe himself as the least—ἐλάχιστος (a superlative, “less than the least”)—of all the apostles (1 Cor. 15:9). And Eph 3:8, “less than the least of all God's people.”
This was not false modesty on Paul’s part. Not at all. This was a guy who was abundantly self-aware. He knew the roots from which he sprang. He knew that his very first mention in the New Testament places him at scene of, and makes him complicit in, the stoning of Stephen. Not Paul’s finest hour by any stretch.
Paul understood that all that he was was do solely and singularly to God’s amazing grace. The chorus of which he sung regularly and repeatedly.
So much for us to learn and know and appreciate and to emulate in this marvelous man. Let’s meet him now.
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Philippians 1:3 (in the NLT) reads, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Philippians is a “Thank You” note from Paul’s sizable soul to the not-so-sizable ékklesia—or small faith family—meeting in Philippi.
Paul wrote this precious little letter upon receiving a financial gift that the believers there sacrificially sent to him to help sustain him during some very dark and difficult days during which he was imprisoned in Rome.
As I reflected upon the fact that this week we will celebrate five glorious years together as our own Safe Haven ékklesia, it did not take me long to realize that (as it is translated in the NIV), “I thank my God every time I remember you.”
Do keep listening until the end, where I give to you a little anniversary gift of my own, courtesy of Stephen—the first martyr of our precious Christian faith.
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It was a sermon for the ages.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, it was originally preached by a layman. He had no formal training in advanced biblical studies. There is no mention of any degrees. No diploma hung on his office wall, if he had an office. We have no indication that he had studied under a leading rabbi, such as Saul studied under Gamaliel.
His only claim to fame? Stephen was (Acts 6:3) “full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom”; (6:8) “a man full of God’s grace and power.” And that was certainly enough!
Stephen was a humble, unassuming man, selected by Hellenistic, Greek-speaking Jewish believers in Jesus to be one of “The Seven,” chosen to care for their neglected widows.
Through circumstances not of his choosing, Stephen was suddenly thrust into the spotlight, hauled violently before the Sanhedrin, and forced to testify on his behalf.
But instead, Stephen chose to testify on Jesus’ behalf.
And oh what a testimony it was. You talk about power.
Stephen embodied God’s power as he took the High Court on an exciting excursion through Old Testament history.
And in so doing, provided for us a most-significant warning. One that you and I desperately need to hear.
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I LOVE meeting new friends.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, we have the privilege of meeting yet-another. A standout individual. A stellar human being. Though given his humility, I am sure that he would not be comfortable with my characterization.
His name is Stephanos. Significantly, a Greek name. (As we learned last week, a not-so-trivial factoid.)
A man affectionately known to us as Stephen.
A name that means “crown.” In Stephen’s case, a well-deserved crown that he is no doubt wearing in Heaven as we speak.
A man who stood as—and at—pivot-point of history.
There haven’t been many of those throughout human history. But the event about which you will hear certainly rises to that level of an event after which our world, let alone our lives, would never be the same again.
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It was a scandal in the making.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, a vast cultural divide threatened to rip asunder the fragile fabric of unity these first believers in Jesus earlier enjoyed.
As we learned last week (Podcast #27), the story begins, “But as the believers rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food.”
That was, as you will remember, a dire situation for these precious widows. Dire in the extreme. Women who had lost their husbands, and who were now among the most vulnerable in that male-dominated society. Females forced to live in a world that diminished women to a subservient status. One that rendered them uneducated, unskilled, unemployable, utterly without resources. Totally dependent.
Now that they had become followers of Jesus, they could not return to their synagogues for support. Not to worry. We read earlier in Acts 2 that “(These first believers) would sell their property and possessions and give the money to whoever needed it… and shared their food happily and freely.”
Not any more.
Last week, we went into much detail about the collision of cultures faced by these early believers. A vast cultural divide between the Greek-speaking (Hellenistic) believers who were in the minority, and Hebrew-speaking believers who were in the majority. A cultural divide of church-splitting potential.
So wide a divide that the majority discriminated against the minority to the risk of the lives of Greek-speaking widows.
This was serious. So serious that the Apostles (all Twelve of the Apostles) were forced to drop everything in order to address problem.
Their solution was nothing short of brilliant! For them. And for us!
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It was a matter of life and death. Literally.
Make no mistake about this: As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, these “rumblings of discontent,” as Luke characterized them, represented anything but some small-time, garden variety, trivial church-squabble.
What happened here in Acts 6 exposed a clash of cultures that tore asunder the awe-inspiring oneness heretofore enjoyed by the Jerusalem Christian Community.
You might remember what we observed as recently as the end of Acts 4. Verse 32, “All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had.”
Not any more!
Now, sadly, at the beginning of Acts 6, that blessed unity coupled with their selfless generosity Was.No.More.
Something had changed.
Their fellowship fractured. Their unity dissolved into disunity. A rift developed that literally rent the fragile fabric of unity completely in half.
Again, at the risk of sounding redundant, I must stress two vitally important points before I immerse you in the nitty-gritty of what exactly was going on here.
First: We make a grave error of interpretation and application of Acts 6 if we view this not-so-exemplary episode as just the first of the kinds of common conflicts that characterize so many church squabbles and skirmishes today.
This was not some intramural argument about what style of music we should have in our worship services, or the color of carpet we should install in the new Fellowship Hall. You know—the kinds of stuff over which churches so frequently split these days.
Again, this was literally a matter of life and death. The lives of the most vulnerable of these first committed Christ-followers were in jeopardy, not because of external persecution.
Second: Please understand that this church fight exposed an internal underlying clash of cultures that was far more serious than we might realize.
On the surface of things, a casual reader might merely relegate this Acts 6 kerfuffle to growing pains—too many people added to the church in too short a time. Rapid growth that resulted in a first-of-its-kind food-fight within hallowed halls of that first century church. Because conflict certainly does involve growth and food. But dig a little deeper and we’ll discover that growth and food were merely symptoms of a potentially deadly disease that threatened to rot the soul of this newly-founded church.
Now listen carefully: Believe it or not, this conflict involved the exact same clash of cultures that we as committed Christ-followers are attempting to navigate even today.
It is Today as it was Then.
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He is the unsung hero of Church History.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, I would not be overstating the case to suggest that if it wasn’t for this individual, there would be no Church History.
Indeed, if it wasn’t for him, all twelve apostles would have been executed, summarily stoned to death on the spot.
Hear it for yourself in Acts 5:33, “When they heard this, the high council was furious and decided to kill the apostles.”
And they surely Would.Have.Killed the apostles—all of the apostles—if it wasn’t for this one man. This one man who wasn’t even a believer in Jesus. This one man who stood as a buffer between the High Priest and the Apostles.
His name was Gamaliel. And whether you have heard of him before or not, he factors prominently in the development of the New Testament Church in multiple ways.
Gamaliel, a man who certainly lived up to the meaning of his legendary name: “God's Reward.” For God surely rewarded the faithful obedience of the twelve apostles by sovereignly superintending Gamaliel to be an honorable member of the dishonorable High Council.
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Luke records in Acts 5 that “The apostles (rejoiced that) God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, a most-interesting word, “disgrace.” Both the NKJV and the NASB translate it “worthy to suffer shame for the name of Jesus.” In the ESV? “Worthy to suffer dishonor for the name of Jesus.
It’s a word that means to render infamous through insult, innuendo, and/or intimidation; to strip someone of their honor and dignity; to sully one’s name and reputation.
This is the exact same pattern that we saw with Jesus—a gradual escalation of opposition against Him, that we are now seeing intensify against the Apostles.
In Acts 4, Peter and John were arrested, imprisoned, warned, and threatened.
Here in Acts 5, all twelve Apostles were arrested, imprisoned, and flogged. They were publicly disgraced, purposefully stripped of their honor as well as their skin, insulted, rendered infamous, their reputations sullied before the watching world.
It should therefore come as no surprise that come Acts 7, the situation will have escalated to the point to where Stephen will be stoned to death.
So what happened now to cause this next step in the escalation of opposition and intimidation? Fact is, it’s really quite a story! One that give to us a heartwarming insight into the thinking and feelings of this first generation of committed Christ-followers. A window both into their world and into their souls.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, The Apostle Paul made an astonishing statement to the committed-Christ-Followers living in Rome.
In other words, to those living in the belly of the beast.
- Rome. The capital of an Empire that redefined hedonism, paganism, unbridled moral perversion.
- Rome. The city that literally drank itself into daily stupor on cheap wine and human blood.
- Rome. The city of the Colosseum and Gladiator.
- Rome. The city where human life held zero value.
- Rome. The city of which Paul wrote in Romans 1, “They invent new ways of sinning… They are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse, they approve and applaud others who practice them.”
- Rome. The epitome of a religiously/politically lethal environment for every follower of Jesus.
- Rome. Where Peter would eventually be crucified.
- Rome. Where Paul himself would be beheaded.
So to encourage these embattled believers living right there as residence of this ancient sin-city, Paul wrote this amazing statement in his letter to the Roman believers, “What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” (Romans 8:31)
In a city where everyone was against these beleaguered believers in Jesus, Paul assured them that God would never be against them. God would never be against then because God was for them.
Guess what? He is for you too!
A blessedly-beautiful three-in-one proposition.
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Acts 5:1(NLT)—“But there was a certain man named Ananias who, with his wife, Sapphira, sold some property.” Hmmm…
Just try to imagine for a second this otherwise unimaginable scenario, as related in this PODCAST:
A highly-respected individual walks into the cozy confines of Safe Haven, only to drop dead on the spot.
Some time later, his unsuspecting wife walks in, and she too keels over, stone-cold dead.
That is exactly what happened here in Acts 5, one of the most mysterious and misunderstood narratives in all of the Bible.
For starters: That word “But,” δέ—as in “But there was a certain man named Ananias who, with his wife, Sapphira, sold some property”—is ominous in the extreme.
In the technical grammar of the passage, δέ is an adversative particle, signaling something that could be translated: “On the other hand”; or, “Contrary to what you just read”; or, “By way of a startling, scandalous, and jaw-dropping contrast”…
Alerted by that pesky particle, I can tell you that we are about to hear a strange story, a sobering saga, a troubling tale that sounds totally out of character as far as God is concerned.
Or is it?
A head-turning happening that prompts us to ask three questions:
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Why did this happen?
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Could this happen today?
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What does it all mean for us?
Since context is everything, let me begin by first giving you the backstory.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, I stand in awe of our ancestors in the faith, the very first community of Christ-followers ever to walk this planet.
By way of introduction, do you remember when, so very long ago, we studied the Sermon on the Mount?
Let me remind you that Jesus introduced His signature sermon with 8 pronouncements of God’s blessing—We call them the Beatitudes. The most enigmatic of the 8 being Beatitude #3 that goes like this: “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5).
You are about to see in full color, in High Definition, exactly what meek looks like, courtesy of our earliest brothers and sisters in the faith.
Before we get to that, there is one additional Beatitude to which I want to direct your attention. It happens to be Beatitude #8, the last of Jesus’ pronouncements of God’s blessing. It reads: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:10).
Did you know that the words persecute, persecution, and persecuted occur in the Bible a combined 142 times? In the minds of the biblical writers, it was a foregone conclusion that they and all of God’s people would be persecuted for our faith.
Jesus certainly understood this, He being the ultimate example of someone who was continuously hounded, hunted, and finally executed—persecuted—for His faith.
Persecution, Jesus repeatedly reminded His disciples, was the price tag for becoming one of His followers.
Perscute—to pursue in a hostile manner, to harass, to trouble, to molest, to mistreat.
Well, Jesus’ many warnings were now coming true for these very first committed Christ-followers. Indeed, what we are about to learn here in Acts 4 was only the beginning.
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It is with a lump in my throat that I present to you this PODCAST.
We are about to bid a fond farewell to someone who has become a dear friend of mine—a precious-if-forlorn 40-year-old lame man.
It started out as just another ordinary day in Jerusalem, as if any day in the Holy City, in the two months following Jesus’ Crucifixion and Resurrection, could have rightly been described as ordinary.
Peter and John made there way up to the Temple for their daily 3 PM prayers. They had no idea that by the end of that up-until-then ordinary day, their personal lives, the entire nascent Christian community, and all of Jerusalem would be rocked to their respective foundations.
Peter and John encountered a lame beggar holding out a helpless hand as he sat in Temple Courts. Having compassion on this desperate middle-aged man, lame from birth, Peter and John mercifully proceeded to heal him in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
Naturally, at hearing this now-walking man leaping and praising God, thousands of worshippers gathered in Solomon’s Colonnade to see what had happened. As Peter was explaining to these awestruck witnesses that this man was healed in the name of their recently-resurrected Messiah, the Temple authorities stepped in.
They forcibly removed Peter and John from the Temple Courts, threw them into prison, and held them in custody overnight to await their trial the next morning.
As the Sun rose in its majestic arc over the Mount of Olives, Peter and John were rousted from their slumber, released from their shackles, perp-walked before the Sanhedrin, and forced to defend themselves before the Supreme Court.
Their only crime? Enabling a 40+ year old cripple for the first time in his life to walk. That’s it.
But what Peter and John have to teach us by their example is a lesson well-worth learning, especially in light of today’s headlines.
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Let me take you back to Tuesday of Jesus’ final week.
On that Tuesday, as you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus made a most-remarkable promise to His disciples, and by extension, to us.
Allow me to remind you of what happened in Luke 21: “Some of his disciples began talking about the majestic stonework of the Temple and the memorial decorations on the walls. But Jesus said, ‘The time is coming when all these things will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!’”
Now listen to His promise: “But before all this occurs, there will be a time of great persecution. You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will stand trial before kings and governors because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell them about me. So don’t worry in advance about how to answer the charges against you, for I will give you the right words and such wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to reply or refute you!”
At the time, the disciples had no idea what Jesus meant by all of that. Now, here, in Acts 4, just 8-ten or so weeks later, they suddenly knew exactly what Jesus meant by all of that.
For first time in the now-nearly two thousand year history of Church, an earsplitting thunderclap of persecution now sounded throughout the Holy City, Jerusalem. So true to Jesus’ prediction made in Luke 21, Peter and John were unceremoniously dragged into prison, and held in there there overnight.
The next morning they were hauled before the highest levels of their religious hierarchy to stand trial.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this new PODCAST, a new day dawned upon these first committed Christ-followers.
If that metaphor of a new day seemingly overstates the case, then at least we can say that a dark cloud now-shadowed the sun for these first committed Christ-followers. Not quite on the level of our eclipse; but portentous just the same. An ominous bellwether that signaled for these early believers a change in the temperature of Holy City.
For the first eight-12 weeks following Crucifixion and Resurrection, these early believers were able to bask in the glow of their newfound faith unmolested.
Not any more.
Persecution was about to break out for first time in the now-2000 year history of Church. Relatively mild at first. No one died. No one was beaten. It was limited to Peter and John.
But as you will hear, it did involve intimidation, incarceration, and threats of greater reprisals if the apostles refused to cease and desist as far as their preaching in Jesus’ name was concerned.
Refuse they did.
This was a harbinger of things to come. A dark cloud heralding a storm. A storm that continues to rage unabated to our day. Not here in America so much. But certainly in many parts of our troubled world, where committed Christ-followers today attend gatherings at great risk of life-threatening peril to themselves and their families.
As is becoming increasing clear in our ongoing study of Peter in HD, we stand in awe at the strength and resilience of these very first believers—our ancestors in faith, to whom we owe so much, and who have SO MUCH to teach us. As they will do here in this week’s study.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
“Starting with Samuel, every prophet spoke about what is happening today,” Acts 3:24.
What a remarkable statement.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, with those eleven words, Peter alerted that unsuspecting crowd that had gathered at the Temple for their daily 3PM prayers that the singular message of the entire OT was now beginning to be fulfilled right before their amazed and curious eyes.
Jerusalem in all of its storied history had never before experienced anything like the events of the past two-to-three months. Going all the way back to Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into the Holy City, then His cleansing of the Temple, the crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Day of Pentecost. And now, for the past two-to-three months, nonstop, ongoing miracles.
All of that leading up to this: a very public, and deafeningly loud miracle—the healing of the lame man whom everyone in Temple precincts that day had passed every day on their way up to Temple.
I say loud because, as we can only imagine, when this man now went “walking and leaping and praising God” throughout Temple courts, everyone heard him.
And everyone naturally wondered, “What on earth is going on around here?”
Peter was about to tell them exactly “What on earth is going on around here?”
As it turns out, A LOT was going on around here.
Peter’s answer to that question? “Starting with Samuel, every prophet spoke about what is happening today.”
The entire Old Testament—every story, prophecy, promise, sacrifice, festival, feast day, type, symbol, sign—all of it pointed to that day here in Acts 3, and all that they were witnessing now.
Get ready for a wild ride, courtesy of Peter.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Ironies abound, in the four verses I just read to you. A full compliment of ten ironies by my count. Ten!
The most soul-stirring and hope-producing irony being this—the takeaway of this PODCAST:
Your most influential, inspirational, impactful life-message—greatest chapter of your story—will come not out of your successes, but out of your failures.
To invoke Jesus’ masterful metaphor — “You ARE the light of the world.”
That being true, your brightest beacon of light will shine forth from the depths of your darkest hour.
And no, I am not referring to the failure of the thousands who gathered at the Temple on this day in Acts 3 to hear Peter indict them for their greatest failure, as stunning as that failure certainly was.
There is buried within the syllables of this story an even greater failure.
An absolutely epic fail, one that hinges on exactly one word—one word about which I will tell you as you get into this podcast. A failure that underscores the blessed reality that…
“Your most influential, inspirational, impactful life-message—greatest chapter of your story—will come not out of your successes, but out of your failures.”
Call it the backdoor blessing of this amazing story. A God-blessed reality that stands in stark contrast to the what was without a doubt the weirdest experience I have ever had when speaking in a seminary chapel…
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God bless you richly as you listen.
“Let There be No Doubt.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, If you were going to compose a title for this, only the second sermon Peter ever preached, you could not do much better than this: “Let There be No Doubt.”
By the time Peter draws this homiletic masterpiece to its rousing conclusion, there will be no doubt in the minds of his hearers.
- No doubt about who Jesus is.
- No doubt about who they are.
- No doubt about what they have done.
- And no doubt about what they now need to do.
“Let There be No Doubt.” A sermon made all the more remarkable given who preached it: an uneducated fisherman who just weeks before had denied, disowned, and so completely denounced Jesus that he quit as a disciple and returned to fishing.
A man who wept bitter/angry tears in the wake of his profound disappointment and deep disillusionment as he watched in horror as Jesus was led away in chains, to be killed as a common criminal by the very people—the barbaric, interloping, country-occupying, universally-hated Romans—whom Peter thought Jesus had come finally to vanquish completely, to expel from the land permanently, and to send sailing back to Italy disgracefully.
To channel Peter’s own words (2 Peter 2), no doubt written with his own dismal failure in mind, Peter had become "A dog that had returned to its vomit, a washed pig who had returned to the mud."
Yet in spite of all of that, Jesus met Peter on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, where they had shared so many precious memories together. And there, Jesus graciously gave Peter a second chance.
- Yes. Peter! Who had recently pompously proclaimed (in John 13) “I am ready to die for you.”
- Yes. Peter! Who then proceeded on that same night to completely collapse under the gaze of a servant girl.
- Yes. Peter! Who for a second time was asked by Jesus to “Follow Me,” this time with the caveat that if Peter said “Yes” to that offer, it would cost him his life.
- Now, barely two months later, here in Acts 3. Yes. Peter! Who now would make good on Jesus’ offer by literally putting his life on line as he stood before thousands, and thundered in the Temple courts for all to hear these extraordinary words…
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God bless you richly as you listen.
We may not know his name.
But as you will hear in this PODCAST, we surely know his story. As did some 5000 men plus countless women and children, whose lives—after hearing this man’s story—would never be the same again.
This one story—the first of fourteen separate and specific miracles recorded in the book of Acts—exemplifies why I sometimes refer to God as “The God of the surprise.”
Both then and now, God can and will—when we least expect it—apply His divine touch to our circumstances that seem to us to be impossible.
Trust me, to this man who had been lame from birth for now more than forty years (Acts 4:22), his tragic circumstance was definition of impossible. Yet, as Jesus once declared to His watching and wondering disciples (this in Matthew 19), “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
He is, and ever shall be, “The God of the surprise.”
Here’s the point. A grand and glorious point indeed: Within the boundaries of God’s perfect will, there is no such thing as a hopeless situation.
Once God enters picture, “Hope always burns eternal.”
If we learn nothing else from this man, learn this: God can and will insert Himself into our most impossible-seeming situations any time He wants to.
For over forty years, this desperate man had no idea that this day would ever come. But come, it did! In God’s perfect timing, for God’s eternal purposes—including the eternal salvation of literally thousands of people.
Such is our hope! Our hope that with God there is ALWAYS hope. A glorious theme echoed throughout the entire Bible.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
“For more than forty years.”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, five simple words, easily missed if we hastily read the account as recorded for us by Dr. Luke.
Five astonishing words that unlock this entire episode in the life of the first early church in Jerusalem.
“For more than forty years.”
For more than forty years, everywhere this man went someone had to carry him.
For more than forty years this man never knew the simple pleasure of standing on his own two feet.
For more than forty years this man knew nothing of the joys of going for a walk, let alone a jog.
For more than forty years he could never once kick a soccer ball, hit a baseball, throw a football, or run through the waves as they lapped upon the shore of the Mediterranean.
For more than forty years this man never knew a healthy day—never knew for even a minute what it would be like to have two legs that weren’t as limp as dishrags.
For more than forty years this man had in his legs no feeling, no movement, no sensations of any kind.
For more than forty years this man could go up to the Temple courts to beg, but never into Temple to worship since he was prohibited from doing so in Leviticus 21.
For more than forty years this man knew nothing but the prospect of yet another day spent stretching out his arms, reaching out his hands, and begging for alms.
For more than forty years he was forced to endure being ignored, refused, looked down upon, and judged as a sinner.
Such was the life of one man for more than forty years.
This poor beggar, bereft of health, robbed of any hope of self-respect, devoid of any semblance of a life.
Until this day when Peter and John showed up.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
While I am away speaking at a Junior High/Middle School Camp at a place near and dear to my heart--Hartland Christian Camp--may I welcome to the Upper Room, and Jesus’ farewell address to His beloved disciples.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, as we break the seal on this, Jesus’ final night before the crucifixion, I do so with something of a lump in my throat and the pinkish hue of embarrassment upon my otherwise rosy cheeks. This because this particular portion of the grand story of Jesus’ life and ministry hits me most personally. And if, as they say, “Confession is good for the soul,” then I make my confession to you, my beloved little Safe Haven family, tonight.
There is embedded within this most amazing scene, Jesus washing His disciples’ feet, a timeless lesson that, if only I could turn back the hands of the clock and the passage of time, I would have taken to heart way back when I was just starting out in my ministry.
This pointed and practical warning is as timely today as it was that night in that Upper Room when Jesus gave it to His disciples.
A timeless truth that has come to define my life and, more to the point, my ministry today. A living lesson of which you are the beneficiaries.
As we detailed last week, this so-called “Last Supper” was a modified Passover seder. I say modified because as we learned last week, the word seder means “order.” As in a carefully choreographed, specifically scripted order to the meal.
Yet, at certain significant points along the way, Jesus purposefully departed from that thousands-year-old order and added to that script.
Just as Jesus did here, in John 13, at the very beginning of their meal together.
It was certainly customary -- very much a part of the script -- for the host (Jesus) to wash His hands ceremonially as meal began. But why did He then wash His disciples’ feet?
Especially given that every other departure that Jesus made from the seder script expanded or enhanced the significance of their celebration of Passover, especially in light of His coming death as ultimate Passover Lamb.
Every departure, except for this one: Jesus washing His disciples’ feet.
A beautiful gesture, to be sure. The quintessential picture of loving humility and servanthood. So much so that foot washing in some Christian traditions even today, has been elevated to a sacrament or ordinance equal to that of Communion and Baptism.
You talk about, Paint the picture, Rabbi? How about Jesus kneeling as a slave to wash His disciples’ feet (including Judas’ feet) as a three-dimensional, high definition picture of this? (The this to be explained in the remainder of this Podcast.)
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These were exhilarating times indeed for that original company of committed Christ-followers.
In this PODCAST, and in the upcoming weeks, it will be our privilege to relive these salad days of the first ekklesia—in Jerusalem—as we join in a virtual sense these first precious believers, our ancestors in the faith.
Last week, we looked at the four foundational dynamics that characterized this first early church. Foundational for them; foundational for us. You will remember that we considered each of these in some detail—that marvelous biblical blueprint for every local church, both then and now! The elegant simplicity and sincerity of which was breathtaking for us to behold.
Now, we will consider a day in the life of these very first committed Christ-followers. The precious and precarious first hours of this first church’s delicate-if-exuberant infancy.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
After a wonderful week ministering at Hume Lake, it’s so good to be home. And so glorious to be back in the amazing book of Acts.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the elegant simplicity of what God intended His local churches to look like and how He intended for them to function, coupled with unencumbered sincerity of His biblical blueprint for every local church ministry, is breathtaking to behold.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
While I am away speaking at Hume Lake, please enjoy this encore PODCAST.
You are about to hear an amazing story about a remarkable man, AND an encounter with Jesus that includes one of the most important and practical biblical principles that you will find anywhere in the pages of the Bible.
Quite a claim, I know. One that I will absolutely prove in this PODCAST.
A principle that I will be presumptuous enough to suggest that you and I need to hear, and of which we need to be reminded, perhaps often.
This is on the surface a story about a man born blind (which would be remarkable enough). But it is also a story about sheep, about a sheepfold, about the door of the sheepfold, about Jesus who identified Himself as the “door of the sheep,” and about life in the desert in which the sheep and shepherds in Israel lived and continue to live.
Before we get to the story itself, I need very briefly to remind you of something we talked about way back on February 2, 2013, nearly 3 years ago. When God appeared to Moses in the Burning Bush, He made a most remarkable statement: “I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.”
Interesting phrase, “milk and honey.” Honey (a jam made of figs and dates) refers to the land of the farmer, and the bounty of the fruit of the land that is grown by the farmers. Milk refers to the land of the shepherd, and that which is produced by the flocks that are raised and cared for by the shepherds. In Israel, both lands -- milk and honey -- come together in a breathtaking variety of geography and climate that (NOW GET THIS) puts into its proper perspective EXACTLY the kind of lives that we are living today. More specifically, HOW and WHY we think the way we do today.
We have SO MUCH to learn from this story.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play. Words worth waiting for, I assure you.
God bless you as you listen.
It is an elegantly simple, straightforward, non-controversial statement (at least in original language).
Yet, as you will hear in this PODCAST, one that has led to nearly 2000 years of confusion. Confusion over things like:
What is the proper mode of baptism? (Sprinkling? Immersing?) Should babies be baptized?
Is baptism a sacrament? An ordinance? What’s the difference between the two? And what does it matter?
Must someone be baptized in order to be saved? And if you have not been baptized, are you then not going to Heaven?
My, oh my. How adept we humans are at taking something so supremely simple, and making it so insufferably complicated.
My friends, we have a lot to talk about.
Specifically: We need to talk about:
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What did Peter actually say?
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What did Peter not say?
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What is the Scriptural significance of baptism?
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Where exactly did Peter say this? IOW, is this story even plausible? Where in the Jerusalem of Jesus’ day do you find enough water to baptize three thousand people?
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What are implications of Peter’s words for us today?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It is time for us to celebrate.
That’s the tone with which I want to share this PODCAST with you tonight. A tone of celebration.
A celebration of a day unlike any other.
A day that began so ordinarily; but one that ended so spectacularly, in the Holy City, on the southern steps of the Holy Temple Mount.
So many miles from this place (McMinnville); so many years from this year (2017).
Yet this was a day—the effects of which are so clearly manifested in the fact that you would not be listening to this podcast right now if this glorious day had not occurred.
We’re talking, of course, about the Day of Pentecost, in or around AD 33. Which would make this the 1,984th Pentecost weekend since the Dispensation of God’s Glorious Grace began so wondrously nearly two millennia ago.
Jesus, in Matthew 16, made this awe-inspiring declaration to jaw-dropping effect as far as His disciples were concerned (Verse 18), “I will build my ekklesia” (Jesus’ brand new, yet-to-be-born, worldwide family of faith), “and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.”
Jesus began to build His ekklesia here in Acts 2, on this dazzling Day of Pentecost. Yes! On this Day of Pentecost, Jesus’ ekklesia was born! 1,984 years later, the powers of hell have yet to conquer it. In fact, as you are about to hear, despite every effort of the Evil One to silence it, the witness of Christ around the world is more powerful today than it has ever been!
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God bless you richly as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, to our Western sensibilities, Acts 2:23 plunges us into a theological quagmire of staggering proportions.
The age-old debate between God's Sovereignty and Human Responsibility.
But trust me. When Peter introduced this indictment of that Day of Pentecost crowd, he didn’t even flinch.
And therein lies the story.
Consider this: It’s verses like Acts 2:23 that have given rise to literally centuries of endless (and may I humbly suggest, pointless) theological debate. All the while, Peter’s words in this landmark verse are so wonderfully elegant in their economy—a rather modest 15 words in the Greek; though something of a more elaborate 31 words in our English (NIV) translations.
So here it comes. Acts 2:23. With its attendant theological quagmire. Hear it as it does…
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It was proof undeniable. A reality on the ground about which every person in that vast crowd on this most significant Day of Pentecost knew.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Peter triumphantly trumpeted to that crowd, and to us, “As you yourselves know.” Boy, did they know.
How could they not have known?
Fact is, reports of this wonder-working man from Galilee had circulated far and wide throughout the whole of the Roman Empire. Eyewitness accounts of His “miracles, wonders, and signs” had spread to every corner of the Mediterranean world.
Fact is, if the people who had gathered in the Holy City on this Holy Day were honest with themselves and honest with the facts, they knew that what Peter’s voice boomed in Acts 2:36 was undeniably true: “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah.”
Yes, they knew. “For certain,” they knew!!!
Of course, the obvious questions are: Why did they know for certain? How could they have known for certain?
The answer to those questions is equally obvious, for them, and for you.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Welcome to Peter’s first-ever sermon.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, this fisherman-turned-preacher’s initial foray into the world of sermonizing is memorable in extreme.
And whether you realize it or not, Peter’s first sermon out of the gate is all about… Grasshoppers. As in locusts. Lots and lots of locusts.
A plague of locusts. A past-plague of locusts. A coming plague of locusts. And a future (even future for us) plague of locusts. See it there in Acts 2:14-16?
Listen as I read it to you, and see if you can hear ominous chomps of locusts: "Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, 'Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this. These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that. No, what you see was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel.'"
See any locusts in that? No? Well, then, keep listening. Because as you are about to hear, it is vital that we do.
His name is Joel. He is one of so-called 12 “Minor Prophets.” But make no mistake about this: Joel may have been a “Minor Prophet.” But there was absolutely nothing minor about his message.
Let me ever-so-briefly remind you of structure of the Old Testament…
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It is one of the great ironies of Christian life.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the Holy Spirit came to this earth in Jesus’ absence in part to bring a supernatural unity to committed Christ-followers throughout the world.
For example, we read in Ephesians 4:3, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
That phrase “the unity of the Spirit” notwithstanding, Christians throughout the world have arguably divided more over the gifts of Holy Spirit than any other single issue. Divisions that, quite frankly, have turned spiritually toxic.
There are those who will tell you and me with some measure of intensity that if you do not speak in tongues, you are at the least not filled with the Spirit; and at the worst, not a Christian at all.
There are those who will tell you and me with some measure of intensity that if you do speak in tongues, you are believing a false Gospel and consequently going to Hell.
So as we enter this discussion, I will give to you my promise, and make to you my plea.
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Ready to hit the ground running? This is so exciting. And just remember, I Love this stuff!
As you will hear in this PODCAST, in the culture of Jesus’ day, the agricultural cycle of sowing and reaping, planting and harvesting, was absolutely central to the existence of the Jewish people. So much so that the agricultural calendar was an essential part of the day-in and day-out rhythm of their lives, including Jesus’.
You can understand why. They could not simply go to Roths, Winco, Alberstons, Safeway or some other grocery store to buy their food. Their lives literally depended upon, revolved around their agricultural calendar. Hold onto that thought for a second.
Allow me now to shift gears ever so slightly, to this thought:
God wants you to know with absolute certainty, beyond the shadow of any doubt, that death is not the end, but is a gloriously grand beginning. Think about that for a second.
We live (in theory) with an awesome, palpable sense of anticipation for the day when we will get brand new bodies, just like Jesus’ resurrected body. That day coming in the Future.
Here in the Present, we are now watching the fulfillment of God’s promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit as He moves throughout earth in real time, every single day, saving the souls of precious people from Hell, and guaranteeing them, and you, an eternal place in Heaven. We are talking about the redemption of our bodies in the future, and the redemption of our souls in the present.
In order to paint that picture, God inserted Himself into the very soil of the culture of the New Testament. And He did so on two separate specific, picturesque days — separated from each other by exactly 50 days. Two Holy Days, Jewish holidays each, that were exactly 50 days apart. Both of which were agricultural. Both of which the people felt keenly.
And after hearing this podcast, you will feel it too.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
His name was Matthias. I wouldn’t blame you a bit if you had no recollection of this selfless servant of Christ.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Matthias is mentioned only twice in the NT, both times here in Acts 1 (verses 23 and 26).
At first blush, Matthias may appear to be just a footnote in the ever-developing drama of redemption. But I can assure you that he is anything but.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Today is Easter Sunday.
BUT, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, today is infinitely, eternally so much more than that.
A day of incomparable significance.
"Christ IS risen. He is risen INDEED."
But that is only half the story.
Ready to hear the other half?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Such incredibly dramatic moment, on multiple levels. That is what you are about to hear in this PODCAST.
Finally, the time had come for Jesus to go home.
He had been away from home, more specifically, away from His beloved Father, for some thirty-three years.
Jesus, who from eternity past was according to John 1:1 face-to-face with His Father, enjoying from eternity past an unbroken, undiminished intimacy with His Father that eclipses every possible human relationship.
Thirty-three years prior to this moment, Jesus left His Father to embark upon a rescue mission of immeasurable importance and eternal consequence. A rescue mission defined by Jesus Himself as His coming “to seek and to save those who are lost” Luke 19:10.
That mission was now completed. Now, it was time. Time for Jesus to go home.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
So it is with a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye that in this PODCAST we bid adieu to Jesus in HD.
Lest you regret that we will now no longer hear all-things-Jesus-related, fear not, my friends. For as we now break the seal on the amazing book of Acts and our study of Peter in HD, which of course will then pivot to Paul in HD somewhere around ch 13, and as I will demonstrate in mere moments, the book of Acts is very much a book all about Jesus primarily; Peter, Paul and other apostles secondarily.
In this podcast, our goal is to lay the foundation for this entire study.
A study that will include:
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Entire of book of Acts; the lives primarily of both Peter and then Paul, along with an entire array of some of the most interesting individuals you’d every want to meet;
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The birth, growth, and establishment of what Jesus called in Matthew 16:18 His ekklesia — this when He declared for all the world to hear, “I will build my ekklesia, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.”
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The non-stop-yet-failed attempts of “all the powers of hell itself” to conquer it, destroy it, and in any way possible to frustrate its expansion to the whole world.
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The way in which redemptive history unfolded in the immediate aftermath of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
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The glorious heritage that is ours as the present-generation of Christ-followers, with a direct link all the way back to these amazing men and women of faith. Individuals who literally put their lives on the line in order to fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission that we detailed for you last week in our final Jesus in HD podcast.
This is our heritage. You and I are standing on the shoulders of giants: the fathers and mothers of our faith.
I can assure you that they would not have seen themselves as anything but frail, faltering, certainly faith-struggling individuals; never as giants. Yet, giants they were. People who lived literally day-to-day as they tried to navigate the shark-filled waters of their spiritually-hostile, Rome-dominated world.
What an example they set for us; what a legacy they left for us as they humbly bore the name of Jesus before a watching, often unwelcoming world. We cannot know, nor appreciate, who we are as CCFs, nor what this is all about, nor where this is all going, unless and until we understand from where we’ve come. That is what this study will provide.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Welcome to the conclusion of Jesus in HD!
It's been 205 podcasts in coming, but here it is. On deck, Peter in HD and the bright and beautiful book of Acts.
That will be next week. But for now, it is universally referred to as “Great Commission.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST… Yes, I will readily agree that Jesus’ words here at the tail-end of Matthew’s glorious gospel are indeed “great.” And yes, they do in fact contain a “commission.”
Jesus’ final commission to His disciples, to make disciples.
But I would prefer to think of this as Jesus’ Ministry Model — both in terms of what He wants us (all of us, each of us) to do, and how He wants us to do it.
A ministry model that Jesus intended for us to follow (as Jesus said) “to the very end of the age.”
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The angel said to the women, “But go, tell His disciples — and Peter…”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, kudos to Peter for allowing Mark to include this rather inglorious detail about this darkest hour of Peter’s storied life. If the trajectory of Peter’s faith journey was filled with ups and downs, the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, here Peter hits rock bottom.
What was the significance of the angel’s words to the women, “But go, tell His disciples — and Peter…”?
More than you and I could ever imagine. An epic story of falling and rising, regret and redemption.
You want to see redemption in real time, here it is. A story of hope and promise that you will not want to miss.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 referenced what he called the single most important event of human history.
And it all centers upon that one-telling-three-word-phrase, “the third day.”
Quite a statement that: “I passed on to you what was most important.”
Most: πρῶτος, a superlative in Greek. A word that means the best, the chief, the first and foremost of all. Meaning that Paul went over and above to point out in the most emphatic way possible that nothing that he could ever, or would ever write would eclipse this one statement in its importance:
“I passed on to you the best—the chief, the first and foremost in importance—fact of all time: Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.”
A most-important, and most-specific chronology — not to be overlooked.
In this case, the chronology is the story.
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Think of it. As you will hear in this PODCAST…
Promptly at 3 PM…
Exactly at That.Very.Moment when Jesus breathed His last…
Precisely to the second when Jesus exclaimed, “It is finished. Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit”…
This happened: “Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.”
Do you have any idea what that means? It will take the remainder of this discussion for us even to begin to understand What.That.Means.
Why did God tear the veil?
It was obviously God who ripped it. No human hand could possibly tear it. That veil was an elaborately woven fabric that stood 60 feet high, equal in height to a seven-story building. No one could tear that curtain. Only God could tear that curtain.
Which only amplifies the question, Why?
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They say that “For every sigh, there’s a psalm.” As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, they are 100% correct.
What an absolutely, beautifully inspired collection of very real, honest, soul-soaring, gut-wrenching human expressions is contained within its 150 chapters.
So many verses of its 150 songs are profoundly personal prayers that you and I can pray right back to God, giving us an immediate connection with the principle players in the biblical drama.
Psalms, the single most emotion-filled book in the Bible. Yes, indeed. For every sigh, there IS a psalm.
If variety is the spice of life, then the Book of Psalms
is a pretty spicy book. One that includes hymns of praise, thanksgiving, godly wisdom and sound theology, expressions of our doubts and fears balanced by an unshakable faith in God through good times and bad. Imprecatory psalms that are cries for God’s justice and vengeance in an unjust world. Songs of lament that give voice to the many challenges of our painful lives.
There are also historical psalms that remind the worshipper of God’s faithfulness in the past. And for our purposes in this podcast, prophetical psalms. Songs that flood our souls with the confident hope that God will keep His many precious promises in future, just as He has in the past.
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Caiaphas, the high priest that year, must have been fit to be tied.
Well, somewhat so.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, it was Passover. The Holy City, Jerusalem, was teaming with pilgrims. The all-important 3 PM Passover sacrifice at the Temple was fast-approaching.
It was arguably single most financially-flourishing day of the year (second only, perhaps, to the Day of Atonement) as far as the corrupt Temple Industrial Complex over which Caiaphas presided was concerned. There was money to be made this day. Lots and lots of money.
But the heavens seemed to conspire against Caiaphas.
Of all the luck (bad luck indeed), a most-rare, hauntingly-eerie atmospheric anomaly threatened to diminish severely Caiaphas’ shady haul of ill-gotten shekels.
At 12 PM, high noon, a mere three hours before the afternoon sacrifice, the sky turned ominously dark. If it stayed that way, there would be no 3 PM Passover Lamb sacrificed that day.
Well, according to Matthew 27 — Read ’em and weep, Caiaphas “At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until 3 o’clock.”
A darkness that drove everyone away from the cross as they scrambled for shelter from the encroaching gloom of that midday backness.
Coincidence? No way!
Now there would be no Passover Lamb sacrificed at 3 PM on this day.
Or would there?
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Welcome back to the foot of the cross.
In this PODCAST, we are now in that six-hour window of time — between 9 AM and 3 PM.
9 AM when the Romans nailed Jesus to His cross; 3 PM, that moment when Jesus finally succumbed to His brutal beatings, His massive blood loss, and the tortures of crucifixion — finally and mercifully to die.
Within that six-hour window, Jesus spoke seven times. The final words of His earthly life pre-resurrection. As we noted last week, a complete, seven-sayings, last lingering look into Jesus’ beautiful, sizable, and irresistible soul.
The first two of these sayings we discussed last week.
We’ll consider the middle two now.
And the final three we’ll explain next week.
Let me give you a heads-up. Get yourself ready for a rollercoaster of a ride tonight. This because the first of the two that we consider now is without a doubt the most emotional of the seven. I dare say, this may well be the single most emotional scene in the entire Bible. I’ll leave that for you to decide.
The second of the two statements that we consider now is equally without a doubt the most dramatic of the seven. I dare say, this is the single most dramatic scene in the entire Bible. No question about that.
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“Jesus said…”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, the fact of the matter is this: Jesus said seven statements, this as His life was literally dripping out of Him drop by precious drop. Each one of the seven — when considered separately — tells a most-dramatic tale. All of the seven — when considered collectively — give us an unparalleled insight into the heart of Jesus.
It was, after all, Jesus who much earlier in His ministry said this: “For whatever is in your heart determines what you say” (Matthew 12).
On yet another occasion, Luke 6, Jesus said, “What you say flows from what is in your heart.”
So if we want to know what is in Jesus’ heart, we need look no further than what Jesus said. His words.
And as we are about to learn, what Jesus said from the cross, in the closing moments of His storied life, reveals perhaps most clearly of all exactly what was in His sizable heart. What a beautiful heart His was and is.
So join me now at the foot of the cross as we hear for ourselves the final words of Jesus as His innocent and holy life comes to a violently calamitous close.
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It is called, appropriately enough, the Via Dolorosa, Latin for “The Way of Sorrows.”
For Jesus, it absolutely was a way of sorrows — every single excruciatingly painful step of it, from the Antonia Fortress (where Pilate sentenced Him), to Golgotha (where Jesus’ execution awaited Him).
In this PODCAST, we will walk that path together.
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His name is Pilate, as in Pontius Pilate — P-i-l-a-t-e, not p-i-l-o-t — even though Pilate did manage to fly himself right into middle of a maelstrom of religious and political corruption and compromise with devastating consequences.
In this PODCAST, as we now approach Jesus’ impending crucifixion, the greatest irony of this entire sad saga is that the whole thing is motivated by one thing: self-interest.
As we learned in last week’s podcast, on the Jewish side of things, the entire motivation behind the High Priest Caiaphas and the 70-member Sanhedrin in wanting to kill Jesus was the realization that He posed an existential threat to their power, position, prestige, and possessions, all of them paid for with their obscene wealth and ill-gotten gains — the chief thieves, these religious leaders were, in a den of thieves. Which is what, on their watch, the Temple, The House, God’s House, “My Father’s House” (as Jesus called it), had become.
As we will learn this week, on Roman side of things, the spineless Pilate will collapse like the house of cards that he was because he feared losing his title and power as the Roman Governor of the province of Judea. All of this while killing a man who was utterly, totally, completely and absolutely selfless. Somoen who had not one strand of the DNA of self-interest woven anywhere in the fabric of His sizable soul.
We’re talking their willingness to murder a gentle, peaceable, innocent man — not to mention their Messiah — if that’s what it took to maintain their coveted positions.
Make no mistake about this — Pilate KNEW that Jesus was absolutely innocent, and yet sentenced Him to die anyway, in the most unimaginably barbaric, brazenly humiliating, excruciatingly torturous death ever devised by man.
You talk about Jesus looking out over a vast multitude of precious people with overwhelming compassion in His heart, while lamenting that they were like sheep without a shepherd? Well, these were their shepherds.
Shepherds both religious (Caiphas) and political (Pilate). Unprincipled men who unconscionably used and abused their helpless little lambs for their own personal gain.
Just like they do today. Religiously and Politically. It is today as it was then.
Well, last week we met their religious shepherds.
The time has now come for us to meet their political shepherds. Most specifically, Pontius Pilate, the man who has lived long in infamy as the man who caved to political pressure and who, against own convictions, sentenced Jesus to death.
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To say that after “they” — to quote the Apostle John — “bound Jesus and brought Him first to Annas,” Jesus’ life would never be the same again would be a gross understatement and wholly inaccurate.
Fact is, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, only some 15 hours after this cohort of some six hundred elite Roman soldiers led Him away in chains, Jesus’ life would be over.
The Roman leader principally responsible for Jesus’ execution? The Procurator Pontius Pilate, whom we will meet up close and personal next week.
The Jewish leader principally responsible for Jesus’ execution, whom we will meet this week? The High Priest Joseph Caiaphas.
You read that right. At this point in time, Caiaphas was — Listen! — the highest ranking religious leader throughout all the land, over all the people.
As High Priest, Caiaphas was the only person alive permitted behind the veil in Temple into the Holy of Holies, and that on only one day of the year — Day of Atonement. The Holy of Holies, where God’s manifest presence — His Shekinah Glory — literally, visibly flamed and flashed… But.Not.Anymore.
Trust me. God moved out of His house long before Caiaphas ever donned the robe and put on the vestments of his high-but-now-highly corrupt, once-holy-but-now-utterly-unholy office.
Caiaphas, an unspeakably unscrupulous man about whom we know much historically. And one whom — in an odd sort of way — I almost feel like I know personally. I say this for two reasons.
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They say that “one picture is worth a thousand words.”
Sometimes, on rare occasions, one word is worth a thousand pictures. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this is one of those occasions.
In this case, that one word is “Gethsemane.”
As in the Garden of Gethsemane, that very garden to which John referred when he wrote, “On the other side (of the Kidron Valley) there was a garden, and Jesus and his disciples went into it.”
I would not be overstating the case to suggest that everything you and I need to understand about the Gospel is contained in that one word all-telling, “Gethsemane.”
Gethsemane, ironically a place of peaceful repose, first pops up on our radar in Matthew’s account of this anything-but-peace-filled night. He wrote with no explanation, “Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, ‘Sit here while I go and pray over there.’”
No explanation was needed, at least for Matthew’s original readers. All would have been abundantly familiar with the modest-sized cultivated enclosure nestled snuggly into the base of the Mount of Olives. A scenic/welcome retreat from the hustle and bustle of Jerusalem in general and the Temple complex in particular.
Now, courtesy of this podcast, let me take you there.
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No matter how you cut it, this man was an enigma.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, this man -- handpicked by Jesus and elevated to the rarified air of the apostles -- repaid Jesus’ generosity by betraying Him to His executioners.
Is there any human emotion more painful than that of betrayal?
Ever felt it? Betrayal?
That midnight darkness of the soul that enshrouds us like an impenetrable fog when we have dared to trust someone -- with our deepest feelings, our most hidden secrets, as if we have just entrusted to the person our very hearts, perhaps our very lives -- only to have him or her shatter our hearts and break our trust by their soul-crushing betrayal.
Jesus sure felt it. The pangs of betrayal. Boy, did He ever!
That moment frozen in time when for the first time you see with crystal-clarity that you have been played.
Well, for 3½ years Jesus had been played.
Where did this man -- Judas Iscariot -- come from? What causes a man to make the fateful plunge from believer to betrayer? What do we really know about him?
You are about to find out.
But even more importantly, you are about to see the heart of Jesus in action as He responds in real time to this real threat posed by this very real con-man, the Apostle Judas Iscariot.
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It's Christmas Day!
And to our many precious Jewish friends, the night of December 25 marks the beginning of Hanukkah, 2016.
With that in mind, I thought it appropriate to take a little trip, to another time and place -- specifically, to Jesus' final Hanukkah mere months before His crucifixion.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, what is most remarkable to me is that Jesus went "up to Jerusalem" to celebrate this Hanukkah at great risk to His life. Why?
As John observed in John 10, it was winter, and Jesus was in Jerusalem for what John calls the Feast of Dedication.
As we break seal on this story, we are now a mere four months from the crucifixion.
When we last left Jesus, He had just healed a man born blind following the Feast of Tabernacles in October. This led to a rather heated confrontation with the religious leaders who kicked the now-healed blind man out of synagogue and denied that this man was ever blind. When that didn’t work, because everyone in Jerusalem knew this formerly blind-beggar, they accused Jesus of healing Him in the power of Satan. The confusion caused by these Pharisees left the crowd reeling. Thus we read, “Many of them said (of Jesus), ‘He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?’ Others said, ‘These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?’”
That’s vs 21. And that happened in October. Next we read in verse 22, “Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.”
A full two months transpired between John 10:21 & 22. Indeed, after that heated and life-threatening exchange with the Jewish leaders, Jesus and His men got out of Dodge. Jesus needed to, since once again Pharisees wanted to kill Him.
So here’s my question: Why in the world, then, did Jesus risk returning to Jerusalem here in the Winter? Why did Jesus literally put His life at risk to be there?
The answer is profound.
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Jesus’ final words here at the tail-end of the Upper Room Discourse connect directly with Jesus’ opening words at the very beginning of the Upper Room Discourse.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, Jesus began His parting words to His disciples with this promise: “When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” That is the beginning of John 14.
Jesus added one last exclamation point to it all with this parting prayer: “Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am.” This at the end of John 17.
Jesus’ heartfelt emotion in this moment cannot be overstated.
These are the heartsick words of a smitten bride-groom about to leave His newly-betrothed bride. His bride with whom He is very much in love. His bride from whom He must now depart in order to — in the words of John 14 — return to His Father’s house to prepare the place where He and bride will dwell together forever.
It was back in Podcast #20, at the wedding at Cana, when I first clued you in that when Jesus, in John 14, promised to return to His followers, Jesus painted that promise in the portrait of a Jewish wedding. From the disciples’ point of view, in less than 24 hours, their bridegroom would indeed depart to His Father’s house in order to prepare a place for them.
You need to feel it, keenly so, that the dark cloud casting a dreary shadow over entire majestic Upper Room Discourse and Jesus’ glorious High Priestly Prayer is specter of Jesus’ immanent departure.
This is in every sense of the words high drama and intense -- very human -- emotion. On a couple of most-significant levels.
We are about to gaze directly into Jesus’ sizable soul. And what we are about to discover there is Jesus’ eager anticipation of a bridegroom (that will be fulfilled), coupled with His expression of an expectation that His newly-betrothed bride will historically, dramatically, and devastatingly fail to fulfill.
An unconscionable departure from what is clearly the plan, purpose, and will of God, for which the entire world is now paying a very high price. You talk about a clash/collision of contradictory emotions! Welcome to the world of Jesus.
Yes, this climax, this high water mark of this Upper Room Discourse is very much the very definition of high drama.
Now, just to give you a heads-up as to where we’re going tonight.
What you are about to see, in living color, in HD, in real time, is this:
- When your prayers seemingly go unanswered…
- When you cry out to God to fix a problem, heal a disease, restore a relationship knowing that such a fix/healing/restoration would meet with God’s approval, but your cries seem to fall on deaf ears…
- When your faith faces a devastatingly deep disappointment, an unnecessary and totally avoidable set of circumstances, what should be an easily fixable situation into which God for whatever reason does not intervene and does not fix...
- Know this: Jesus experienced, and continues to experience, all of that, His own disappointment to a degree that we cannot begin to fathom.
- A devastating disappointment that breaks His heart even to this day. One that breaks His heart -- Hear this -- His own prayers about this very situation notwithstanding.
To be blunt: a singularly-important part of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer has yet to be answered, this after 2000 years and counting.
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If you have ever asked yourself any of the age-old questions like...
- What’s it all about?
- Why am I here?
- What is my purpose?
If you have ever asked yourself these or similar questions, then you are in for a treat in this latest PODCAST. Because in this podcast, you will get the answer to these most-important questions.
So let me start with a news-flash for you. One of considerable consequence. Yet one that you will not find to be surprising at all.
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Not to be clichéd! But if the words, “Mission Accomplished” ever meant anything to anyone in any situation, they absolutely apply here in John 17.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this is the moment, courtesy of John, now forever frozen in time.
The singular moment toward which all of human history, going all the way back to the Garden of Eden, had been slowly but steadily building.
The seminal moment from which the remainder of human history, down to our present day, has been rapidly descending.
The consequential moment when Jesus could literally look up to Heaven and finally acknowledge, “I brought glory to You here on earth by completing the work You gave me to do.”
Such mystery, such majesty, in these few words.
Indeed, a Mission -- the Mission -- Accomplished!
That mission that Jesus Himself defined when He said in referring to Himself, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost” (Luke 19:10).
Which, as you are about to learn, means far more than pulling people out of Hell. Indeed, infinitely more!
When the biblical writers, as well as Jesus, use the words “save” or “saved,” it means far more than whether we are going to Heaven or Hell when we die. Sadly, most of our Gospel-presentations focus almost exclusively on that locational / destinational dynamic.
However, a most compelling fact emerges from the first few words of Jesus’ prayer here in John 17.
As we are about to learn, if one’s view of his or her salvation centers primarily upon the notion that salvation is basically a “Get Out of Hell Free” card, we miss so much precious truth. So.Much.More than our finite minds can even begin fully to appreciate.
But try to appreciate it, we must.
So in an effort to appreciate it, let me take you on a bit of a journey, far back in time, to a faraway place, in order to show you where and why this journey originally began. All the way back to what is arguably the single most important verse in all of the Bible.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
On this Thursday night of Jesus’ final week, mere hours before the crucifixion, Jesus was worried about His disciples.
And as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, He was worried for a very good reason.
I don’t know if you have ever associated the word worry with Jesus, but as you will hear, in this case, at this time, in this place, that word worry is most appropriate.
Don’t worry (pun intended). I’m not trying to get all psychoanalytical on you. I am not fluent in psychobabble. And I’m not about to subject Jesus to a psychoanalysis.
But let us not overlook the fact that this is one of those rare glimpses into Jesus’ mind and heart on this -- the single most traumatic night of His storied life.
What we see is a most-endearing picture of Jesus in all of His humanness on full display before disciples. I say endearing because the fact of the matter is this:
Jesus is equally worried about you. And that for the exact same Very.Good.Reason.
So what did Jesus do in response to His loving concern, His worry, His anxiety about His disciples? His loving concern, His worry, His anxiety about you?
Here's a hint: What He did was AMAZING!
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Get yourself ready for a massive dose of encouragement.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, it’s amazing to me how a couple of significant storylines are coming full circle with Jesus’ words John 15.
Specifically, last week we saw how Jesus’ assertion, “I am the vine,” is final of Jesus’ seven “I Am” statements recorded in the Gospel of John.
Now, for this discussion, here’s a Bible Trivia Question for you:
What was the very first parable that Jesus taught as recorded in the Gospels?
I’ll give you a couple of hints:
-
It’s found in Mk 2.
-
It’s a parable about a new day coming, the Messianic Age dawning, a day that began in Bethlehem, a day filled with bright hopes and blazing anticipation.
A part of that first parable goes like this: Jesus said, “No one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins.”
New wine, symbolic of a new day, a great day, a beautiful day, a day of God’s bountiful blessing. A day of God’s abundant blessings of which you, and all of God’s people, are now the recipients.
How appropriate then that Jesus’ teaching ministry was bookended by two parables, both of which centering upon that singular Scriptural image: the fruit of the vine.
That first parable coming, in Mark 2, at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry. This final parable, here in John 15, that Jesus began with the word, “I am the vine, you are the branches.”
As you are about to hear, that metaphor, the fruit of the vine, was not chosen arbitrarily. It is loaded with copious amounts of Scriptural significance that speaks directly to your life today.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Oh how I love a good irony. That being said, how ironic in terms of timing is it that in this PODCAST, on this our fourth anniversary together as a Safe Haven family, we come to Jesus’ statement here in John 15, in the Upper Room Discourse, when He said to His men (and to us!), “I am the vine, you are the branches”?
The irony to which I refer lies in fact that this statement completes John’s portrait of Jesus.
You talk about Jesus in High Definition. How about seven layers of definition, skillfully painted on the canvas of John’s Gospel, that leaves us with no doubt as to the true character of Jesus as the God-man.
Understand that from start to finish, John had but one goal in mind, one purpose to his writing, one theme, one image that he sought to paint in this his artful masterpiece of his master. One the he painted in such beautifully breathtaking detail.
A portrait of Jesus to which John alerted us in the very first verse of his glorious gospel. Right out of the gate, John stated his theme, clearly and unambiguously when he wrote, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
If Matthew wrote to establish Jesus as the King, Mark painted the portrait of Jesus as a servant. If Luke left us no doubt that Jesus was fully human, John balanced books by showing us Jesus is God.
That is how John began his gospel; listen now to how he concluded it: “In his disciples' presence Jesus performed many other miracles which are not written down in this book. But these have been written in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through your faith in him you may have life.”
John’s theme? Jesus is God.
Now, in order to demonstrate to his readers that Jesus is God, out of the abundance of miracles that Jesus performed, John handpicked the ones that he chose to record in his gospel. By doing so, he carefully crafted his narrative: Jesus is God.
Now here’s the thing: In the same way, and for same reason, that John handpicked several of Jesus’ miracles, he also purposely selected several of Jesus’ sayings.
Seven of Jesus’ many sayings, to be precise. A complete compliment of exactly seven. Each one of these seven prefaced with the two telling words, “I Am.”
As you are about to hear, a singularly and startlingly specific phrase. “I Am.” The significance of which was not lost on John. Nor will it be lost upon you.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Welcome to Part Three in this 3-part mini-series within a series concerning the Mysterious Member of the Trinity, AKA The Holy Spirit.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, here in the Upper Room Discourse, Jesus presented to His disciples the first extended discussion of the Holy Spirit to be found anywhere in the Bible.
Yes, the Holy Spirit was very present and quite active in the Old Testament, making His first appearance in second verse of the Bible, Genesis 1:2. But not-so-strangely enough, there is within the pages of the Bible no extended discussion of the Holy Spirit until we break the seal on John 14-17, the Upper Room Discourse.
I say not-so-strangely because of a tantalizing little detail that Jesus shared with His men right in the middle of the Upper Room Discourse, in John 15:26 (CEV): “I will send you the Spirit who comes from the Father and shows what is true. The Spirit will help you and will tell you about Me.”
The Holy Spirit, third person in the Triune Godhead, did not inspire the biblical writers in either the Old nor the New Testaments to write about Himself; He inspired them to write about Jesus. So it is not-so-strange, is not surprising, that it’s not until the 43rd book of the Bible (John), in the final Gospel of the four (John), and in the last of Jesus’ sermons (the Upper Room Discourse) before we are greeted with, and treated to, an exposition of the person and purpose of the Holy Spirit.
BTW, given that the Jesus-mandated-mission of the Holy Spirit is (Jesus’ words, not mine) “to tell you about Me,” I must briefly interject a most important word of caution concerning various ministries, certain denominations, and some peoples’ personal prophetic pronouncements.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You could call the Holy Spirit Jesus’ going away present, first to His disciples, and then, of course, to each of us. As you will hear in this PODCAST, we’re talking about The Third Member of Trinity, the Mysterious Member of the Trinity.
Here in John 14-17 -- the so-called Upper Room Discourse, even though as we noted last week, Jesus taught the amazing truths of John 15-17 after He and the disciples-minus-Judas had hastily departed the Upper Room, steps ahead of the Judas-led-posse seeking Jesus’ arrest -- we have the first extended theological discussion of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament, actually in the entire Bible.
Up until now the biblical writers have been largely silent regarding the multifaceted ministry of the Holy Spirit. Yes, the Holy Spirit is mentioned throughout the Old Testament. But the doctrine of the Holy Spirit is not developed in the Old Testament. This, as you are about to hear, for very good reason, one that harkens all the way back to the very first podcast in this series.
So here we have, in the Upper Room Discourse, one of the very few places in Scripture where the biblical writers (in this case, John) devote much ink and parchment to a discussion of the Mysterious Member of the Trinity.
One of three principle themes that Jesus develops in this, His farewell address to His men, literally minutes before His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Underscoring this entire Upper Room Discourse is a vitally
important principle to which Jesus alluded in High Priestly Prayer that we will study in detail in John 17. A declarative sentence of very few words that speaks volumes as to how Jesus wants His committed followers then and now to engage the world in which we live.
John 17:15: “Father, I do not ask you to take my followers out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one.”
HOW UTTERLY IRONIC!!! (I’ll tell just how ironic in this podcast. Enjoy!)
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Welcome to the Upper Room Discourse.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, we are now standing on the precipice of Jesus’ passion -- Judas’ betrayal, Jesus’ arrest, Peter’s denial, Jesus’ incarceration, His trials, His Crucifixion, climaxing of course in His glorious Resurrection.
What should have been a night primarily of celebration -- of the Passover, and all of its rich meaning -- quickly morphed into an evening of last-minute and desperate instruction. Jesus had to prepare His men for the tumultuous and turbulent events of the coming hours, culminating in the crucifixion, the tipping point of redemptive history, after which human history would never be the same again.
As you might suspect, Jesus in the so-called Upper Room Discourse (You’ll understand why I say “so-called” as you listen.), Jesus hit on the themes most important to Him.
There are three principle themes in the Upper Room Discourse. The first of which we will discuss now and next week. The remaining two we’ll dissect and discuss in the coming weeks.
The discussion of tonight’s theme -- the Ministry of the Holy Spirit -- was so immediately practical for them and for their spiritual survival; so equally vitally necessary for us and our spiritual survival.
A theme triggered by this sad-but-certain reality (John15:18): “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose U to come out of world, so it hates you.”
Now listen: I am not given to pessimism. I am, however, very much attuned to realism. What I am about to tell you in this podcast is very real, so real that this will hardly come as a shock to you. Yeah verily, in the deepest darkest recesses of your mind and heart, you know this to be true.
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It was an epic one-two punch to the gut.
Jesus’ gut, not to put too fine a point on it.
A brutal betrayal coupled with a devastating denial by two of Jesus’ handpicked and beloved disciples.
In this PODCAST, I am referring of course to Judas’ betrayal and Peter’s three-time denial.
If there is a silver lining to these increasingly billowing clouds, it is this: There is a clear pattern emerging here in John 13. A pattern that tells quite a tale, striking subtext to the entire crucifixion story.
A pattern that should illuminate for you a bright, blazing beacon of hope to light your way during your darkest hours and most difficult days.
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So many things are going to become So.Very.Clear in this week’s PODCAST.
You are about to hear something of…
- The precision of the Bible;
- What theologians call the “inerrancy” of the Bible;
- How the precious truths of the Bible sometime hinge on just one word;
- The relevance of the Bible;
- How a cultural reality from the time and place of Jesus speaks to us in real time, to our very real circumstances, even today.
Most importantly: You will hear in unmistakable terms about the care and compassion of the God of the Bible, as Jesus paints the most poignant picture of just how much our gentle Jesus loves and cares about you.
We truly are in for a treat this week, courtesy of Jesus.
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Welcome to the Upper Room, and Jesus’ farewell address to His beloved disciples.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, as we break the seal on this, Jesus’ final night before the crucifixion, I do so with something of a lump in my throat and the pinkish hue of embarrassment upon my otherwise rosy cheeks. This because this particular portion of the grand story of Jesus’ life and ministry hits me most personally. And if, as they say, “Confession is good for the soul,” then I make my confession to you, my beloved little Safe Haven family, tonight.
There is embedded within this most amazing scene, Jesus washing His disciples’ feet, a timeless lesson that, if only I could turn back the hands of the clock and the passage of time, I would have taken to heart way back when I was just starting out in my ministry.
This pointed and practical warning is as timely today as it was that night in that Upper Room when Jesus gave it to His disciples.
A timeless truth that has come to define my life and, more to the point, my ministry today. A living lesson of which you are the beneficiaries.
As we detailed last week, this so-called “Last Supper” was a modified Passover seder. I say modified because as we learned last week, the word seder means “order.” As in a carefully choreographed, specifically scripted order to the meal.
Yet, at certain significant points along the way, Jesus purposefully departed from that thousands-year-old order and added to that script.
Just as Jesus did here, in John 13, at the very beginning of their meal together.
It was certainly customary -- very much a part of the script -- for the host (Jesus) to wash His hands ceremonially as meal began. But why did He then wash His disciples’ feet?
Especially given that every other departure that Jesus made from the seder script expanded or enhanced the significance of their celebration of Passover, especially in light of His coming death as ultimate Passover Lamb.
Every departure, except for this one: Jesus washing His disciples’ feet.
A beautiful gesture, to be sure. The quintessential picture of loving humility and servanthood. So much so that foot washing in some Christian traditions even today, has been elevated to a sacrament or ordinance equal to that of Communion and Baptism.
You talk about, Paint the picture, Rabbi? How about Jesus kneeling as a slave to wash His disciples’ feet (including Judas’ feet) as a three-dimensional, high definition picture of this? (The this to be explained in the remainder of this Podcast.)
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Welcome to the Thursday of Jesus’ final week. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, with these words, we are less than twenty-four hours from the crucifixion. Words wherein Jesus could just as well have said to Peter and John, “Go and prepare my final Passover meal together, so that we can eat it together.”
Jesus will on this Thursday evening celebrate with His disciples THE singular observance on the Jewish calendar, from time of Moses (Exodus 12) even to today. Indeed, as Rabbi Joseph Telushkin so succinctly stated in his classic work, Jewish Literacy, “Passover is the most widely observed Jewish holiday.”
But here’s the thing: Overshadowing this entire discussion tonight is this raw reality around which I cannot begin to wrap my mind: The centerpiece of Passover, of Jesus’ final Passover -- the Passover lamb -- has throughout redemptive history pictured one and only one person: Jesus, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. That person, Jesus, whose sacrifice in less than twenty-four hours would pay the penalty for the sin of world.
What emotions must have flooded Jesus’ mind, heart, and spirit…
- As He led this His final Passover seder?
- As He Himself partook of the Passover lamb that symbolized everything that would happen to Him that very night into the very next day?
- The lamb that symbolized Jesus as the lamb of God?
- The blood that would symbolize His shed blood?
- The entire Passover story retold and in a sense
- reenacted in that Upper Room that celebrated the Israelites freedom from slavery to the Egyptians?
- That now symbolized our freedom from our slavery to sin, and from the punishment we all deserve?
That punishment paid for by Jesus who is what Paul called “our Passover lamb” (1 Corinthians 5:7)?
All of this, and so much more, flooded like a tsunami of emotions Jesus sizable heart on this, the day Jesus told Peter and John, “Go and prepare the Passover meal, so we can eat it together.”
Preparing for this Passover meal, and every annual Passover meal, was and is #NoSmallThing. Given the enormity of the symbolism of every single aspect of a Passover celebration, preparation required effort and deliberation.
For our many Jewish friends, Jesus’ words to Peter and John, “Go and prepare the Passover meal,” involved much that we might easily miss. Consequently, in order to understand what took place in that Upper Room on this Thursday evening, we’ve got to hear Jesus’ words, “Go and prepare,” as Peter and John heard them.
So let me start with this...
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It’s getting real. Real fast.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, something in the last few days of Jesus’ final week triggered Judas to do the unthinkable.
You talk about someone selling their soul to the devil, literally or figuratively? Well, Judas did both. Judas sold his soul to the devil, literally and figuratively.
“Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve.” Why here? Why now? Why this?
In order to answer these and additional questions, let’s meet Judas the Betrayer up close and personal.
A fitting title because the very first time we encounter this tragic individual, we are introduced to him with these telling words: “Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him).”
How would you like that as your moniker?
Who was this guy? And what does it all mean for us today?
Allow me to set up this discussion in this way: It’s one of the most precious passages in all of the Bible. That is no exaggeration or overstatement. Yet, it gets relatively scant attention because in most of our English translations it’s rendered rather clumsily. The words of Hebrews 4:15-16 don’t exactly roll effortlessly off our tongues, with its double negatives and cultural references with which we might not be familiar. But since this is such a precious picture of exactly who Jesus is, and how Jesus relates to our lives, I’ll read it to you in the NKJV, and then paraphrase it for you so that you can hear it as original readers heard it.
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Let me tell you! If you want to see in crystal-clarity the character and the heart of God, this is it. Right here, right now, in real time, in this PODCAST.
This in a breathtaking public display for all the world to see, at which the whole world will marvel. The broken heart of our God whom Peter described as “not wanting anyone to be destroyed (a word that means to destroy fully, to bring to nothing) but (who) wants everyone to repent.”
This portrait of our God -- Who persistently pursues everyone in every way, making every effort to bring every sinner to repentance -- comes at very end of Olivet Discourse in Matthew 25.
Here we will see, in this parable of the end of the age, the eternal separation of committed Christ-followers from those who defiantly and unrepentantly want nothing to do with Jesus. Plus, we will see their ultimate eternal destiny in what Jesus called “the eternal fire prepared for devil and his demons.”
An unpleasant topic, to be sure. But a #Most.Important.One, because we are talking about the eternal destinies of multiplied millions of people.
Specifically, what did Jesus mean by eternal fire? For whom is it intended? What happens to those goats (in contrast to His sheep) who are sadly, tragically, yet-justly cast into the eternal fire?
And of course, at the heart of this entire discussion sits this all-important and all too-common question: Does the loving God of the Bible -- who defines Himself as not wanting anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent -- really send people to Hell?
Allow me to set up this discussion in this way: I find it most-intriguing, and most-ironic in a most-purposeful sort of way that Jesus’ Hebrew name Yeshua, means “God Saves.” That’s right out of first chapter of the New Testament (Matthew 1:21): “Mary will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Yeshua, for He will save His people from their sins.”
Now watch this. Only God could create this wonder of the words. This, as you are about to hear, is not coincidental.
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Spoiler Alert: This PODCAST will not be paradigm-shifting. This podcast will be paradigm-shattering.
There is so much going on here in Jesus’ conclusion to His landmark End Times Olivet Discourse that I hardly know where to begin.
Last week, we saw that Jesus told a parable about ten bridesmaids, five who were wise and five who were foolish.
This week, we’ll note that He told a follow-up parable about three servants, two who were faithful and one who was unfaithful.
We are fast-winding down our study of the Olivet Discourse, Jesus’ End Times sermon that He gave to His disciples high atop the Mount of Olives.
We are soon to pivot from the Tuesday of Jesus’ final week, to the Thursday of His final week, with detailed discussions of His final Passover Seder with His disciples, Judas’ betrayal, the Upper Room Discourse, Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, His subsequent confinement in Caiaphas’ house, plus Peter’s denial.
The countdown clock to Jesus’ crucifixion is ticking; the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry is fast-approaching.
But to get there, we must first consider Jesus’ words here. Specifically, who are the faithful servants, and who is the unfaithful servant? What distinguishes between the two -- faithful versus unfaithful? And what does all of this have to do with our lives in the here and now today?
So with all of that, let me now walk you thru Jesus’ conclusion to His Olivet Discourse. A parable that I truly believe you will discover to be #Oh.So.Encouraging to you.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, we are fast-approaching the end of our mini-series within a series, this one having to do with all-things End-Times related.
We are, as you well-know, well into the Olivet Discourse. Jesus’ primary teaching on End-Times events, as given on the Tuesday of His final week on earth.
In two weeks, we will pivot to the Thursday of Jesus’ final week, including His Upper Room Discourse.
It is curiously intriguing to me in the first letter that the Apostle Paul ever penned, 1 Thessalonians, he devoted so much of that letter to a discussion of the End Times. Which tells me that even from the very beginning, the first generation of committed Christ-followers had questions about Jesus’ return, even as they watched and waited for Jesus to come back.
There was then, as there is today, much confusion about what was going to happen and when it would happen.
One of the most encouraging things that Paul wrote -- you could consider it Paul’s commentary on this podcast’s Matthew 25 passage -- was this:
“Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that THE DAY OF THE LORD will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all children of the light and children of the day… Since we belong to the day, stay alert and be clearheaded... For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath, but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ… Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. (Just a few of the highlights of 1 Thessalonians 5)
So let’s now heed Paul’s loving encouragement and be clearheaded about what he called “the Day of the Lord.” A vitally important, oft-repeated biblical phrase.
Now listen carefully: Over the past few weeks, we have gone to great lengths to distinguish between such things as the Rapture, the Antichrist, the Tribulation, the Great Tribulation, the Battle of Armageddon, the Second Coming of Christ, Millennium, Eternal State, and all-things in between.
We who are of a Western Mindset obsess over the order of things (those perennially bestselling prophecy charts, along with all of their precisely-placed arrows).
As westerners, it is woven into every strand of our western DNA to focus on Form (how something fits, with an emphasis on symmetry, balance, order, everything in its proper place, everything perfectly fitted together). But those of a Middle Eastern Mindset were much more concerned over function -- not on how things fit together, but rather on what things do. Not on how something fits, but what something does.
As you are about to hear, this will have a profound impact on your own personal Bible study.
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I was away this week, sharing a precious memorial service for my dearly beloved mom with my family. Consequently, I have selected one of the MOST IMPORTANT podcasts that we have recorded in our Jesus in HD series.
In this Encore PODCAST, as we continue in our chronological study of the life and ministry of Jesus, we come to Matthew 18:15-17 -- one of the most seriously significant passages in all of the New Testament, the so-called “Church Discipline” passage.
Church Discipline, a teaching in many local churches that really rose into prominence in the late 1970’s and became quite the trend.
I can remember attending church leadership conferences back then and hearing pastors -- I’ll use word “boast.” -- of the fact that they recently removed individuals from their congregations, thereby “preserving the purity of their churches.” Others would then oooh and ahhh at the boldness of these pastors in confronting the sin in his church and taking decisive action in order to preserve the purity of his church by the process of Church Discipline as outline by Jesus here in Matthew 18.
Today, one of this nation’s leading Church Discipline proponents insists that church discipline, as outlined in Matthew 18, is one of the marks of a healthy church. He writes this on his website, clearly articulating the prevailing view of Church Discipline, and indeed includes this as one of his main talking points as he addresses pastors’ conferences throughout the country, encouraging them to do the same:
“Church discipline is the act of correcting sin in the life of the body, including the possible final step of excluding a professing Christian from membership in the church and participation in the Lord’s Supper because of serious unrepentant sin."
Consequently, it has become standard practice to “exclude” or remove or excommunicate (you choose the term) unrepentant sinners from their local churches. This notion of Church Discipline is certainly included in many if not most of our evangelical churches' bylaws.
Well, in light of the above definition -- More importantly, in light of Jesus’ words in Matthew 18 -- I must ask, Is that really what Jesus taught to His disciples and to us?
Let’s discover the answer together.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, with Jesus’ words here in Matthew 24, the climax of human history as we know it will occur.
No one will miss it. No one will mistake it. Everyone will know exactly what it is that is happening and why it is happening!
The “it” to which I refer and which I intentionally repeated in the above sentences is Jesus’ Second Coming.
What did Jesus say? “Then all the tribes of the earth… will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
Quite a contrast to Jesus’ first coming, which you will remember was seen only by a few lowly shepherds out in the remote regions of Bethlehem. When Jesus came the first time, He came not with power and great glory, but as a newborn baby laid in an animal’s manger in the cold of a cave.
That was Jesus’ First Coming. In the run-up to the crucifixion, the disciples were understandably fixated on the future, specifically on Jesus’ Second Coming.
They were waiting; we are waiting. They were longing; we are longing. They were asking; we are asking: “What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
In giving His answer, Jesus said this: “That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes” (Matthew 24:39).
“So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:42).
“You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected” (Matthew 24:44).
“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne” (Matthew 25:31).
That’s what Jesus said just in Olivet Discourse. Indeed, the whole point of the Olivet Discourse is Jesus’ Second Coming.
So with all of that background, let’s discover together what Jesus taught us in the Olivet Discourse about His Second coming.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, with Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:15, words that describe a singularly hair-raising event, the Great Tribulation will begin.
A 3½-year period of unprecedented spiritual defection and oppression, along with its resultant worldwide suffering on a scale never seen before on this planet.
Don’t take my word for that. Take Jesus’ word for that. In Matthew 24:21, “For then there will be great tribulation, greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again.”
The Great Tribulation, that will begin with the singular event to which Jesus alluded in Matthew 24:15, and will end with the climax of human history as we know it -- the glorious Second Coming of Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords.
Permit me the briefest of reviews. It is absolutely vital that we keep the end-times timeline straight.
The next event on God’s prophetic timetable is that wondrous event we commonly call The Rapture, where Christ-followers throughout the world will “meet the Lord in the air.”
Nothing needs to happen before the Rapture, that awesome event described so vividly in 1 Thessalonians 4, 1 Corinthians 15, and alluded to by Jesus in John 14. The Rapture, or as Paul called it, Our “blessed hope.” Titus 2:13, “While we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.”
Please note that Paul described our “blessed hope” as Jesus’ “appearing,” not His “coming,” a distinction of monumental importance.
Now again, nothing has to happen before the Rapture, where Jesus will appear in the clouds and we meet Him in the air, all of this near the beginning of Tribulation. Yes, you can indeed wake up every morning of every day with the hope-filled words flooding your troubled soul, Perhaps Today! Nothing has to happen before the Rapture.
That said, much, much has to happen before the Second Coming, where Jesus will literally come down to the earth, setting foot on the Mount of Olives, this at the very end of the Tribulation.
Most notably, what has to happen before the Second Coming? The event described by Jesus in Matthew 24:15, and by Daniel in Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11.
Hear it from Jesus’ lips to our ears: “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains” (Matthew 24:15).
“Let the reader understand.” Why that particular exhortation? Precisely because there is so much confusion about this prophecy, and so many who therefore do not understand.
Confusion which we will bring to a conclusion in this podcast.
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Birth pains. It’s all about the birth pains.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, as we enumerate the final three of the six "signs of the times," both Paul and Jesus made it crystal-clear that we are to think of these signs in terms of birth pains.
Paul, who borrowed this most-meaningful metaphor from Jesus, used it most-appropriately when he in Romans 8 declared, "For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time."
It would not surprise me one bit to hear that some of you -- Or should I say some of us? -- have been groaning a little more than usual this past week.
It is all about the birth pains, that increase dramatically in frequency and in intensity as the moment of birth approaches. This troubled planet of ours is undeniably in the later stages of its own labor pains, as it waits in breathless anticipation as the moment of Jesus’ return approaches.
So said Paul.
So said Jesus. Here in Matthew 24:8, spoken in the Olivet Discourse, on the Tuesday afternoon of His final week, in reference to these "signs of the times." Jesus said, "All these are the beginning of birth pains."
That is precisely where we are today. Groaning, watching, and waiting for the climax of human history as we know it finally and mercifully to dawn upon us.
In Luke’s abbreviated account of the Olivet Discourse, Jesus said in reference to these same "signs of the times," "When these things (these birth pains) begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." Stand up; and lift up. Those are phrases that speak of victory, not defeat!
We don’t sit down in defeat; we stand up in victory!
We don’t hang our heads in dismal distress; we lift up our heads in victorious anticipation.
We are not defeated. Not by a long shot. We are encouraged.
These "signs of the times," these birth pains, have indeed begun to take place. Our redemption is indeed drawing nearer, every single day!
Yes, these six "signs of the times" have always characterized our world. Yet, these is no denying the acceleration of their frequency and intensity.
Let me briefly remind you of the first three, and then we’ll discuss in some detail the final three. All with a view to standing up and lifting up our heads, not in defeat but in glorious victory.
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Welcome to the Olivet Discourse. The End Times prophetic address that Jesus gave to His disciples high atop the Mount of Olives, immediately to the East of the Holy City, Jerusalem.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, that lovely little land that we affectionately call Israel is the center of the world.
Literally and metaphorically.
Literally, because Israel is the place where the three major continents -- Europe, Asia, and Africa -- tenderly touch and affectionately kiss each other. Which goes a long way to explaining why God chose this modest piece of real estate -- a mere 150 miles long (North-South), 50 miles wide (West-East) -- as stage for the Greatest Story Ever Told.
Metaphorically the center of the world because throughout all of human history, the eyes of world have ever been focused squarely on the Middle East -- so called because it sits in the middle or center of the world. And in center of the Middle East sits Israel.
So Israel is indeed the center of the world.
That said, Jerusalem is the center of Israel, and the Temple is the center of Jerusalem.
So it is no wonder that Jesus and His disciples took a timeout from all of the hubbub of activities on this Tuesday of Jesus’ final week, exactly three days before Jesus would go to the cross.
As they sat upon the Mount of Olives taking in that breathtaking view of the Holy City and its glorious Temple -- God’s House, what Jesus called “My Father’s House,” what many of our Jewish friends call “The House” -- the disciples were moved by that spectacular panoramic portrait to ask Jesus these two most important questions in Matthew 24: “What will be the sign of your coming,” and “What will be the sign of the end of the age?”
Jesus’ answer to those questions comprise what we now call the Olivet Discourse, spanning two full chapters, Matthew 24 - 25.
As you are about to hear, there are Two Interpretive Keys to understanding these all-important prophetic chapters.
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Picture him there, a grizzled, stooped, aged apostle, marooned on an island of rock, confined to a cave.
See him in your mind’s eye, with quill to parchment, writing fast and furiously in a mad dash to record everything that he is now seeing and hearing.
Our old (and at the time of his writing Revelation) very old friend, the beloved apostle John.
Writing, as you will hear in this PODCAST, what sounds like fantastical tale in specific, yet an all-too-plausible scenario in the abstract. A story that brings to a climax the epic collision that has plagued this planet and every person who has ever trod its blood-soaked soil since the beginning of history.
The climax of the collision of good versus evil.
As we were so graphically reminded just last Thursday in the south of France.
Here in Revelation both good and evil are personified.
Here the wellsprings of good and evil are identified by name.
Here this human-history-long all-out war finally, mercifully coming to its end, thankfully with good as the victor, and evil as the loser.
When I mentioned a moment ago that this epic tale sounds fantastical in the specific, understand that we are talking about spirits, angels, demons, devil, Jesus. A unique combination of physical and spiritual forces fighting to the death that sounds like the kind of stuff ready-made for a Hollywood blockbuster.
I wouldn’t blame anyone for rolling their eyes and curving their lips into a smirk that says, You don’t really believe all of this, do you?
- Just this week, I was listening online to a TED talk (Technology, Entertainment and Design), brings together elites, the intelligentsia of world, during which a TED talk presenter mercilessly mocked and ridiculed people of faith who believe in things like you will hear when I read to you from Revelation 16.
I will be the first to admit that what we are about to outline in this podcast indeed sounds fantastical -- in the specific. But in the abstract, no one can deny that there is operating in our world today two distinct colliding forces: one for good, and one for evil.
About that, nobody laughs.
Whether its on the grand scale of someone in a van mowing down innocent pedestrians gathered in the south of France for a Bastille Day celebration. Or as modest as a child throwing a bit of a temper tantrum because he or she doesn’t get what they want.
Let the record show that a good many TED talks are devoted in one way or another to just that collision.
It is as though we are caught between two worlds: One of unbridled evil in which people do to people horrifically unimaginable things. While at the same time, others of us try our best each day to surrender to our better angels, as even TED Talk presenters will sometimes call them. And when they do indeed invoke that phrase, our better angels, no one in that elite audience of the world’s intelligentsia laughs. (I guess its OK to invoke the image of angels in the abstract, just not in the specific.)
Well, in this study, we will invoke the image of angels, good and evil, and a whole lot more, and will do so without laughing because this is deadly serious.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
“Watch out that no one deceives you.”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, given the wild-eyed speculations with which Christian community has historically been bombarded regarding all-things prophecy-related, Jesus’ words in Matthew 24 give us a good warning indeed. A warning which explains why we want to take a sober, strictly-biblical look at what Jesus taught in Matthew 24 - 25 about His Second Coming and the end of the age.
Let me remind you that we are now on Tuesday of Jesus’ final week, a mere seventy-two hours before His crucifixion.
For the disciples, not to mention Jesus Himself, a head-spinning turbulent few days had just passed, highlighted by the Triumphal Entry and the Cleansing of the Temple. Yet, without trying to be cliched about it, they hadn’t seen anything yet.
And frankly, neither have we.
So for the moment, as they took a brief breather to gather their thoughts and emotions, Jesus and the twelve disciples huddled on the Mount of Olives and took in the breathtaking view laid out before them.
We can only imagine how many confusing thoughts were cascading through the disciples’ collective minds. So it’s no wonder that even in this moment of solitude that might have otherwise provided some much-needed quiet contemplation, they asked Jesus the question that was now haunting their hearts.
Naturally, they wondered about the future and how all of this 3+ year wild-ride they had been on with Jesus would end.
So, in response to their question, Jesus told them.
Ergo, the Olivet Discourse.
Though the Olivet Discourse centers primarily upon the events of the Tribulation and the Great Tribulation, which we will distinguish in this podcast, I thought it would be most-beneficial to give you a complete overview of the entire prophetic puzzle and its 7 principal pieces before we break down Jesus’ Olivet Discourse.
Last week, we discussed Rapture and AntiChrist. (Podcast #171)
This week, we’ll consider the Tribulation and the Great Tribulation.
And next week, we’ll round out this introductory overview by highlighting the Second Coming, the Millennium, and the Eternal State.
However, before we get embroiled in the Tribulation, as you will hear here, I must first make one especially helpful, clarifying remark about the Rapture.
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I can’t tell you how excited I am in this PODCAST to break the seal on this, Jesus’ walk through the remainder of human history as we know it.
It’s typically referred to as the Olivet Discourse because Jesus gave this prophetic panorama while sitting on the Mount of Olives, immediately to the East of Jerusalem, right across the Kidron Valley from the glorious Temple. One of the most breathtaking vistas in all the world.
This is Tuesday of Jesus’ final week.
On Sunday, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday, on what they would have called Passover Lamb selection day.
On Monday, Jesus cleansed the Temple and cursed a fig tree.
This Tuesday, a scant 72 hrs before the crucifixion, was significant and confrontational in the extreme.
- Jesus took on the religious leaders of the day, in a blistering take-down, essentially sealing His fate. (8 times in Matthew 23, Jesus will in effect consign them all to Hell with the fateful words, “Woe to you…”)
- Jesus explained why He cursed the fig tree (as we discussed on Podcast #170).
- And it is also on this day that Judas will set in motion his plot to betray Jesus to the Romans, selling out his rabbi for 30 pieces of silver.
By anyone’s measure, a consequential day indeed.
Here, right smack dab in middle of this eventful day, Jesus will talk to His disciples about the end of days.
The Olivet Discourse, one that spans two chapters, Matthew 24 and 25, and 2000 years and counting of the remainder of Human History.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
One more week of camp. So one more Encore Podcast.
My heart goes out to Mother Mary.
Her name means “Bitterness.” Sadly, and quite frankly, in many ways Mary lived up to her name.
Being the mother of Jesus was no small task. One that she fulfilled with great dignity. But boy did she face her challenges.
In this PODCAST, we will gaze upon a Scriptural snapshot of Mary unlike anything you have ever seen before. Not only that, but we will encounter Jesus in His darkest hour, second only to that night before the crucifixion when He sweat drops of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane.
As we do, our love for Him will deepen. Our respect for His mom will broaden. And our understanding of the both of them will stir up within our own hearts a sense of God’s presence in our lives like we’ve never experienced before.
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May God richly bless you as you listen!
I’m off doing my camp speaking thing. (I sure would appreciate your prayers: for me, but especially for the campers who are stuck having to listen to me for the week. But I digress.)
Anyway, in this PODCAST, you will learn one singularly simple concept which, if you take it to heart, will change your life forever.
It is my sense that in contemporary Christian culture in America, we have lost sight of the elegant simplicity spoken of in the New Testament. And consequently, we have lost so much of God’s blessing in the process.
So here’s to simplicity, with the hope that your life overflows with God’s bountiful blessing as we together apply this principle to our lives.
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Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you richly as you listen.
To be perfectly honest with you, the passage here in Matthew 21 is coming -- for me,at least -- at just the right time. And perhaps for you as well.
Given the current political climate in our beloved country, and the increasing despair that I have felt as the presidential primary season has now concluded, I so desperately need to hear my own message, courtesy of Jesus.
Jesus assured His disciples, “Whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, the irony of what Jesus said is so thick that you could cut it with the proverbial knife.
The irony being this: Jesus said those words to the disciples on the eve of His crucifixion in order to strengthen, to fortify their fragile faith. And frankly, to strengthen and to fortify ours.
Jesus knew that the events in their lives were about to spin seemingly out of control. The hopes they harbored in their hearts were about to be crushed into the ash heap of history. The Jesus movement in which they played a central role was about to careen into a wall and to explode into a thousand broken pieces.
The wave they had been riding had peaked on Sunday during the Triumphal Entry, and then again on Monday during the Cleansing of the Temple. But Jesus knew only too well on that Tuesday AM that by Thursday PM that same storm surge would dash them into the jagged rocks of reality.
So to bolster their soon-to-be faltering faith (and ours), Jesus made them (and us) this glorious promise: “Whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”
The only problem with that promise? As many of us have come to experience during own crises of faith, It.Doesn’t.Always.Work.
If it did, none of our loved ones would ever die. (Who of us hasn’t prayed for God, in faith believing -- to invoke Jesus’ formula -- to heal someone near/dear to us, only to watch them whither away to nothing?)
Our kids would never disappoint us, if that promise worked. (What parent hasn’t prayed diligently for their children, in faith believing, Amen, only to stand by and watch helplessly and at times hopelessly as one or more of our kids go sideways?)
If that promise did indeed work, we would always get the jobs we want, have the perfect marriages for which we pray, have enough money at end of each month.
Fact is, myriads of books been written and purchased and read about that promise. Countless sermons been preached and listened to and heeded. All to affirm the fact that if we pray in faith believing and do not doubt, we will receive whatever things we ask. We CAN move mountains by our prayers, we are told. The mountain of sickness, the mountain of debt, the mountain of broken relationships, the mountain of wayward children.
Over the years, I’ve heard it all, read it all, a thousand times. To the point where I’m sick of hearing it. Because it just doesn’t work… Or does it?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Welcome to Monday of Jesus’ last week, His Passion week, the final few days leading up to His coming crucifixion.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, At the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, way back in John 2 (Podcast #21), Jesus cleansed the Temple for the first time. Now here in Mark 11, at the very end of His ministry, Jesus cleansed the Temple for the second time.
A display of uncharacteristic anger, rare to be sure. But a shocking display of anger nonetheless. Quite out of character for a Jesus who described Himself, and who consistently showed Himself to be a Very.Gentle.Jesus.
As Jesus walked through the Temple courts that day, something set Him off.
Yes, He was understandably upset about the fleecing of the flock that was going on here. To be perfectly pointed about it, these religious leaders were making bank by selling God. Religion had become big business. By the time of Jesus, the Temple Industrial Complex was alive and well and oh-so-lucrative.
Sadly, they had discovered in that day what so many Christian leaders have discovered today: God sells. Jesus sells. Then and now, there is money to be made in Jesus’ name. A boatload of money.
That being said, there was something of even greater offense to Jesus going on there in the Temple courts. You might not see it at first blush. But trust me, it is there, front and center. As you will soon see.
I’ll give you a hint: God desperately longs to dwell among His people, literally. That is a thread that is woven throughout the pages of the Bible.
God desperately longs to dwell among His people, literally. All of His people, Jew and Gentile alike, “from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Revelation 5).
From the very first pages of the Bible (Genesis), through to the very last pages of the Bible (Revelation), God desperately longs to dwell among His people.
That theological thread that ties the entire Bible together runs right through this story here in Mark 11, as Jesus cleansed the Temple for the second time.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
There is a beautiful and breathtaking symmetry to the life and ministry of Jesus.
Case in point, as you will hear in this PODCAST, here in John 12, the beloved disciple brings us full circle. You may not see that now. But trust me, you will by the time we conclude this discussion.
Let me give you one tantalizing little hint: This beautiful symmetry to which I refer has little to do with palm branches, but everything to do with lambs.
Now watch this: When John introduced us to Jesus for the very first time, this is what he wrote: “The next day John (the baptizer) saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’” That’s in John 1.
Here in John 12, this is what we read: “The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city.”
Now listen: In both cases, at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry in John 1, and here at the very ending of Jesus’ ministry in John 12, it’s all about a lamb.
I know that as you read any or all of the accounts of Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem as recorded in all four of the Gospels, you may not see a lamb. But trust me, it’s there. Front and center, it’s there.
Just as it is in John 1, so it is here in John 12, Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Miss that, and you miss the whole point of Jesus’ Triumphal Entry, on this -- the Sunday before Passover.
Which raises a most intriguing question: Why did Jesus choose to ride into Jerusalem on that Sunday? Jesus could have ridden into Jerusalem on Saturday (If He did, we would call it Palm Saturday!), or on Monday, or Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Thursday.
Why did Jesus choose to ride in on the Sunday before Passover? Answer that, and you get the whole picture.
Here’s a secondary question: Since Passover did not officially begin until that Thursday night (Remember Jesus sharing with the disciples their final Passover seder in Upper room on Thursday night?), why were so many pilgrims in Jerusalem so early on that Sunday?
Answer that, and you get the whole picture.
Which underscores this point: The Bible is God’s picture book, and Jesus’ Triumphal Entry is yet another three-dimensional, High Definition portrait of breathtaking significance. A panoramic masterpiece that, though we studied one portion of the Triumphal Entry last week (Daniel’s prophecy), this picture is far too important to ignore this week.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
You talk about a collision of conflicting emotions, welcome to Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into His beloved city of Jerusalem.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, all of this emotional turmoil will come to a climax as Jesus paused during His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, gazed longingly at breathtaking panorama, and then suddenly sang this song of lament: “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day.”
This your day.
The obvious question: What was it about this day that caused Jesus to refer to it with such a pointed specificity?
This was, of course, the day on which Jesus chose to make His return to the Holy City, and thus to trigger all of tumultuous events of His turbulent last week. It was, as you may know, the final Sunday before Passover that year, what we call Palm Sunday. This because the people gathered in their thousands, and waved palm branches all along the route of Jesus’ ride on the back of a donkey into Jerusalem.
I cannot help but to think that the words of Psalm 137 echoed through Jesus’ mind and heart as He rode into the city: “If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill. May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy.”
Jerusalem: Jesus’ beloved city indeed. Let there be no doubt that Jerusalem was, and is, and ever shall be Jesus’ highest joy. Which makes His weeping -- His crying convulsively -- over the Holy City on this her day all the more poignant, all the more powerfully emotional.
Now, I need you to focus on one important fact that overshadows this entire week: Jesus’ thoughts were focused like a laser beam on one particular book of the Hebrew Bible (our Old Testament): the prophetic book of Daniel. How do I know this? Because on the Tuesday of this final week, a mere 48 hours after this Palm Sunday, Jesus will give to His disciples His grand and glorious Olivet Discourse, recorded in Matthew 24 - 25, and rivaled in its beauty and majesty only by the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 - 7.
That signature sermon was delivered on the Mount of the Beatitudes in Galilee. This final sermon or discourse was delivered on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem.
In that discourse, Jesus laid out for His disciples and for us the sweeping panorama of the End Times, and all that will lead up to His glorious return. The so-called Signs of Times.
We will, of course, break it down in all of its majestic splendor when we get to that Tuesday in the coming weeks.
What I need for you to note now is what Jesus said right in the middle of that discourse, the interpretive key both for that sermon and for this moment in His Triumphal Entry.
Matthew 24:15, “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel let the reader understand.” Jesus’ unmistakable reference to Daniel 9:24-27.
Now listen carefully: The Triumphal Entry sets in motion the beginnings of the fulfillment of this great prophecy in Daniel 9, what many call “The Seventy Weeks of Daniel.”
Allow me to read to you the prophecy in full, and then we’ll talk about it.
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The Apostle John turned out to be quite the lyricist. One could almost sing some of his melodious verses. In fact, many of us have.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, John wasn’t a scholar, not by any stretch of imagination. Quite unlike the Apostle Paul, for example.
John engaged in virtually no complex doctrinal discussions involving the nuances of theology, the kinds of stuff in which Paul reveled.
John’s Greek is so simplistic that 1 John is invariably the first book every 1st-year Greek student translates.
John was a passionate soul, one who wrote far more emotionally than he did academically.
Consequently, John had the uncanny ability to relate to us all on such a visceral level that you get the sense that he understood exactly what it’s like to be us -- fragile, fearful, human.
When their paths first crossed, Jesus met a rather unremarkable, uneducated fisherman from the provincial little town of Bethsaida. Yet, by the time Jesus got done with him, John became a prolific author (with one Gospel, three letters, and his magnum opus, the majestic book of Revelation to his literary credit).
John was the only one of the twelve who stayed with Jesus on that fateful day of the crucifixion. So devoted was he to Jesus, that with one of His last, dying breaths, Jesus committed the care of His dearly beloved mom, Mary, to John.
It was John who went from being known as a “Son of Thunder” for his uncontrollable temper, to the “Apostle whom Jesus loved,” as John so referred to himself because he could not get over that fact that Jesus saw in him someone who could be loved.
Among his other glistening credentials, John was for a time the pastor of little family of faith in Ephesus. John was arrested, charged with being a leader of a Christ-following community, sentenced, and subsequently banished to penal colony on island of Patmos.
Separated he now was -- by the Aegean Sea -- from the people he so loved, his modest little flock in Ephesus. Which explains why, when John was allowed to see the splendors of Heaven, the very first description he wrote was so curiously cryptic to us, but not to him. Just a fragment of a verse that spoke volumes to John: “There was no more sea” (Revelation 21:1).
Anyway, John was eventually released from Patmos. He then apparently became reunited with several people from his former congregation in Ephesus.
Much to John’s delight, many of his former flock had continued in his absence to follow Christ faithfully, and to raise their children to follow Christ. This brought John such enormous joy, as you can imagine, that he wrote this in 2 John: “How happy I was to meet some of your children and to find them living according to the truth, just as the Father commanded.”
“To find them living according to the truth.” Nothing brings more joy to a parent’s heart than that.
Likewise, there is nothing that brings to a parent more grief and heartache than to watch his or her child reject the truth they so love, and the God whom they so cherish.
That same anguish of soul floods the heart of every spouse whose husband or wife rejects truth, the family’s faith, the one true God. Just as it does anyone who watches helplessly as a beloved friend, relative, whomever, reject the truth.
The gallons of tears shed. The many sleepless nights spent worrying, agonizing, questioning, praying.
Our unnerving lament, written in a minor key, that invariably results from the knowledge that the thing we hold most dear they ridicule with contemptuous disdain.
The ever-present, nagging thought that perhaps if I had only said more, or said less; tried harder, or didn’t try so hard; or hadn’t
succumbed to my own weaknesses and hypocrisies. Maybe then I could have successfully passed onto my children a godly heritage one generation to the next.
And then, of course, there are those self-righteous parents whose own children are thriving in the faith. And they never seem to let you forget that you failed where they succeeded, causing us yet all the more guilt, shame, heartache, and heartbreak.
Just ask the mother of Zacchaeus.
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Meet Blind Bartimaeus, a man who seems at first blush to be nothing more than a bit player in this most dramatic and poignant moment.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, this wasn’t the first time that Jesus healed a blind man. Nor is this the first time we have talked about Jesus healing a blind man. Last November, Podcast 141, comes to mind. So I would totally understand if you were tempted to bring to this story a sense of “been there, done that,” Déjà vu all over again. Like, if you’ve seen one blind-man-healing, you’ve seen them all, right? WRONG!
As I said just a moment ago, this story is both dramatic and poignant.
The implications of this story, both for the Jews of Jesus’ day, and for the entire world in our day, cannot be overstated. This story is indeed dramatic, dramatic in the extreme.
Nor can we overstate the emotional state Jesus must have been in at this most significant moment of His ministry, as the final chapter of His life is about to unfold. Emotions that infuse this story with feeling from start to finish. A story poignant to a palpable degree.
To be perfectly honest, there is so much going on here that I’m really in a quandary as to where to start. So let me start with this: In the Middle East, both in Jesus’ day, and in our own day, Symbolism = Substance.
Symbolism = Substance. IOW, as I’ve said so often, the Bible is God’s picture book. The biblical writers were painters. The visual means something. Symbolism = Substance.
In this story about yes, yet another blind man being healed by Jesus, it really is all about the optics. The symbolism. The connections that the original readers would have made in their minds as they read Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s account of this miracle
The symbolism of What happened (the healing of Blind Bartimaeus), When it happened (c. AD 30, just days before Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem), and Where happened (Jericho).
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You could call this story an epic “Opportunity Lost.”
You talk about a guy presented with a once-in-a-lifetime golden opportunity, an opportunity that he squandered. An opportunity that he squandered Badly.And.Sadly.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, we're talking about an offer rarely made, and shockingly dismissed.
A young man who burst on the scene like a blazing comet streaking overhead, only to flame out and fall out of the sky to come crashing and burning to earth.
What a story!
One thing’s for sure. Jesus never took a class on Personal Evangelism. Because, to be honest, Jesus Broke.Every.Rule of personal evangelism in this very personal encounter.
Here you have what we call in our contemporary Christian culture a seeker coming to Jesus to ask Him one question. THE question. The single most important question.
A softball question that any one of us could answer.
His question?
“What should I do to inherit eternal life?”
This young man asked Jesus exactly the right question, to which Jesus gave him exactly the wrong answer!
Or did He?
Don’t fault me for asking that. Jesus’ own disciples thought that Jesus gave him the wrong answer. Check it out: The disciples were “astounded and astonished” when they heard Jesus’ answer.
All this guy needed to do, all that Jesus needed to tell him to do, was to pray a “Jesus, come into my heart” prayer, right? Yet, by the time Jesus got done with him? The young man walked away.
In the words of the noted Lutheran New Testament scholar, R.C.H. Lenski,
“Picture him: an exemplary young man in early manhood, fine and clean morally as the phrase now goes… wealthy... with a strong religious bent… a pillar (in the community)... Where is the church that would not give him a prominent place?... Yet all this is in the eyes of Jesus… worthless.”
Yeah verily, I will add, so worthless that Jesus offended him. Lost him. Drove him away.
Know why?
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John 11:53 (NLT) is a most remarkable statement. It reads, “So from that time on, the Jewish leaders began to plot Jesus’ death.”
As you’ll hear in this PODCAST, I’ll tell you exactly to what John refers with the phrase, “From that time on…” Again, this is most remarkable.
But before we get to that, consider this: It is, in my humble estimation, the Single.Most.Misunderstood parable in the entire New Testament. No exaggeration.
The parable to which I refer is most commonly entitled, “The Rich Man and Lazarus,” and it is found in Luke 16.
Now, you might be wondering, What does this parable in Luke 16 have to do with John 11 wherein the religious leaders “from that time on... began to plot Jesus’ death?”
Honestly, it has everything to do with John 11.
So much so, that if you don’t understand this parable -- the meaning of it, and just as importantly, the timing of it -- you won’t understand John 11. You won’t understand the motivations of those who began to plot Jesus’ death.
In terms of how hard a person’s heart can become, this is nothing short of breathtaking. Breathtaking.
Now, I’ve got to tell you here at the outset, I am so excited about this discussion for a number of reasons.
First, we are going to learn together how properly to interpret a parable, along with what never to do when trying to understand a parable.
Second, we are going to see in real time the lengths to which Jesus went to reach out to these murderous religious leaders, all an expression of His love undying love for them.
Third, we are going to lay the foundation for all that is to follow, both the why and the how of the coming events that inexorably lead to the crucifixion of Jesus. To once-more-quote that telling phrase from John 11, “From that time on…” Jesus days are numbered. And that now of days will now rapidly grow smaller.
The curtain is now coming down fast and furious on Jesus’ life.
This here in John 11 truly is a watershed moment.
What I need you to understand is this: In the chronology of Jesus’ life and ministry, the plot to kill Jesus in John 11 is linked directly to the parable Luke 16.
Let me read to you the parable, and then we will talk about.
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If last week’s discussion revealed to us the iconic image of the heart of Jesus, this week’s PODCAST will unveil to us the iconic image of the humanness of Jesus.
The beloved Apostle John wrote this in the first chapter of his Gospel masterpiece: “Jesus became human and made his home among us.”
Paul wrote this to his beloved little community of Christ-followers in Philippi: “Though he was God… Jesus became completely human.”
Here in John 11, we will see just how completely human Jesus truly was.
I’ll clue you in right here from the start: We are about to witness three powerful, very human emotions collide within the heart and soul of Jesus. And as a result, we will be all the richer for having witnessed this collision, each emotion in response to the death of Jesus’ dear friend, Lazarus.
You are about to take a quantum leap in your understanding of who Jesus is, in a way that you may not be anticipating as we break the seal on this (to many people) very familiar story.
This entire discussion under this overarching question: What does it feel like to be Christ-like?
Rabbi, paint picture. OK, courtesy of John, let’s paint this picture. The picture of a very human Jesus, a human side of Jesus that perhaps you have never seen before.
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As you will hear in this PODCAST, there is No.Clearer.Picture in all of the Bible of the heart of God towards sinners -- I’m talking the hardest of hardhearted sinners -- than this one right here in Luke 13.
A Scriptural snapshot that will go a long way to defining your biblical view of God and your biblical understanding of Jesus, both as a man and as God.
If you think of the Bible as a picture book, Luke paints for us a portrait of Jesus that is, quite frankly, irresistible, and most refreshing to my soul. It will be to yours as well. Guaranteed.
One that comes to us, ironically enough, thanks to a small cadre of good Pharisees. Yes! Heard me right. Good Pharisees.
The Pharisees as a group, as we have discussed in weeks gone by, and as you therefore understand, were historically among Jesus’ chief tormentors. That being said, there were in the minority some good Pharisees.
Nicodemus comes to mind as a good Pharisee, one who lovingly cared for Jesus’ body after the crucifixion.
In Mark 12, Jesus told a good Pharisee that he was “not far from the Kingdom of God.”
In Acts 15, reference is made to a number of good Pharisees who were committed Christ-followers.
And here in Luke 13, we find a small group of good Pharisees who traveled likely from Galilee to Perea to warn Jesus about the murderous intentions of Antipas.
This, my dear friends, is quite a gripping story.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It’s called in our culture a “sea-change,” an idiom first introduced by Shakespeare in his play, The Tempest.
A cultural cliché that refers to “a substantial or significant transformation.” A sea-change.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, here in Luke 12, we are about to witness a sea-change. A substantial or significant transformation in the focus of Jesus’ ministry and message.
Jesus’ words were for the disciples sadly stunning. For them, these words represented the death of a dream.
Yet, for us today, they embody the birth of a dream, our most glorious dream, our greatest hope.
Something to which the New Testament refers as our blessed hope.
The hope that we treasure. The promise of God that represents the only semblance of common sense that remains in this otherwise outrageously, absurdly nonsensical world of ours.
Spoiler Alert: You are in for copious amounts of encouragement.
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There is a forgotten figure in the Crucifixion-Resurrection drama. A remarkable man who came to a most-remarkable conclusion.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, I am referring to the Roman officer who actually crucified Jesus.
At the conclusion of the crucifixion, this Roman officer -- who had literally just killed Christ -- made this stunning statement: “This man truly was the Son of God!”
Now, I have to ask the questions:
- How in the world did he come to this conclusion? This Roman? This executioner? This worshipper of many gods? This witness to, and participant in, more crucifixions than he could count?
- What was it about this crucifixion that set it apart from all the others over which he, as a commander of 100 elite Roman troops, presided?
- What pushed him over the line from a polytheist to a monotheist? A worshiper of Caesar as god into a worshiper of Jesus as God?
- And what was it exactly that convinced him beyond the shadow of any doubt that the man he had just executed was in fact Almighty God?
I am profoundly grateful to professors Schmidt, Vanderlaan, Gundry, along with author Lloyd C. Douglas who wrote a wonderfully insightful historical novel, The Robe, for gently nudging my thinking in the direction to ask and now answer these intriguing questions.
Questions about what-in-the-world convinced this Roman Officer to conclude that the man he just crucified was not just a god, but as he exclaimed, “This man truly was the Son of God!”
What did he see that we, not being Roman, might miss?
In order to answer these questions, I need to take you on a little trip, back in time many centuries, and to the East many thousands of miles, to Rome itself. There, we will attend the grandest, gaudiest, and most glorious of spectacular events. All to answer the question, What caused this elite Roman military officer to conclude that the man he just executed was indeed “the Son of God”?
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God bless you richly as you listen.
We are, as you well know, engaged in a fascinating election cycle -- one that I have been following with great interest.
Last week, one prominent commentator told of the time when, shortly after the swearing-in of a relatively recent President, he asked him, “What does it feel like to be President?”
His answer, in case you are interested, was this: “I suddenly realized that everything I say will profoundly affect something somewhere in the world.”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, that question, “What does it feel like to be President?” piqued my curiosity. Truth be told, there have been times when I have curiously wondered how God would respond if we were to ask Him, “What does it feel like to be God?”
The thing is, God has already answered that question.
God has told us exactly what it feels like to be God.
Fact is, His answer might honestly surprise you. Surprise you in a profoundly emotional way. It sure does me!
Now, in considering His answer that question, “What does it feel like to be God?” we have to start with this.
Jesus said this in John 4:24, “God is spirit.” God is, in that sense, ineffable. Meaning, inexpressible, indescribable, like nothing we’ve ever known before.
As God Himself said to Isaiah, in chapter 55, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”
God is, by His own definition, utterly incomprehensible. So in an effort to help us relate to Him at least on some level, God chose to describe Himself to us using word pictures. Very meaningful word pictures.
Remember how I’ve told you Bible is picture book? Remember how I’ve told you that after stating a proposition, a good rabbi will always paint the picture?
For instance, the biblical writer states the proposition, “God is love” (1 John 4:8). He then follows this proposition by painting word pictures which describe what God’s love looks like.
So through the quills of the biblical writers, God was forever providing Scriptural snapshots what He is like, of which there are several throughout pages of Bible.
The Lord is my shepherd, He shelters us under His wings, He is our rock, mountain, fortress. So, so many.
The technical term for these portraits is anthropomorphisms, morphe (form), anthropos (human, man) -- God describing Himself in forms, images, pictures we humans can understand.
OK, now watch this: Of all of the pictures that God painted (anthropomorphisms each), there are basically two iconic images of God in the Bible. As if to say, Of all of the pictures that I have drawn of Myself for you, there are two predominant portraits of Me that I want you never to forget. Shepherd, Bird, Rock, Mountain, Fortress, so many others -- these are great, accurate, and most helpful. But if you are going to remember only two, and forever cherish these two in your hearts, these are the two I want you never to forget: One in the Old Testament, and one in the New Testament.
If you think about it, God chose the two most intimate, precious, personal, and cherished of all human relationships.
You are in for quite a treat, and a stunning surprise as you listen.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
It’s been a tough week for our country. Riots at political rallies. An increasingly course discourse. Much angst in the world. And I know you are feeling it.
Well, consider this PODCAST to be a bright and beautiful shot of much-needed adrenaline to your system, some refreshing encouragement from Jesus’ heart to yours.
Let's begin our discussion with this: It is one of the most precious, and quite frankly priceless privileges in the entire Bible. I am referring to the one verse that concludes the fourth chapter of the book of Hebrews. One glorious verse that speaks volumes, both to the original readers of this verse, and to us as well.
But before I read it to you, I must first set this scene: As its title suggests -- Hebrews -- this book was written to Jewish believers in Jesus. These precious people lost everything when they become committed Christ-followers. Unlike the letters of Paul, written to local gatherings of believers in a given city -- Rome, Corinth, Philippi -- this letter was written to Jewish (Hebrew) believers struggling everywhere throughout the Roman Empire because, due to relentless persecution, they were scattered, far and wide.
We get only the barest of glimpses into their desperate circumstances from cryptic statements such as these: “Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ. Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering. Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering the same things. You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy. You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever” (Hebrews 10).
Or this in Hebrews 13: “Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.”
No one was exempt. Not even someone as faithful as young Pastor Timothy, protege of the Apostle Paul, of whom we read in Hebrews 13: “I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released from jail. If he comes here soon, I will bring him with me to see you.”
For the first generation of Jewish Christ-followers, times were tough, their circumstances dire. So in order to encourage them, the writer of this great book made to them (and to us!) this precious promise: “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Emphasis upon that shockingly bold word “boldly.”
Trust me. That thud you just heard was sound of their jaws dropping and hitting the floor as the original readers scanned those words into their suffering souls, for reasons that you will soon hear.
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This week, I have been reading a fascinating book of historical fiction entitled, The Robe, by Lloyd C. Douglas.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, in the book Douglas records a conversation between Marcellus, son of a Roman Senator who has fallen out of favor with Emperor Tiberias, and Marcellus’ slave, Demetrius. The conversation goes like this:
'Demetrius'—Marcellus swept the sky with an all-inclusive arm—'do you ever believe in the gods?'
'If it is my master's wish, I do,' replied Demetrius, perfunctorily.
'No, no,' said Marcellus, testily, 'be honest. Never mind what I believe. Tell me what you think about the gods. Do you ever pray to them?'
'When I was a small boy, sir,' complied Demetrius, 'my mother taught us to invoke the gods. She was quite religious. There was a pretty statue of Priapus in our flower garden. I can still remember my mother kneeling there, on a fine spring day, with a little trowel in one hand and a basket of plants in the other. She believed that Priapus made things grow.... And my mother prayed to Athene every morning when my brothers and I followed the teacher into our schoolroom.' He was silent for a while; and then, prodded by an encouraging nod from Marcellus, he continued: 'My father offered libations to the gods on their feast-days, but I think that was to please my mother.'
'This is most interesting—and touching, too,' observed Marcellus. 'But you haven't quite answered my question, Demetrius. Do you believe in the gods—now?'
'No, sir.'
'Do you mean that you don't believe they render any service to men? Or do you doubt that the gods exist, at all?'
'I think it better for the mind, sir, to disbelieve in their existence. The last time I prayed—it was on the day that our home was broken up. As my father was led away in chains, I knelt by my mother and we prayed to Zeus—the Father of gods and men—to protect his life. But Zeus either did not hear us; or, hearing us, had no power to aid us; or, having power to aid us, refused to do so. It is better, I think, to believe that he did not hear us than to believe that he was unable or unwilling to give aid. ... That afternoon my mother went away—upon her own invitation—because she could bear no more sorrow.... I have not prayed to the gods since that day, sir. I have cursed and reviled them, on occasions; but with very little hope that they might resent my blasphemies. Cursing the gods is foolish and futile, I think.'
Well, you could reason, of course Zeus did not hear Demetrius’ prayers. There was no Zeus to hear him.
And of course, you could also argue, there was no answer to his prayer because there was no Zeus who promised Demetrius what Jesus promised to us:
"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."
Yet, how many of us have had a crisis of faith equal to that of Demetrius precisely because we prayed to our God in a time of crisis, in Jesus’ name, the same Jesus who did indeed make to us this promise:
"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened…"
...and yet, nothing happened.
What exactly did Jesus mean by those words, His prayer promise to us?
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Get ready for a well-deserved pat on the back, and a hearty, “Well done!”
In addition to that, welcome to Luke’s heartwarmingly endearing introduction of two precious women: Martha and her sister Mary.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, this delightful little story now brings us full circle in our discussion of the Return of the Seventy from their very first mission’s trip.
You might remember that while debriefing their by-all-accounts exuberantly successful experience, Jesus responded to the Seventy by alluding to this landmark event:
“Yes,” Jesus told the Seventy, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning!” (Luke 10:18).
That statement opened up for us an entire discussion of exactly how Satan, this now-fallen angel and defeated foe, seeks to invade our lives with his nefarious influence. We shared with you then (Podcasts #151 and 152) six ways that we can slam that door to our lives shut to Satan’s influence in our lives.
In this podcast, we’ll now look at the other side of that proposition: How Satan seeks to slam that door to our lives shut to God’s influence in our lives.
Sadly, I must say that he -- Satan -- has been enormously successful and effective in doing just that. I would venture to say that this is THE battle that we fight, and far-too-often lose, with the greatest frequency when it comes to spiritual warfare. This is universal. Yet ironically, very few of us recognize this as a spiritual battle. And even fewer of us understand who is the architect of this strategy.
My friends, we have a lot to talk about.
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It’s universally called “The Parable of the Good Samaritan.”
Universally, that is, except where Jesus is concerned.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, if Luke 10:33 in the NLT is any indication, Jesus would have most likely entitled this, “The Parable of the Despised Samaritan.”
A title which goes to the heart of this story, really.
Something that I need for you to feel as you listen, and to feel it deeply. For if not, this parable completely loses its punch.
Forget about shifting a paradigm. With this one parable, Jesus completely obliterated the paradigm, and created a whole new paradigm on the spot.
You are in for both a treat and a challenge.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Jesus was happy. Truly, genuinely happy.
Which, if you think about it, and as you will hear in this PODCAST, is a most remarkable statement.
As you know, and as we have chronicled over the now 3½ years of this Jesus in High Definition study, Jesus was (to quote Isaiah): "despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief."
Never will that become so heartrendingly obvious as in the days immediately preceding His crucifixion. You want to talk about HD, we’ll soon see His rejection, sorrow, and grief in all of its gripping detail.
Jesus was a Man of whom it was written, "Jesus wept." But the fact is, as we have seen and will see as His crucifixion approaches, Jesus wept often, convulsively, with a sorrow that penetrated down to His very bones.
Had we seen Him, up close and personal, we would have looked upon a Man who looked like He carried the weight of the world upon His shoulders… because He did.
But here, in Luke 10, this is the one and only time that this was recorded in any of the four Gospels:
Jesus was truly happy.
In order to capture this poignant moment, frozen in time, Luke employed a particular word, used of Jesus only here, that literally means to leap for joy, to exult, to show one's joy by leaping and skipping. A word that denotes ecstatic joy and sheer delight.
We could therefore properly translate Luke 10:21 to read, “At that same time, Jesus jumped for joy.”
Given the rarity of such an emotion in Jesus’ storied life and ministry -- punctuated as it was by the highest of highs and the lowest of lows -- I want to know why Jesus jumped for joy.
Don’t you?
And in fact, if you read Luke 10:21 carefully, the whole of the Trinity got into the act: “At that same time Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and he said, ‘O Father…’”
Why? What caused Jesus to experience such a bounding joy? So much joy that the entire Godhead -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- shared in His joy?
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It is, without a doubt, one of the most precious truths in all of the Bible. From the lips of Jesus Himself to the seventy upon their return from their first mission’s trip, in this PODCAST you will hear Him say, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.”
Fact: Satan is a fallen foe.
Fact: The devil has been defeated.
As we have discussed for the past two weeks, Fact: Satan is not losing the war; he has already lost it.
There is a day coming, sooner rather than later, when in the words of John, “The devil who deceived them (will be) thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20).
There is a day coming, sooner rather than later, when at the mere mention of Jesus’ name, “every knee will bow (including the devil and every one of his demonic minions)… and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father,” (Philippians 2).
The day has already come when, in the words of James, “the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror,” (James 2).
So yes, Satan IS a fallen foe. The devil IS -- right now, in real time -- a thoroughly defeated foe.
Consequently, there is a verse. Or more accurately, a part of a verse. A half of a verse. One that is buried in the very back of the Bible. In the Apostle John’s first letter, chapter 4. Fourteen words (in the NASB) to be exact. One sentence we will now highlight and underscore and amplify.
A precious truth that perfectly frames any discussion of spiritual warfare and our vulnerability to what Paul described as “all the schemes, strategies, and deceits of the devil.”
A fundamental fact of our faith that you will now hear, and cherish, in this PODCAST.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Last week, when talking about Jesus watching Satan fall from heaven, we were encouraged by the fact that Satan is a defeated foe.
As you will be reminded in this week’s PODCAST, Satan isn’t losing the war; he has already lost it.
Be that as it may, however, the devil is winning his share of battles, and the destruction he causes is painful in the extreme.
Of all of the names of Satan I shared with you last week, of which there are many in the Bible, arguably the most personally troublesome is the one found in Revelation 9:11. Speaking of the demonic realm, "Their king is the angel from the bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon—the Destroyer." I say “most personally troublesome” for three reasons:
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There is a suffix added to the adverb translated “in Hebrew,” as in “his name in Hebrew is Abaddon,” which makes this term particularly forceful. As if to say that Satan is the ultimate destroyer going all the way back to the very beginnings of the Bible.
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His “most personally troublesome” name because the word means to destroy, corrupt, to exterminate, or to kill in battle or in prison, as in a prison of addiction.
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His “most personally troublesome” name because, as you well know, it is painful enough for us to personally experience the devil’s devastation in our own lives. But it is exponentially more painful to watch when he has his way in the lives of those near and dear to us. It is one thing for us to suffer personally the consequences our own regrettable choices. But to have to stand by and watch helplessly as those whom we love suffer the consequences of their regrettable choices? That is agonizing beyond description. And I don’t need to add a suffix to that word agonizing to make it more forceful. You know how much that hurts.
Yes, his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon—the Destroyer.
Yet, with all of that, as will be illustrated and demonstrated, underscored and emphasized in this PODCAST, Satan is a defeated foe.
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You and I are embroiled in a cosmic collision of good and evil, a spiritual war that is taking place in real time, in the present tense, on a scale of epic proportions.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, there can be no doubt in any thinking person’s mind that this war is real, and that it has a profound affect upon our world and our lives.
Even an atheist who denounces the existence of God as a delusion, the reality of Satan as a myth, and the authority of Scripture as a collection of fairy tales, cannot deny that operating in our world today is a force for righteousness and a force for unrighteousness, and the daily-if-not-hourly collision of the two.
This is how the Apostle Paul described this to the Christ-followers in Ephesus: “A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all the schemes and the strategies and the deceits of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.” Words that are downright sobering, if not outright chilling. But words that are equally revealing and encouraging.
Sobering and chilling because who are we to stand firm against an unseen enemy like that? Specifically, the Devil and his many demons?
Revealing because this does indeed describe exactly what we are witnessing in our world on a daily basis.
Encouraging because as Paul made clear in Ephesians 6, as Jesus made equally clear and His 70 messengers indeed experienced here in Luke 10, this war is eminently winnable.
Indeed, as you will soon hear, this war has Already.Been.Won.
We are less than 6 months from the crucifixion. Jesus will spend these final days visiting every town and village in the South of the Land: Judea and Perea. In anticipation of His visits, Jesus sent out 70 emissaries to prepare the way.
He sent them out as gentle lambs in the midst of ferocious wolves, an unmistakable allusion to the hostile spiritual climate they were about to enter. This was but the latest skirmish in an ongoing spiritual war.
The battle lines were drawn. The harvest was ready. Even as they stood on the cusp of the Crucifixion, there was a godly remnant primed and ready to hear and receive their message: God’s peace could be theirs. So off they went, on a several-weeks’ excursion into enemy territory, all to bring God’s message of peace to the tormented souls just trying to survive day-by-day.
Back to Jesus they finally returned, in order to give Him their reports and to debrief their experiences. Which is where we join the narrative here in Luke 10:17...
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, there is IMHO a no more beautiful blessing in all of the Bible than the one we are going to discuss here.
I honestly cannot put into words how excited I am for you to listen in.
As you are about to hear, Jesus perfectly defined the Gold Standard for dynamic Christian living.
Not only that, but He also gave to each of us the highest calling, the loftiest privilege, the grandest purpose statement for our lives. One that makes getting up in the morning so worth it.
Be encouraged as you listen. Take Jesus’ words to heart. Experience His blessing. And then get ready to share that blessing with the world.
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As I publish this week’s PODCAST, I am brimming with optimism.
Whether you realize it or not, we are blessed with a singular privilege: To be alive at this time, in this place, at this precise moment in human history.
As you will hear in this study of Luke 10, we have been handed a golden opportunity to fulfill that which is the highest calling that can be bestowed on any human being.
Lofty words, those. But words that I believe with all of my heart.
After hearing this podcast, I believe that you will too.
Last week, I introduced you to the foundational purpose statement that defines why exactly our Jewish friends are God’s Chosen People. Do you remember what it is?
Tikkun ha-olam.
Which is defined by our Jewish friends as "repairing the world," ideally by bringing the world under the rule of God in the world.
In the words of the rabbis, Tikkun ha-olam “is deeply embedded in the Jewish ethos.” Indeed, defines it.
The acknowledgement, the understanding that our world as a whole, and that every one of us who lives in this world is broken and in need of repair.
Tikkun ha-olam: A repair that can only come when the world which God created submits to its Creator.
Which brings us to Jesus’ instructions in Luke 10.
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Luke 10:1 (NKJV) reads, “After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.”
In light of that verse, I want to float a theory.
My theory is this: Jesus did nothing arbitrarily or randomly. There was purpose behind everything that Jesus did.
Including His sending of the 70.
So if my theory holds, that Jesus did not send out the 70 randomly or arbitrarily, we are face with two most-intriguing questions:
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Why in the world did Jesus send out 70?
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What does it mean to us today?
And as you will soon hear in this PODCAST, it means everything to us today.
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Key word for this PODCAST? Expectations.
There is nothing more toxic to our faith than when we base our faith on misinformed expectations. More precisely, holding God to expectations that He never intended for us to form; expectations God never committed Himself to fulfill.
They say that "confession is good for the soul." OK, here's my confession to you: Every week, when I open the Bible and begin to teach, I keenly, keenly feel my inadequacy. That’s not a me-trying-to-sound-humble statement; that’s a me-being-brutally-honest statement. A true statement, an honest admission, because I know that each and every person who listens to my voice and hears my words is experiencing their own challenges, asking their own questions, working through their own difficulties.
Consequently, there is so much that I would like to tell you, but literally so little time. How much can we accomplish in less than an hour together each week?
I am certainly not alone in my frustration. I take great comfort that Jesus felt it too, keenly so. Which is precisely what He told His disciples in one of the landmark chapters in all of the Bible. Yet, ironically, it’s a chapter that is so often overlooked as to its significance and importance.
If I were to ask you to tell me your favorite chapter in the Bible, or the one that brings you the greatest level of comfort, I doubt you’d say John 16. But for me, without a doubt, I’d say John 16. And it’s in this chapter that Jesus expressed my same exact frustration.
There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now.
The scene was the Upper Room. The night was His last night before the crucifixion. Jesus knew what the next 24 hours would be like. Consequently, Jesus had to recalibrate His disciples’ expectations. And so on this night, Jesus huddled with His disciples at what should have been the singular celebration of the year: a Passover Seder.
A beautiful night that would soon turn ugly.
These men had left everything to follow Jesus. They had literally put their lives on the line to become committed Christ-followers.
Jesus had warned them repeatedly that this night was coming -- the night of His betrayal and arrest.
But you know, it’s amazing to me what we hear, and what we don’t allow ourselves to hear.
It is without a doubt one of the most beautiful and meaningful of our Christmas carols.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, its seven stanzas tell the complete story of Christmas, brilliantly combining both Matthew’s and Luke’s Nativity narratives.
The carol to which I refer? The First Noel.
The First Noel, the angel did say, was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay; In fields as they lay, keeping their sheep, on a cold winter's night that was so deep.
Chorus: Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, Born is the King of Israel.
They looked up and saw a star shining in the east beyond them far. And to the earth it gave great light, and so it continued both day and night.
And by the light of that same star, three wise men came from country afar. To seek for a king was their intent, and to follow the star wherever it went.
This star drew nigh to the northwest, o'er Bethlehem it took it rest. And there it did both stop and stay right over the place where Jesus lay.
Then did they know assuredly within that house the King did lay. They entered in then for to see, and found the Babe in poverty.
Then entered in those wise men three, fell reverently upon their knee, and offered there in his presence their gold, and myrrh, and frankincense.
Then let us all with one accord sing praises to our heavenly Lord that hath made heaven and earth of naught, and with his blood mankind hath bought.
Chorus: Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel, Born is the King of Israel.
Let’s talk about these Wise Men, these mysterious Magi. And the star, what it was and why they followed it. And their gifts, and their amazing significance.
From all of us at the Safe Haven, to all of you, a Very Merry Christmas!
Welcome to December.
Not our December, even though today’s date is December 13. Which, BTW, is for our Jewish friends the 7th day of Hanukkah.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, I’m talking about Jesus’ December, His final December.
As John observed in John 10, it was winter, and Jesus was in Jerusalem for what John calls the Feast of Dedication.
As we break seal on this story, we are now a mere four months from the crucifixion.
When we last left Jesus, He had just healed a man born blind following the Feast of Tabernacles in October. This led to a rather heated confrontation with the religious leaders who kicked the now-healed blind man out of synagogue and denied that this man was ever blind. When that didn’t work, because everyone in Jerusalem knew this formerly blind-beggar, they accused Jesus of healing Him in the power of Satan. The confusion caused by these Pharisees left the crowd reeling. Thus we read, “Many of them said (of Jesus), ‘He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?’ Others said, ‘These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?’”
That’s vs 21. And that happened in October. Next we read in verse 22, “Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.”
A full two months transpired between John 10:21 & 22. Indeed, after that heated and life-threatening exchange with the Jewish leaders, Jesus and His men got out of Dodge. Jesus needed to, since once again Pharisees wanted to kill Him.
So here’s my question: Why in the world, then, did Jesus risk returning to Jerusalem here in the Winter? Why did Jesus literally put His life at risk to be there?
The answer is profound.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Spoiler alert! You will find this PODCAST heartwarming in the extreme.
Let me set it up in this way: When Jesus declared “I AM the good shepherd,” He revealed volumes about Himself and where you and I stand with Him.
It would not be an overstatement to suggest that contained within those five words are our theology of exactly who God is and what God is like. Most importantly, how we relate to God, and how He relates to us, in His own words, according to His own description of Himself.
And as you will soon hear, of all of the metaphors used by the biblical writers to describe God, none comes close to the beauty of this one statement: "I AM the good shepherd."
What does that statement mean -- to Jesus’ original hearers, and to us today? More than you can possibly imagine.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
Last week, I introduced you ever-so-briefly to the subject of shepherds. This because Jesus drew our attention to all-things sheep-and-shepherd-related when He defined Himself by saying, “I AM the door (gate) of the sheep.”
This week, in this PODCAST, we’ll discover together exactly what Jesus meant when He identified Himself as the “door of the sheep.”
The important point to remember from last week is this: Life for the shepherd was and is unpredictable and oh-so-difficult.
You might remember that when his or her world is rocked by undeserved trauma of some sort, a shepherd will never ask the question of God, “Why?” Or “Why me?” It is a given that life in the desert is tough, and that problems are the norm.
Shepherds “get it” -- that in this world of ours, bad things do indeed happen. Bad things do indeed happen to good people. We live in a world where, as but one example, men are born blind. And as Jesus made crystal-clear in John 9, it has nothing to do with the man’s sins, or his parents' for that matter, as assumed by the disciples who asked Jesus about that very thing.
In the thinking of a shepherd, the evidence of the blessing of God in someone’s life is NOT the absence of problems or pain. The evidence of God’s blessing is His peace-giving presence that shepherds us through our problems and pain.
As Peter (who knew his fair share of suffering and pain) completely understood, Jesus is and ever will be our “Shepherd, the Guardian of our souls.” (1 Peter 2:25) A shepherd who guards our souls not from trouble, but while we are in the midst of trouble -- undeserved, unpredictable, oh-so-difficult problems and personal pain.
Given all of that, what then did Jesus mean when He identified Himself as the “door of the sheep”? More than you can possibly imagine.
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God bless you as you listen.
You are about to hear an amazing story about a remarkable man, AND an encounter with Jesus that includes one of the most important and practical biblical principles that you will find anywhere in the pages of the Bible.
Quite a claim, I know. One that I will absolutely prove in this PODCAST.
A principle that I will be presumptuous enough to suggest that you and I need to hear, and of which we need to be reminded, perhaps often.
This is on the surface a story about a man born blind (which would be remarkable enough). But it is also a story about sheep, about a sheepfold, about the door of the sheepfold, about Jesus who identified Himself as the “door of the sheep,” and about life in the desert in which the sheep and shepherds in Israel lived and continue to live.
Before we get to the story itself, I need very briefly to remind you of something we talked about way back on February 2, 2013, nearly 3 years ago. When God appeared to Moses in the Burning Bush, He made a most remarkable statement: “I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.”
Interesting phrase, “milk and honey.” Honey (a jam made of figs and dates) refers to the land of the farmer, and the bounty of the fruit of the land that is grown by the farmers. Milk refers to the land of the shepherd, and that which is produced by the flocks that are raised and cared for by the shepherds. In Israel, both lands -- milk and honey -- come together in a breathtaking variety of geography and climate that (NOW GET THIS) puts into its proper perspective EXACTLY the kind of lives that we are living today. More specifically, HOW and WHY we think the way we do today.
We have SO MUCH to learn from this story.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play. Words worth waiting for, I assure you.
God bless you as you listen.
Humanly speaking, he didn’t have a chance on this earth.
Until Jesus came along...
In this PODCAST, you will meet a man whose deck was decidedly stacked against him.
Until Jesus came along…
PLEASE do not be tempted to think that because you (thank God!) were not born blind, this story has nothing to say to you today. Truth be told, I cannot think of a more appropriate passage for us to consider together, especially in light of recent events, than this one.
Jesus, the master-artist, painted for His hearers (and for US!) a picture worth far more than the proverbial “thousand words.”
Welcome to an encounter with God’s Son that you will never ever forget.
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God bless you as you listen.
Jesus made quite a splash (pun intended) when He stood up at the Feast of Tabernacles to declare to the crowds that He was the source of “living water.”
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, He only added to the drama of this most remarkable moment the very next day when He declared Himself to be the “light of the world.”
I mean, you talk about a guy who never failed to polarize a crowd, meet Jesus. The hundreds of thousands of people in that crowd on those days either loved Him or hated Him.
Just like today.
One thing for sure: No one in that crowd, that Josephus numbered at three million, could ignore Him.
Just like today.
It is today as it was then.
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God bless you as you listen.
The Apostle John, whom you will meet up close and personal in this PODCAST, was a man miraculously transformed.
Transformed by an unexpected encounter with a woman of questionable character, brought to Jesus by an unlikely group: the leading rabbis of His day.
An encounter that John would never forget.
An encounter that I am quite confident WE will never forget.
As this woman, and Jesus’ reaction to her, changed John’s mind, heart, soul -- John's LIFE -- forever, may it change ours as well.
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God bless you as you listen.
In this PODCAST, a new chapter has dawned in our ongoing chronological study of the life and ministry of Jesus.
Jesus has just left His beloved Galilee for the last time. He will not return to Galilee until after the Resurrection.
A point not to be missed, Jesus left Galilee now in order to be in Jerusalem for the annual Feast of Tabernacles. The Feast of Tabernacles.
OK, so here's my question: Why in the world did Jesus literally risk an early arrest and possible untimely death in order to be in Jerusalem for this feast? He surely knew the risks involved. He told His brothers bluntly, "The world hates me… You go to the festival. I am not going up to this festival, because my time has not yet fully come."
Yet, He changed His mind and actually went to the Feast, though secretly so as not to be seen.
So again I ask, Why now? Why this festival? What was so special about the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) that Jesus risked everything to travel to Jerusalem secretly?
In answering this question, you will see a side of Jesus’ humanness that will endear you to Him in ways you never knew possible.
I guaranteed you that this will be well-worth your taking the time to listen! You will find Jesus endearing to your heart and soul in ways you never imagined.
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God bless you as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, in Matthew 18:21, Peter asked a profoundly important question. A question that haunted him. And if we are honest, a question that at times haunts us.
Matthew 18:21 reads, “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Can you think of any question that hits us more profoundly right where we live than this one? There is not a one of us who hasn’t been hurt significantly by someone or someones in the past.
Perhaps in the very recent past.
Perhaps the person’s hurts continue into the present.
Consequently, this whole issue of forgiveness -- what it means and what it does not mean -- could not come too soon, could not be more practical.
Especially given the timing and location of Peter’s question. Something that you will hear in this podcast.
“Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Let’s talk about this.
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God bless you as you listen.
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“Epic,” as in Your-Salvation-and-Mine-Rides-or-Falls-on-This. I kid you not.
This PODCAST is going to be fun, and so instructive. Instructive on two levels.
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Instructive as we discover together exactly what Jesus meant here in Matthew 18:18-20.
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Instructive as we are handed, courtesy of Jesus, an opportunity to learn what to do, and perhaps more importantly, what not to do with the Bible.
As you are about to see, we must bring to this passage every interpretive tool in the tool box in order to arrive at an accurate interpretation and application of this passage.
Let me put it this way: The Apostle Paul encouraged his protégé, young Pastor Timothy, to “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
Do you know why Paul encouraged Timothy to handle the word of truth correctly? Because there were then, as there are now, scores of people -- pastors, teachers, conference speakers, authors, commentators -- who routinely handle the word of truth incorrectly.
In 1 Timothy 1:3, Paul similarly wrote Timothy, “I urged you to stay there in Ephesus and stop those whose teaching is contrary to the truth.” Why? Because there were Sunday school teachers or small group leaders in Timothy's church who were teaching error.
It is so easy to make the Bible say whatever we want it to say. It is so easy, too easy, to carelessly teach what the Bible does not say.
Case in point: Matthew 18:18-20. A commonly-quoted passage made to mean all sorts of things that, to be perfectly honest with you, Jesus never intended. A passage so often applied in ways that Jesus did not have in mind. He would cringe today to see what so many have done with this passage.
And, as you are about to see, this passage will indeed require us to bring to its interpretation and application a whole set of interpretive tools -- a knowledge of language, history, geography, culture, chronology, context, literary & Jewish background -- all in an effort to understand what Jesus did indeed intend to convey to His disciples and to us at a singularly watershed moment in Jesus’ ministry.
So in this podcast, dear friend, we have a lot to talk about.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
In this week’s PODCAST, as we continue in our chronological study of the life and ministry of Jesus, we come to Matthew 18:15-17 -- one of the most important passages in all of the New Testament, the so-called “Church Discipline” passage.
Church Discipline, a teaching in many local churches that really rose into prominence in the late 1970’s and became quite the trend.
I can remember attending church leadership conferences back then and hearing pastors -- I’ll use word “boast” -- of the fact that they recently removed an individual or individuals from their churches, thereby “preserving the purity of their churches.” Others would then oooh and ahhh at the boldness of the pastor in confronting the sin in his church and taking decisive action in order to preserve the purity of his church by the process of Church Discipline as outline by Jesus here in Matthew 18.
Today, one of this nation’s leading Church Discipline proponents insists that church discipline, as outlined in Matthew 18, is one of the marks of a healthy church. He writes this on his website, clearly articulating the prevailing view of Church Discipline, and indeed includes this as one of his main talking points as he addresses pastors’ conferences throughout the country, encouraging them to do the same:
“Church discipline is the act of correcting sin in the life of the body, including the possible final step of excluding a professing Christian from membership in the church and participation in the Lord’s Supper because of serious unrepentant sin."
Consequently, it has become (and in many places still is) standard practice to remove or “exclude” or excommunicate (you choose the term) unrepentant sinners from their local churches. Or if not standard practice, this notion of Church Discipline is certainly included in most of our churches' bylaws.
Well, in light of the above definition -- More importantly, in light of Jesus’ words in Matthew 18 -- I must ask, Is that really what Jesus taught to His disciples and to us?
Let’s find out together.
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God bless you as you listen.
In this week’s PODCAST, courtesy of the disciples, we get a rare-yet-precious glimpse into the heart of Jesus, the heart of God.
A truly remarkable glimpse. An ironic glimpse.
Ironic because as you will soon hear, the Gospel writers go to great lengths in this story to show us this side of God’s heart. Yet, it is an aspect of God that is rarely talked about. Inexplicably, it receives scant attention.
But we’ll balance the books in this podcast.
And in doing so, tender and heartwarming as this story is, we will hear Jesus will make one of the most severe statements of His entire 3 ½ year ministry. He will trumpet a dire warning and wave a red flag that needs like never before to be waved today, throughout our country and around the world.
You are in for an eye-opening treat, guaranteed.
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God bless you as you listen.
And PLEASE, if you think about it and are so inclined, consider sharing a link to this podcast with you loved ones and friends.
Tell you what…
If you want to see up close and oh-so-personal the heart of Jesus, look no further than this PODCAST’S passage here in Mark 9.
You are about to see a side of Jesus that is both breathtaking to behold, and irresistible to consider. A high definition video of Jesus that says so much even though it emerges from one very short story.
Perhaps the best place to begin our discussion is here: I love the disciples. I absolutely love the disciples. More to the point, I love how the Gospel writers consistently give to us a brutally honest, utterly unvarnished series of snapshots of exactly who these guys were. And how these guys thought and acted and reacted to each and every situation in which they found themselves.
I love them because to read their stories, to get into their minds and hearts, to understand struggles of their souls, all of that floods my own soul with copious amounts of hope.
The hope that if Jesus could love men such as these (and He did!), He can love me too; He can love you too.
Which is precisely the point of this week’s podcast.
If ever the disciples deserved a stinging rebuke, here it is, in bold font and living color. Yet, amazingly, no rebuke was given. Even though I know that the disciples’ words, spoken behind Jesus’ back, must have hurt Him enormously. Even though their discussion unveiled the darkest sides of their souls, exposing a monster that dwells within each of our hearts.
A monster which we must deliberately and regularly hold in check, lest he break free and wreak havoc in our lives, and in the lives of those around us. The monster to which I refer? Take a listen, and you will find out.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
My friends, get ready to grow some goosebumps as you listen to this PODCAST.
While I am away speaking at Hartland Christian Camp (one of my all-time favorite places on this planet) consider this your very own personalized tour, with me as your humble tour guide, as together we travel the storied streets of the Via Dolorosa. A short walk riddled with “Ah Ha” moments, too many to count!
Enjoy. And may God bless you richly as you listen.
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My goal in this PODCAST? Simple: To keep you out of jail.
Yes, this story in Matthew 17 is THAT positively practical.
It’s interesting to me that of the four Gospel writers (for reasons that we’ll get into in the podcast), only Matthew records this particular story about (of all things) an obscure Old Testament reference to an otherwise obtuse Moses-mandated responsibility, one that Jesus had apparently overlooked or outright rejected.
It’s not surprising to me that Matthew records this. But given the significance of the story, and its practical implications for our lives today, it is very surprising to me that none of the other Gospel writers makes any reference to this curious little episode.
An ever-so-brief snapshot into the life/heart of Jesus.
There’s quite a lot going on here. So we’ll now pick it apart and see what it all meant to Jesus back then, and what it means to us today.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
Believe it or not, there is in the Bible a grand total of (Are you ready?) 31,102 verses.
And, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST, of these 31,102 verses, the one verse that best summarizes the state of my relationship with God is this one verse here in Mark 9.
In all honesty, this is right where I live.
And, were the truth to be told, I’d be willing to wager that most of us live here too.
These words uttered, by the desperate dad in this story, could well be my words, my plea, my prayer every day in every situation.
And I rather suspect they could be yours as well.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed it may take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
As you are about to hear in this week’s PODCAST, knowing God’s will for you life is far easier than you may have been led to believe.
Far easier. Uncomplicated. Abundantly knowable. Readily understandable.
In a word, God WANTS you and me to know His will for our lives.
The reason for this discussion this week is the fact that last week I inadvertently created a vacuum.
I made a point last week (not even the main point of the message, but a valid and timely point nonetheless).
Last week we discussed the fact that we have come to a place in our day where far too many Christians rather cavalierly throw around the phrase, “God told me...” “God spoke to me and said…” “God is telling me…” or its equivalent. Does that ring a bell?
And we noted then that, Look, words mean things. When we or others invoke such phrases as, “God told me...” “God spoke to me and said…” “God is telling me…” what are we really claiming?
Did we hear an audible voice, such as the voice heard in our passage for this podcast?
And what is the person to whom we claim, “God told me…” supposed to do with that?
More to the point, if God does not reveal His will to us through an audible voice, how does He reveal His will to us?
How am I supposed to know where God wants me to live? Where am I supposed to work? Do I go to college? Join the military? Get married and start a family?
How does God reveal His will for my life, and YOURS?
After you hear this, there will be no doubt as to the answers to those and many, many other questions.
This really is a practical and straightforward as it gets.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
Defining moments. There aren’t many of these throughout the course of someone’s lifetime. But when they occur, as you will hear in this PODCAST, they are utterly unforgettable.
We are talking about game-changing moments; history-altering moments; LIFE-altering moments. Rare snapshots of seminal events, frozen in time, after which your world will never be the same again.
Welcome to one such defining moment, courtesy of Jesus, after which the disciples -- three of them -- were never the same again.
And maybe, just maybe, after considering this spectacularly significant sequence of events, with all of its ramifications for our world today…
Maybe, just maybe, we too won’t ever be the same. Let’s find out.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
The Bible is THE one and only Life-Giving Book. But how to approach it? In this PODCAST, you will be given the answer to that question!
Courtesy of Jesus, we will learn how to read it! With all of its 66 books, printed in minuscule font, with no pictures, strange names, weird customs, unfamiliar geography, violent history, where do we even start? What's the first step?
More to the point, what is our connection to this great book? My friends, the answer to that question is startlingly simple.
Hear my approach to the Bible, one that has literally revolutionized by understanding of and love for God’s Word.
It may just revolutionize yours as well.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
Jesus was a revolutionary on so many, many levels.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus was never afraid to break with convention and go with something that was totally counter-cultural to the times in which He lived, and to the religious tradition to which He belonged.
It is both my sincere hope and confident belief that you will find in this lesson much refreshment for your soul, especially if you are a female.
The time has come for us to -- courtesy of Jesus -- balance the books that have been so out of balance for so long in so much of our present-day Christian culture.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE “Share” this with your family and friends if you do indeed find it to be an encouragement to your soul.
For all of you End Times enthusiasts, this one's for you!
Welcome to an epic day in the lives of the disciples as a whole, and Peter in particular.
As you are about to hear in the PODCAST, Peter was a guy who in the blink of an eye rose to the dizzying heights of declaring the very words of God, only to plunge into the abyss of speaking the very words of Satan, and from there to receive from Jesus what could arguably be described as one of the most precious promises Peter or we could ever imagine.
All this in the space of just a few hours/minutes.
From all outward appearances, Jesus and the disciples were fighting a losing battle. By this time into Jesus’ ministry (2½ years into it, with only 7 months or so before the crucifixion), He and disciples were but a not-so-merry band of 13 men.
They were reeling from their resounding rejection at the hands it seemed of everyone. Jesus in particular was at this very moment both a political and religious refugee. The Romans under Antipas’ command were hunting Him; the religious leaders led by the Jerusalem rabbis were hounding Him.
All was lost, or so it seemed.
Just like it might seem that all is lost to us today. That our nation’s precipitous plunge into a moral abyss is now irreversible, dishearteningly so.
So to boost His disciples’ sagging spirits (and ours!), Jesus
took His men on a most unlikely road-trip to a most unlikely place. A field trip that was carefully choreographed to fortify His disciples with the quiet confidence that when all the dust settles, they win; and so do we. A men’s retreat during which Jesus systematically laid out for His men a remarkable roadmap of His final months here on earth. A glimpse into His plan, one that directly impacted the lives of His 12 men; one that equally impacts our own lives today.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen!
When we last left our old friend, John the Baptizer, his faith was in a free-fall.
He was here last week, sort of, to tell you his scintillating story in his own words. (If you have not heard that PODCAST, may I respectfully request that you listen? A story that I promise you, you will never forget.)
Think of it. John… The man whose coming was predicted by the prophets… Whose birth was foretold by an angel… Who identified and introduced Jesus to the world…
John the Baptizer didn’t believe in Jesus any more.
His situation was dire, languishing as he was in Antipas’ Dead-Sea-Side prison (on Eastern side of Dead Sea), his life literally dangling by a thread. The madman Antipas holding in his bloodstained hands the frayed ends of that thread...
Tormented, no doubt John was, by the unobstructed view he had of his boyhood home. directly across the Dead Sea on its Western shore, adopted and raised as John was by Essenes of Qumran…
John had to have THE answer to his doubt-fueled, double-edged question, and only Jesus was the only one who could provide the answer that he (and sometimes we) sought.
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While I am away speaking at a High School camp, I have left you in wonderfully capable hands. Namely, those of our old friend, John the Baptizer.
John the Baptizer is, by his own admission, a walking contradiction. As you will hear in this PODCAST, he had a remarkable beginning, and yet a dismal crash and burn.
In a word, his faith in Jesus COLLAPSED, completely.
His is quite the story to tell. But as you will hear me say, it is John’s story to tell, not mine.
So, if you can employ a little sanctified imagination, I will do my best to be true to John’s story, and respectful of John’s memory, as I sort of try to “become” (if I can put it that way) John the Baptizer.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.
Jesus now has exactly seven months left.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus knows it. He understandably recoils from it. But He must now prepare His disciples for it.
Here in Matthew 16, and its parallel passage in Mark 8, we have reached a crucial moment in the life and ministry of Jesus.
Make no mistake about it. These words here in Matthew 16 are a game-changer…
One that reveals much to us about the character of Jesus and the strategy of Satan.
An intriguing story that raises our understanding of spiritual warfare to a whole new level.
One that will impact YOUR life just as it has my life, in a profoundly insightful way.
As always, we have much to talk about. And trust me, you will be encouraged as you and I study this watershed passage together.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
The disciples were never at their lowest. Yet our friend, Peter, was never at his finest.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Peter made a declaration the reverberations of which have echoed down through the two thousand years of church history. This was HUGE.
What Peter said and where he said it are mind-blowing in their impact upon our world and in our lives.
This might just be my very favorite passage in all of the Gospels. Perhaps after hearing this, it will be yours too.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
Enjoy! And may God richly bless you as you listen.
You are in for a rare treat! One PODCAST consisting of two precious parables.
While I am away ministering to some pretty special people at Hume Lake Christian Camp, you have the opportunity to listen in on a past podcast that brings with it a present and priceless blessing. Two of them!
Why these two parables don’t get more attention, I’ll never know. For contained within them are two of the most blessed truths of our faith.
The two parables of which I speak: The Parable of the Buried Treasure, and the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price.
Two parables that, despite their similarities, reveal two totally distinct but equally precious truths.
If you need a jolt of overwhelming encouragement, you need look no further.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
And PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your friends.
We are going to begin this week's PODCAST precisely from where we left off in last week's podcast.
We left off last week by considering together this most enigmatic verse (Hebrews 5:8):
“Even though Jesus was God’s Son, He learned obedience from the things He suffered.”
If you are at all uncomfortable with that, then the rest of this story will make no sense, and will leave you with an even greater discomfort.
But if you are willing to allow for the fact that “Even though Jesus was God’s Son, He learned obedience from the things He suffered,” then you are in for this great big blessing: The grand and glorious realization that Jesus, just like you and just like me, learned in real time what it means to live a life of obedience to God the Father.
We stressed last week, and I will ever-so-briefly remind you now, that Jesus was fully human, just like us.
Last week we discussed some of the implications of Hebrews 4:15, where the writer emphatically affirms this ever-so-comforting reality:
Jesus "understands all of our human weaknesses, for He faced all of the same testings and temptations we do, yet He did not sin."
Jesus experienced every human emotion, felt keenly every human feeling -- including our feelings of fear, insecurity, uncertainty, abandonment, betrayal.
I mean, you just wait until we get to the Garden of Gethsemane, at which time there will be no doubt that in Jesus 100% deity meets 100% humanity, with all that that word humanity implies.
As we saw so vividly last week, life threw at Jesus unexpected challenges, unanticipated conflicts, undeserved difficulties, uninvited troubles… Just like life throws at us.
Jesus learned, just as so many of us are now learning, that sometimes, perhaps even most times, our richest life lessons can be taught only in the crucible of calamity.
By the reading of books our minds become broad. But it is only as we walk the pathway of pain that our souls become deep.
Something that Jesus learned. Something that we are each learning.
"Even though Jesus was God’s Son, He learned obedience from the things He suffered."
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
Welcome to one of the strangest stories -- many would call this a troubling tale -- in Jesus’ entire life and ministry.
As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, what happens here in Mark 7, and its parallel passage in Matthew 15, seems highly uncharacteristic of Jesus; uncharitable to a tragically needy-yet-remarkable mommy; and unnecessarily cold and calloused as far as a Jesus is concerned.
A Jesus, I will humbly remind you, who defined Himself as “gentle” in Matthew 11, and who described His mission as one “to seek and to save the lost in Luke 19.
As you read this story, at first blush anyway, Jesus was Anything.But.Gentle in the way He spoke to this panic-stricken mother who was understandably distraught over the condition of her daughter.
Tell you what: If His mission was to seek and to save the lost, you couldn’t find anyone more lost than this woman.
As we read this story together (it’s only 8 verses in Matthew’s account), you tell me if you find this encounter between Jesus and this mom at all unsettling or unnerving. Put yourself in the mom’s sandals for a second and imagine that Jesus is talking to you about your little girl.
Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.
A happy ending to be sure.
But what an insensitive, ungracious, uncaring way to get to that happy ending..
You talk about showing a little kindness (as we did last week), there was no kindness shown to this woman; no kindness of any kind was shown to her at all. Until the very end.
Jesus (apparently) ignored her (“Jesus did not answer a word.”), then (apparently) refused and rebuffed her (“I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”), then (apparently) belittled her (“It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”).
Curiously enough, that’s it as far as Jesus’ road trip up North into what is today Lebanon, what was then Phoenicia, was concerned.
This one strange story.
And as always, my friend, we have much to talk about.
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God bless you richly as you listen.
I’ll keep this short and sweet. In this PODCAST, you are about to see a side of Jesus that you’ve likely never seen before.
Your love for Jesus is about to grow exponentially. And rightly so.
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God bless you as you listen.
With this PODCAST, we break the seal on the last year of Jesus’ life here on earth.
And admittedly, His last year begins on a rather ominous note.
Immediately following this story, Jesus will leave the country. That is no exaggeration. For the first time in His storied 3½ year ministry, Jesus now has to get out of Dodge, fast!
As we have seen in past podcasts, Jesus was run out of His adopted hometown of Capernaum. He was then run out of Nazareth, His boyhood hometown. On top of that, Herod Antipas was hunting Jesus in order to kill Him (this in the wake of Herod’s senseless execution of John the Baptizer). And so we read this in Mark 7:24:
"Then Jesus left Galilee and went North to the region of Tyre" (in modern-day Lebanon).
Yes, indeed. Jesus was literally run out of Galilee and run out of the country.
Something significant happened in this story, here in Mark 7, that forced Jesus to go North and out of the country, rather than South to the familiar environs of His beloved Jerusalem.
What in the world happened?
What did Jesus do? Or more accurately, what did Jesus fail to do? A failure that caused a cataclysmic religious scandal. A scandal so serious that Jesus fled to the North. Which, by the way, is the exact same word that Matthew used in his telling of this story: scandal.
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God bless you as you listen.
No matter how you cut it, this man was an enigma.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, this man -- handpicked by Jesus and elevated to the rarified air of the apostles -- repaid Jesus’ generosity by betraying Him to His executioners.
Is there any human emotion more painful than that of betrayal?
Ever felt it? Betrayal?
That midnight darkness of the soul that enshrouds us like an impenetrable fog when we have dared to trust someone -- with our deepest feelings, our most hidden secrets, as if we have just entrusted to the person our very hearts, perhaps our very lives -- only to have him or her shatter our hearts and break our trust by their soul-crushing betrayal.
Jesus sure felt it. The pangs of betrayal. Boy, did He ever!
That moment frozen in time when for the first time you see with crystal-clarity that you have been played.
Well, for 3½ years Jesus had been played.
Where did this man -- Judas Iscariot -- come from? What causes a man to make the fateful plunge from believer to betrayer? What do we really know about him?
You are about to find out.
But even more importantly, you are about to see the heart of Jesus in action as He responds in real time to this real threat posed by this very real con-man, the Apostle Judas Iscariot.
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God bless you as you listen.
A bit of Bible trivia for you. A little factoid that is anything but trivial.
There is one miracle, and only one miracle, that Jesus performed that is recorded in all four Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life and ministry.
Only one such miracle. And you are going to hear all about it here, it this PODCAST.
If you didn’t know anything about Jesus, if this discussion was the first time you ever heard of Jesus, if this was the first thing you ever heard about Jesus, you would walk away from this podcast with a heart filled with love for Him, overflowing with an irresistible desire to get to know Him better.
That is how powerful this story is.
Which may well explain why of every miracle Jesus ever performed, every mighty deed that Jesus ever did, the miracle embedded within this story is the only one that is included in all four Gospels.
Which is quite a statement, really, when you consider the fact that the Apostle John concludes his Gospel account with this observation:
The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book… If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written.
An observation which begs the question: So why in the world did each Gospel writer choose to include this miracle?
Obviously, the biblical writers -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John -- and the Holy Spirit who inspired them -- wanted you and wanted me to make a special note of this story. And so we shall. Right now. In this podcast.
Welcome to The Feeding of the Five Thousand, The Miraculous Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes.
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It may sound strange to you, as you will hear on this PODCAST. But if I kicked a bottle and a genie popped out, offering to grant me but one wish, any idea what I’d wish for?
I’d wish for the ability to point my finger at anyone, anywhere, at any time, and become that person for 10 minutes.
On the surface of things, an odd request, I know. But if you think about it, for me it makes perfect sense.
When people share with me their stories, invariably I feel an acute longing to become that person -- for 10 minutes -- so that I can truly understand what it’s really like to be them.
Just imagine if we each possessed that power. If we did, and become that person for just 10 minutes, we would completely understand.
We would understand why they do the things they do; why they say the things they say; why they make the choices that they make; why they act the way they act.
All would become so crystal clear.
And in knowing the whys behind people’s words, actions, and attitudes, just think of how revolutionizing such knowledge would be.
We would be so much more understanding, so much more forgiving, so much more compassionate, so much more loving.
We would “get it.” And others would “get” us.
If you could just be me for 10 minutes, you would finally understand why I am certifiably neurotic.
Well, Jesus didn’t have a bottle; He didn’t need one. Jesus never met a genie; there are no magical genies to meet. Jesus wasn’t granted one wish. Wishes were irrelevant to Him.
But Jesus did exactly what I would wish I could do. And He did so for much, much longer than 10 minutes.
As a baby, laying in a manger, in beautiful downtown Bethlehem, Jesus became one of us.
Jesus experienced every human emotion, every human need, faced every human temptation, and lived every possible kind of human suffering. He understands exactly what it is like to be you, and what it is like to be me.
That picture of an understanding Jesus is painted ever so clearly in this story.
After hearing it, you will never view Jesus the same way again. A Jesus who “gets it.” A Jesus who “gets” you.
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Sit back, relax, and enjoy.
This is going to be So.Much.Fun for me. (And for you, I hope!) So indulge me here, because I LOVE this stuff.
Look carefully and you might see my bemused smile on my face! It is just so comical to me how easily we take what Jesus made so simple, only to make it so insufferably complicated.
And to be perfectly honest with you, I am awestruck. That’s the tone with which I want to teach this PODCAST’s passage.
I am awestruck at Jesus’ ability to say so much in so little, so many thoughts communicated in so few words. All of which so practical, helpful, relevant, refreshing, and inspiring to us today.
Let me set it up like this: You know the guy in the circus with the hundred plates spinning on a hundred poles? OK. So here’s my question:
What does that picture of a hundred plates spinning high atop a hundred poles have to do with this portrait that Jesus paints here in Matthew 10? The simple, uncomplicated picture of giving someone who is thirsty a cup of cold water?
A picture, BTW, that forms the conclusion to Jesus’ training manual for ministry. The ministry manual that we have been studying for lo these eleven weeks or so. The Ministry Manual that Jesus gave to His apostles to prepare them for their very first missions trip.
What do spinning plates have to do with a cup of cold water? As you are about to hear, Everything. Everything.
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God bless you as you listen!
You might call this discussion “One Daddy’s Lament.” Or to put an even finer point on it, “My Daddy’s Lament.” Or even “This Daddy’s Lament.” The “This Daddy” in that title referring to me.
All if which I will explain in mere moments as you listen to this PODCAST.
But for now, I don’t have to tell you that Jesus was a radical in every sense of that word. Jesus did things things that were totally unexpected, unpredictable, unconventional. More to the point of this discussion, Jesus said things that were totally unexpected, unpredictable, unconventional.
I have no doubt that if we had been alive and well back then, privileged to watch Jesus in action, and to hang on His every word, there would have been situations weekly if not daily where we would have done a total double-take. We would have cocked our heads, blinked our eyes, pulled on our ears, and said to ourselves, “Jesus did what? Jesus said what?”
You talk about a guy marching to His own drumbeat, that was Jesus.
And that is certainly true here. As Jesus came to the conclusion of His training session, as He prepared His men for their very first missions trip, Jesus -- Are you ready? -- basically put the whole of the Christian life into its proper perspective.
What does it mean to be a committed Christ-follower? Jesus answers that question here. What does it cost to follow Jesus? Jesus answers that question here.
All of this in what is arguably the single most radical statement that Jesus ever made.
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Thank you for listening. May God bless you richly as you listen.
It was without a doubt the absolute worst day of Peter’s long and storied and challenging life. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, we’re talking about one particular Saturday -- the day after the crucifixion.
The day after Peter had denied Jesus three times before Jesus’ accusers. The Saturday before the very first Easter Sunday.
And since for us at Safe Haven, tonight happens to be the Saturday before Easter Sunday, we would do well to consider exactly what was going on and why during that singularly fateful day.
A very dark day in otherwise dazzling life of Peter.
You talk about an epic fail, a spectacular fall from grace, a stunningly unpredictable turn of events, and crash and burn of mind-numbing proportions…
Here’s a quick thumbnail of how Peter’s not-so-Good-Friday developed, leading up to his Horribly-Bad-Saturday before Easter.
A day Peter no doubt spent cowering in a corner...
- Disgusted by the arrest of his rabbi;
- Devastated by execution of his hero, mentor, friend;
- Demoralized by the death of his dream of freedom from the oppressions of Romans;
A man whose faith was now in a free-fall. If there was any faith left in the man to fall.
The week leading up to Peter’s Not-So-Good-Friday and Horribly-Bad-Saturday began the Sunday before, Palm Sunday, with the event we commonly call the Triumphal Entry. Jerusalem swelled to overflowing by the multiplied thousands upon thousands of pilgrims streaming into the Holy City in preparation for Passover.
Every person in the place was there in commemoration of the Israelites’ deliverance from four hundred grueling years of oppression by the Egyptians, AND in feverish anticipation of what they hoped and prayed was their imminent deliverance from the brutal, barbaric, and oh.so.bloody occupation by the Romans.
Messianic fervor was always at its highest in the week leading up to Passover. You can understand why. Freedom was in the air.
But in this podcast, I don’t want you merely to understand why. I want you to feel why.
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I want to show you something that I discovered this week. A treasure of a truth that is so practical and so refreshing. Especially in light of this discussion that we began last week.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, we are asking a vitally important question, this in light of Jesus’ words to His apostles:
Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven.
Fairly intense words; a rather severe warning, right?
Everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven.
So last week and this, we are asking the question:
What does confessing Jesus before men, or acknowledging Jesus publicly here on earth look like?
Or to put it another way:
How outspoken are we to be about our faith?
How aggressive are we to be in sharing our faith?
How forceful are we to push our religion on others?
Frankly, over the years -- at countless services, Bible studies, camps, conferences -- I have literally been guilted into thinking that I (and YOU) should be VERY outspoken, aggressive, forceful in sharing our faith with others. And that to fail to do so is the moral equivalent of denying Jesus before men, putting ourselves at risk of having Jesus deny us before His Father. And for not-so-good measure, we now have the blood of our family and our friends on our hands because if they die and go to Hell, it is our fault.
To which I must ask, “Really?”
Well, it’s quite fascinating. Really!
Jesus gave this instruction -- to confess Him before men -- to His men as a part of their training in preparation for their very first missions trip in Matthew 10:32.
But Just.Prior.To.That, in Matthew 10:16, Jesus said something else. Something that explains exactly HOW we are to confess Him before men.
Something so refreshing that I can hardly contain my excitement.
So please get this picture. A vitally important picture both for His apostles then, for us, His followers, now.
How outspoken, aggressive, and forceful are we to confess Jesus before men, or to acknowledge Jesus publicly here on earth? Here’s the answer.
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God bless you as you listen.
Welcome to one of the most practical and profitable passages in all of the Gospels.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus’ words hit us right where we live. I mean, this goes right to the heart of who we are as Christ-followers, how we interact with our world, and how the world consequently perceives us.
Given the positive responses of so many of the people at Safe Haven where this message was taught, I know that you will find this most helpful in your own Christian life.
I must admit that I approach this passage quite frankly with a fair amount of fear and trembling. This because Jesus’ words here in Matthew 10 have, at least in my experience, been misinterpreted, misused, and misapplied in a way that has caused enormous damage to the cause of Christ in our world, and unnecessary angst in the hearts and souls of far-too-many sincere and precious Christ-followers.
Yet, at the same time, I do not want to overreact to an extreme by becoming extreme myself. So this is an exercise in a balancing act on my part. I am most happy to have you come along for the ride. One that will be most beneficial, instructive, and inspiring to you. Of that I have no doubt.
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God bless you as you listen.
So here’s my question: If you were Jesus, and you wanted to convey the idea in a way that no one could possibly miss,
That you loved someone…
That you cared about someone more than they could ever even begin to imagine…
That you would be there for that person No.Matter.What…
That in their loneliest moments, when they felt totally abandoned and isolated and detached from everyone, that you were still there…
That your love and care and kindness towards that person would never change…
That you feel their isolation more than they know…
And that you will be loyal to that person, never to abandon them, never to turn away from them…
But that you are there and will be there now and forever…
If you were Jesus, how would you convey that? What words would you use? What picture would you draw?
In this PODCAST, you will find out. And in finding out, you may never view Jesus in the same way again.
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God bless you as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, I have now reached a point in my life and ministry where I am easily bemused. Bemused by a question that I more and more frequently get asked.
When I am out speaking at a camp or a conference, often times a young man or woman just starting out in the ministry, or headed for his first ministry, will with furrowed brow and pen poised at the ready ask me this singularly significant question:
What do you wish you knew then that you know now?
Meaning, if I could turn the clock back and start over completely...
What is the ONE THING that you know now that you wish you had known then?
What one lesson have you learned over your now forty-two years and counting of ministry that you wish you had learned right out of the chute, right at the beginning?
Ironically enough, it is the very lesson that Jesus sought to communicate to His men here in Matthew 10, this right at the beginning of their first missions trip.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
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God bless you as you listen.
It is without a doubt THE single most unpleasant topic in all of the Bible. The subject of this week’s PODCAST: God’s wrath.
We discuss it here because here in Matthew 10, Jesus made reference to the iconic display of God’s wrath: the twin-cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
And for good measure, Jesus also referred to “the day of judgment.”
Since Jesus brought it up, we will bring it up -- unpleasant or otherwise -- providing some Much-Needed-Clarification to an Often-Misunderstood topic.
Upon reflection, I suppose the overarching questions raised by this sobering subject are these: Is Jesus a gentle Jesus? Is Jesus a wrathful Jesus? Or both?
And if both, how does the one (gentle) square with the other (wrathful)? Especially in light of what happened in Sodom and Gomorrah.
My friends, as always, we have a ton to talk about.
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God bless you as you listen.
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In this PODCAST, we will discover together an amazing privilege that is ours, especially given tormented world in which we live. We have been given a unique gift of God’s blessing that Jesus Himself empowers us to bestow on His behalf to others.
Just so you know, this is the kind of person I long to be.
This blessing and privilege defines a pretty amazing purpose statement for our lives.
This is HUGE!
There are so many troubled people in this tortured world of ours. In case you hadn’t noticed, this world has become a #Very.Scary.Place. There seems to be a fog of uncertainty that leaves many of us reeling from feelings of unease in our world today -- on a global level, as well as on a personal one.
It seems to so many as if the world spinning out of control, as if their world is spinning out of control. To the point where God’s peace is the polar-opposite of what people experience in their self-medicated souls.
Something that is as unsettlingly true in our day as it was in Jesus’ day. Believe me: Life was tough then too.
So in this passage, a very gentle Jesus, who sees people then and now as harassed, helpless, confused, fearful, insecure, fragile… Precious people whom Jesus describes as vulnerable sheep without a loving, caring shepherd.
To people just like that, He then and He now offers the blessing of His peace: the calm contentment that in a world spinning increasingly out of control, Jesus is and ever shall be very much in control.
The most amazing aspect of this is the fact that -- as you are about to hear -- Jesus gave us, gave YOU, the ability to confer His peace on those so desperately in need of, and craving, His peace.
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May God bless YOU with His peace as you listen.
Truer words were never spoken. It is an axiom of life. An undeniable reality that is obvious on its face:
You can’t put toothpaste back in the tube.
What does toothpaste have to do with Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 10, you ask? Everything. Everything.
For the fact of the matter is that there are some things in this world of ours which, once they are done, there’s no going back. Which is so ironically true about the passage in this PODCAST.
I suppose on the one hand, one could ask: Then why even discuss this? If indeed it is how it is... If it’s how the game is played today... If it’s how the game has been played for years… If it’s not going to change... Not by you. Not by me. Not by anyone…
Then why even discuss this?
Because on the other hand Matthew 10:8 is in the Bible. Because Jesus did indeed say this. Because Matthew did indeed include this. Because these are the words of Jesus. So God obviously WANTS us to discuss this. So despite the fact that I have no illusions about changing anything, the precious truth contained in this passage is well-worth our consideration and understanding.
And fact is, WE don’t have to play this game the way it’s been played. We can play by a whole different set of rules. Rules of Jesus' own making.
As He sent out His disciples, Jesus clearly and unambiguously told His men six words that are paradigm-shattering in their impact.
So let’s talk about these six words: What they meant to His followers then. More to the point, what they mean for us, His followers, today.
Or at least what it ought to mean to us today.
And as we do so, please permit me to speak in this podcast with a distinct tone of wistfulness in my voice and body language as we contemplate together what might have been…
What might have been, if only our evangelical world had simply taken these words of Jesus seriously and applied in our churches consistently. Oh, what might have been…
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God bless you as you listen.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
The day before yesterday, I read a recently released report out of University of Missouri on the subject of Facebook Depression.
Well, as you will hear in this PODCAST, I really didn’t need to read a report about that. I know all-too-well what happens in my own rather sizable soul when I scan my FB newsfeed. Sometimes I just can’t help but to feel so deeply and compassionately and sadly for many of the challenges so many of my friends are going through, especially as they relate to their issues of health.
I, like so many of you, just want to wave a magical wand and fix everything. But I can’t.
Of course, as the cliché goes, I do know Someone (capital “S”) who Can.Fix.Everything.
But what happens when He doesn’t?
Perhaps amplifying my FB depression, this was the week for “I don’t know if I believe in God anymore” messages. Messages sent to me by a few of my friends, unsolicited on my part, each message unrelated to the others, in which their faith is floundering, seriously so. This precisely because they have things broken in lives, significantly so. Yet despite their cries and pleas to the Almighty Who -- as that name for God so powerfully suggests -- has the power to fix it all. But He didn’t. He doesn’t.
Now what? What does a person do when, in their moment of greatest need, it appears that God is either…
- Silent or indifferent or deaf to their pleas...
Or worse…
- Appears to be powerless to fix it all?
And so, in the lives of some of my friends, faced with a seemingly silent/indifferent and/or powerless God, their faith in God is in a free-fall.
I say all of that so that you know that I take this podcast’s
passage in Matthew 10 Ever.So.Seriously.
Tonight’s discussion hits me Ever.So.Personally.
And so I will endeavor to bring to this discussion Ever.So.Compassionately the understanding of what it’s like to have one’s faith collapse.
Because it’s simply a fact that, despite the title of the runaway bestseller that just celebrated its 30th anniversary with a rerelease of a 30th Anniversary Edition -- the book entitled He Is There and He Is Not Silent -- for many of my friends, just when they needed Him the most, from all outward appearances God was NOT there and He was deafeningly silent.
Why so silent? It all comes down to what you will hear in this podcast.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
We have come in this PODCAST to a monumentally significant section of Scripture.
And yet ironically one of the most ignored.
As we will learn over the next several weeks, here in Mark 6, and its much more complete parallel passage in Matthew 10, we read of something that was for Jesus enormously emotional, and for us incredibly instructional.
Emotional because of its context (Jesus’ compassion for people will shine ever so brightly against dark backdrop of His own rejection); instructional because of its content (that includes wonderfully practical principles we can readily apply).
There is no way for me to overestimate the value of the insights that we will discover together here as we sort of eavesdrop on Jesus as He prepares His men for ministry.
Just to give you a sneak peak of just some of the things that we will learn together as we dissect and digest this that we could call The Master’s Message to His Men, we will discover:
- How Jesus wants His ministers -- both then and now -- to conduct their ministries;
- How Jesus wants His present pastors to pastor;
- What the template for any ministry that Jesus develops here in Matthew 10 actually looks like;
- Where the lines of the ministry blueprint are drawn;
- Jesus’ purpose statement for all future ministries;
- Jesus’ own philosophy of ministry, and how it translates into our own ministry contexts today.
You could say that Jesus wrote the ministry manual that He intended each of us who dare to minister in His name to follow, and that Matthew 10 is that manual.
A chapter of epic importance that was completely overlooked, and never-once-considered throughout my four years of Bible college, three years of seminary, and five years completing a doctoral program. #Never.Mentioned.Once.
I cannot help but to wonder how different the church landscape would look today if we actually taught future pastors what Jesus taught His men. Jesus planted here in Matthew 10 the seeds of ministry principles that will come to full bloom in rest of New Testament.
In short, how we view the ministry and discharge our own ministries begins right here.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, on the night before He went to the cross, Jesus made a series of remarkable statements to His disciples, in the Upper Room, during their final Passover Seder together.
John 13-17, those 5 chapters, are often referred to as Upper Room Discourse. They contain rich and rewarding teaching that we’ll dissect and digest in, oh… 3 years or so when we get there.
There is, however, in that wide swath of Scriptural truth one statement that I want to highlight here, that really sets the stage for this discussion. In John 14, Jesus said this to His disciple Philip, in front of the other 10 (Judas having left to betray Jesus):
“Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!” (vs. 9)
“Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!”
When we began this study of Jesus in HD, we said then, and I remind you frequently, that we are on a journey of discovery. Over two years ago now, we embarked together on an ongoing quest to discover exactly who Jesus is.
In this statement in John 14, Jesus assured us that as we discover together who Jesus is, we are equalling discovering who God is. And this discovery has been nothing short of EXCITING!!!
“Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!”
What we learn about Jesus, we learn about God.
Jesus’ heart is God’s heart.
What Jesus is like, God is like.
What Jesus thinks is what God thinks.
What would Jesus do is what God would do.
And Oh.What.Pleasant.Surprises we have discovered along the way. Soul-enriching, spirit-reviving surprises, that we have uncovered along the way, about the heart of Jesus; about the heart of God.
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THANK YOU for listening! God bless you as you listen.
Well, I’ve got good news for you. Great news, at least as far as Jesus and His disciples were concerned. Just in case you were worried about this.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus finally got a break in the action.
Finally, mercifully, after His enormously long and draining and tiring day -- in which He taught a series of seven parables, sailed to the other side of the sea, stilled a raging storm, sent two thousand or more demons to flight, healed a bleeding woman, raised a dead girl, all of which we have discussed in minute detail over the past (if you can believe it) 4 months -- that one singularly momentous day has now finally come to an end.
Then, after an indefinite period of time, Jesus and His disciples once again took to the road. No sooner did Jesus get out the door, He was met by two blind men, begging Him to heal them.
It is most interesting that of the three Gospel-writers -- Matthew, Mark, and Luke -- who gave us the record of Jesus’ so-called longest day, it is only Matthew who recorded this encounter with the two blind men.
I have got to ask the reason why. Why did Matthew, and only Matthew include this story? Especially given the fact that we have seen Jesus heal the blind before. This was old news.
Or was it?
Trust me when I suggest that after hearing about this singularly significant story, you may never view God’s love for you the same way again.
Yes, THIS story is THAT significant.
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HAPPY LISTENING, and God bless you as you listen.
OK. So I’ve got to tell you that I find this entire series of events that we will be discussing in this PODCAST…
All of which I will remind you took place in less than 36 hours…
This entire series of events that took place in just one day in the life of Jesus…
I find to be remarkably REFRESHING, while at the same time to the followers of Jesus’ faith utterly unsettling...
Absolutely REVOLUTIONARY to me, while at the same time to the leading rabbis of Jesus’ day disgustingly revolting…
Undeniably IRRESISTIBLE to me, while at the same time to the Torah-teachers of Jesus’ day scorchingly scandalous.
So unsettling, revolting, and scandalous that they hated Him for it.
Yet so refreshing, revolutionary, and irresistible that we love Him for it!
It’s been quite a ride, really, this journey that we’re on together. Two years ago, we began our ongoing study of Jesus in High Definition. The stated purpose of which is to rediscover afresh who Jesus really is, and what Jesus is really like.
Much to my surprise and our delight, the biblical picture of Jesus that is continuously emerging EVERY SINGLE WEEK is that of a GENTLE Jesus.
A gentle Jesus who did some of the most delightfully surprising things.
A gentle Jesus who said some of the most surprisingly delightful things.
A gentle Jesus who is every sense of the word irresistible.
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Please, please, please share a link to this podcast with your family and friends.
God bless you as you listen.
And THANK YOU, from my heart to yours, for making this journey with me.
She was a footnote in this chapter of the Jesus Story. But she was NEVER a footnote to Jesus.
And neither are you, as you will be reminded in this poignant PODCAST.
If I had to choose one word to describe this woman -- and let me assure you, there are many to choose from, such as desperate, fearful, impoverished, unclean, shunned, rejected, lonely, isolated, alone, damaged --
If I had to choose one word to describe this woman, the one word I would choose is invisible. She was indeed invisible. Totally and completely invisible.
She was invisible to her family, her former friends, her neighbors, her faith community…
No one gave a thought to, or cared one whit about, this poor precious woman.
Except for Jesus.
If you have ever been tempted to think that Jesus is mean, harsh, angry, impossible to please, time to meet this woman -- who will never look at Jesus the same way again.
And neither will you.
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And PLEASE, if it is a blessing, consider sharing a link to this podcast with your family and friends.
Whenever I talk about Satan, demons, spiritual warfare, or anything remotely related, the numbers of distractions in the room increase exponentially.
This is a pattern I have documented over 40 years of ministry.
Regardless of time of day, day of week, season of year, or venue in which I teach, it’s as if the devil himself does not want anyone (including you) to hear what the Bible teaches about our (and God’s) archenemy.
That was certainly true at Safe Haven when I recorded this PODCAST.
Coincidence? Maybe.
I can say without fear of contradiction that the principles you will learn in this message from the life and ministry of Jesus to a demon-possessed man, Satan does NOT want you to hear.
Don’t be surprised at the numbers of distractions that you will face when you try to hear this.
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God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your family and friends.
He is truly an unsung hero of the Christmas Story.
Ironically enough, as you will learn in this Christmas-themed PODCAST, his name means “one who listens.”
Are you ready to listen?
Having read the biblical accounts of the birth of Jesus, I have no doubt that you have heard of him. But I would be very much surprised if you knew much about him.
All of that is about to change.
Ready to view the coming of Christ through a slightly different lens? My Yuletide gift to you, in a little more than 30 minutes.
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If it is a blessing to you, PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your family and friends.
God bless you as you listen. And have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS.
Ever feel spiritually inferior? Like you don't measure up? Like you can't measure up?
Then you are in the right place. This message is for YOU!
In this PODCAST, we bid a fond farewell to the parables.
I cannot put into words how much I have enjoyed our study of each of them. The seven parables of Matthew 13 speak so clearly to us, revealing to us exactly what Jesus said the spiritual climate in the world in which we are now living would be like. With pinpoint accuracy, He said it would be so. And it is.
So somewhat sadly, we turn the page and move immediately into the next phase of Jesus’ ministry.
I do say “immediately” because we read this in Mark 4 (as we harmonize the four Gospels and present Jesus’ life and ministry in chronological order)...
... And I’ve got to tell you, I cannot help but to chuckle when I read this:
"Jesus taught them using parables; privately to His disciples He explained everything. On that same day when evening had come, He said to them, Let’s go over to the other side of the lake."
Oh.My.Friends, you have NO IDEA -- and there #Is.No.Way that I can adequately convey to you the idea -- of JUST how terrified AND terrorized disciples were to hear this.
But I will try.
Now, before I get into all of that, a couple of thoughts... Thoughts that you will hear in this podcast.
Trust me, you are in for a treat. This is one hoot of a story.
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God bless you as you listen.
It has become THE doctrinal debate of our time -- Is there really a Hell?
It is THE question that is addressed clearly and unambiguously in this PODCAST.
Is there Really a Hell?
This 7th of 7 parables answers the question.
And if the answer is “Yes,” the logical followup question would be, “What is Hell Really like?”
Turns out that the Bible is amazingly straightforward about whether or not there is a Hell; if so, what it is truly like, who will be going there, and why they will be going there.
As I often say, It’s amazing what we learn when we read the Bible.
Well, get ready to be amazed.
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God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your friends.
Happy listening.
You are in for a Thanksgiving treat! One PODCAST consisting of two precious parables.
Why these two parables don’t get more attention, I’ll never know. For contained within them are two of the most blessed truths of our faith.
The two parables of which I speak: The Parable of the Buried Treasure, and the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price.
Two parables that, despite their similarities, reveal two totally distinct but equally precious truths.
If you need a jolt of overwhelming encouragement, you need look no further.
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God bless you as you listen.
And PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your friends.
Enjoy!!!
It is without a doubt one of the most beloved and timeless stories in the entire Bible, courtesy of Jesus Himself.
In this PODCAST, you will hear the story has you have never heard nor read it before.
A story for Jesus’ day; a story for our own day.
A story for Jesus’ disciples; a story for us as Jesus’ disciples.
Just imagine that the principle player in the story told you his story in his own words, in his own voice.
A much needed story for us all to hear, especially at this tender time in our nation’s history, especially in this day when so many precious people are so woefully divided one from another.
This is one of those special stories that gives us a glimpse into the enormous heart and sizable soul of Jesus.
Think of it as a Thanksgiving gift, from my heart to yours.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to sixty seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
OK… So... I am rarely one to say “I told you so.” But sometimes I just can’t help myself.
As you will hear on this week’s PODCAST, my dear friends, I told you so.
All courtesy of Jesus.
All centered upon a #MostSignificantParable.
One of a duet of parables, actually. The first having been discussed at length last week. The second to be discussed here and now.
Get ready to think. Be prepared to process. Buckle yourself in as we once again (thanks to Jesus) shift a paradigm.
In short, get ready to view the world differently.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen!
Oh, my friends. You are about to be amazed...
In this PODCAST, you will be amazed that in such a few words, Jesus taught such a tremendously timely and thought-provoking parable.
Exactly WHAT the disciples (and US!) needed to hear; exactly WHEN they (and WE!) needed to hear it.
If the world seems to be spinning out of control...
If it seems that we are losing...
If life becomes for you at times overwhelming...
If you ever feel oh so tired, weary, worn down...
Then you are in for a treat, courtesy of Jesus.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen!
It’s a day that receives NO recognition.
I don’t know why. I have no explanation. It’s simply a fact.
This holiday (Holy Day) is the 3rd most important date on our calendars. 3rd only to Christmas and Easter.
And yet, year after year, it comes and it goes with nary a mention. As happened #JustLastWeek!!!
So in this PODCAST, we are going to mention it. What this holiday is. How it came about. What it means to you and me. And why we are the poorer for not observing it.
Get ready to feel affirmed, my friend. Because truth be told, this Holy Day is in reality YOUR day.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
Welcome to this Jesus in HD Encore PODCAST.
I am coming off of an exhilarating week with the best students in the world, the Joshua Wilderness Institute students. So in my absence, and for your edification and enjoyment, I have reached way back into the archives, all the way to Podcast #61. This was at the time a wonderfully received and enormously helpful discussion that brought so much peace to so many troubled (and sometimes tortured) souls.
If you were ever going to hear just one message on the mysterious and majestic practice we call prayer, let this one be the one. For here we come to the crux of the matter regarding this glorious thing we call prayer.
So much is going to become so clear in just the next few minutes: Questions about unanswered prayers. Questions about why God even designed this thing called prayer. Questions about the purpose of prayer. Questions about what we ought to pray for, and what we don’t need to pray for.
Why prayer sometimes doesn’t seem to work. Yet why every time we pray biblically, it ALWAYS works.
So much to talk about. I am so glad you are here to share in this discussion with us.
PLEASE NOTE that depending upon your web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING, and may God richly bless you as you listen.
Ready to have a somewhat sobering, definitely enlightening, and #Oh.So.Encouraging discussion?
Then welcome to this week’s PODCAST!!!
An encouraging discussion, certainly to me personally, and hopefully to you, because Jesus’ 2nd parable, The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (the 1st we discussed last week, The Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seeds) is spot-on as far as Jesus predicting with pinpoint accuracy EXACTLY what would be taking place in our contemporary Christian culture and communities today...
...And why!
A thought-provoking portrait upon which you and I need to gaze with insight and understanding.
This is one of those messages that puts so much into its proper perspective. Honestly, I can’t wait for you to hear it.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
GOD BLESS YOU AS YOU LISTEN!!!
Welcome to Parable #1.
That’s right! In this PODCAST, we begin in earnest now to understand Jesus’ parables in Matthew 13.
Oh, you’re in for a treat. Because this first parable, just like the eight that will follow it, speaks directly to our lives at this time, in this place, in our day, today.
This is as personal as it gets.
Jesus now shifts His focus completely, from talking to the crowds of His day, about the many challenges that they faced, to talking directly to us in our day, about the many challenges that we each face today.
I cannot stress enough the absolute importance of understanding these parables. Neither could Jesus, who begins this first parable with the word, “Listen.” And then ends the parable by referencing those of us who do indeed “listen and understand.”
In this podcast, we will do both -- listen and understand.
Please note that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
You’ve perhaps heard his name -- a rather strange name at that! His name is Job. The man who had it all, only to have it all taken away.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, in the blink of his eye, everything changed. And not for the better.
The book of Job poses for us a number of VERY IMPORTANT and DIFFICULT questions:
Why did such unspeakable things happen to such a godly man?
Why did God let it happen?
Why did God give permission to Satan to torment Job as he did?
What (if any) was God’s purpose behind it all?
What are WE supposed to learn from his story -- about our lives, about our circumstances, about our painful challenges, and about our God?
What does the story have to do with our ongoing study of Jesus in HD?
All of these questions, and so many more, will be addressed in this podcast.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
May God bless you richly as you listen, and share this most meaningful message with your loved ones and friends.
I can’t tell you how excited I am, both about this particular message AND the enormous encouragement that I know it will bring you as you listen!!!
In this week’s PODCAST, we break the seal on the parables. As you will hear, Jesus had quite compelling reasons for completely changing His teaching style -- from preaching to the masses to huddling with the disciples; from sermons to stories; from proclamation to parables.
This particular discussion will set up our Fall, sort of a series within a series, as we will take the next several weeks to consider together each of Jesus’ parables in Matthew 13. Specifically, what they meant to the disciples to whom Jesus spoke them, and what they mean to us today.
Jesus used parables to reveal new truth never before mentioned in the Old Testament. This is brand new stuff. Stuff that relates specifically to the day in which you and I are living. Stuff that explains some of the many challenges we are facing as committed Christ-followers today.
This is a personal as it gets.
So thank you for coming along for this wild ride, and making the journey with us.
Please note that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
GOD BLESS YOU RICHLY AS YOU LISTEN!
My heart goes out to Mother Mary.
Her name means “Bitterness.” Sadly, and quite frankly, in many ways Mary lived up to her name.
Being the mother of Jesus was no small task. One that she fulfilled with great dignity. But boy did she face her challenges.
In this PODCAST, we will gaze upon a Scriptural snapshot of Mary unlike anything you have ever seen before. Not only that, but we will encounter Jesus in His darkest hour, second only to that night before the crucifixion when He sweat drops of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane.
As we do, our love for Him will deepen. Our respect for His mom will broaden. And our understanding of the both of them will stir up within our own hearts a sense of God’s presence in our lives like we’ve never experienced before.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
May God richly bless you as you listen!
My heart goes out to Jesus. After preparing for this week's PODCAST, I feel such a profound sense of compassion for Him.
Thing of it is... I knew that the religious leaders of Jesus’ day hated Him. I understood that at this point in His ministry they no longer regarded Him as an irritation to be tolerated or a troublesome teacher to be discredited. Now they saw Him as a colossal threat to be killed. I got all of that.
What I didn’t get until this week was how toxic -- both to Jesus and to the precious people to whom He ministered -- the religious environment in which Jesus found Himself had become.
Even more significantly, the source of its toxicity.
And even more significantly, what it means to our lives today.
The challenges He faced within His own religious tradition were overwhelming. So are ours.
Trust me when I say that we have a sympathetic Savior who knows all about it. He's been there, and lives to tell the tale.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
BE ENCOURAGED, and HAPPY LISTENING!!!
In this PODCAST, so many, many questions will be answered.
How do we know there is a God?
Why does the Bible say that all people are without excuse?
How did people in the Old Testament get "saved"?
What about people who have never heard of Jesus before?
Just to name a few!!!
Open your ears. Open your eyes. Most importantly, open your heart. You will be amazed at all that you are about to learn!!!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Call it what you will… The Unpardonable Sin. The Unforgivable Sin.
No matter what the name, the consequences are unimaginable.
In this PODCAST (which I believe for you will find to be enormously encouraging and reassuring), you will learn exactly what this sin is, what this sin isn’t, whether or not it is possible today to commit this sin, and if so, whether or not you have or ever will commit it.
In terms of its eternal ramifications, no conversation is more vitally important than this one.
Find out what Jesus said, to whom He said it, why He said it, and what His dire warning means for us today.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING.
Here, in this PODCAST, is some much-needed hope for every brokenhearted mom. Not to mention every brokenhearted dad.
This hope comes courtesy of a man named Levi, though you’d never know it by reading his account of Jesus’ life and ministry.
While there is scant little detail in the Bible regarding this remarkable man (Levi is mentioned by name a grand total of only 5 times), scratch beneath the surface and we could write a book about him.
Levi deserves our focused attention, and we will be all the richer for having had this discussion.
A polarizing figure, Levi was. They either loved him or hated him. Or to put an even finer point to that: The religious hated him; Jesus loved him.
And in loving him as Jesus did, Levi becomes a living, breathing canvas on which the heart of Jesus is painted in vivid colors and bold relief.
Please Note: Depending upon your web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!
Jesus was a revolutionary on so many, many levels.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus was never afraid to break with convention and go with something that was totally counter-cultural to the times in which He lived, and to the religious tradition to which He belonged.
It is both my sincere hope and confident belief that you will find in this lesson much refreshment for your soul, especially if you are a female.
The time has come for us to -- courtesy of Jesus -- balance the books that have been so out of balance for so long in so much of our present-day Christian culture.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE “Share” this with your family and friends if you do indeed find it to be an encouragement to your soul.
If you know of anyone who has some mental obstacles to understanding who Jesus is, THIS is the message for them to hear.
An Encore PODCAST while I am speaking at Hume Lake Christian Camps.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
We could give this PODCAST a variety of titles.
The Ballad of the Broken and Battered Woman.
The Indignation of the Idolatrous “Holy” Man.
I prefer the title, Oh.My.Word, for reasons that you will soon hear.
We have come to a tipping point in the life and ministry of Jesus. After this encounter with a broken woman and a “holy” man, things will never again be the same for Jesus.
The full fury of the religious leaders will come to full flower as a result of this one meal that Jesus shared with this one man and one woman.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, my faith was in a freefall. Jesus knew exactly what to say, how to say it, and when to say it to bring me back.
What did He say? And what does it mean to you?
You are in for a treat. And so is anyone with whom you share this podcast. A totally biblical view, a (May I say?) a thoroughly refreshing view of exactly who Jesus REALLY is. From His own lips to your own heart.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!!!
While I am away speaking at one of my all-time-favorite places on Earth (Hartland Christian Camp), the topic of this encore PODCAST is one of those subjects that touches us all, deeply and profoundly. The ripples of any divorce, every divorce spread their concentric circles far and wide.
Which compels us to take a sober look at exactly what Jesus DID SAY HERE in Matthew 5:31-32, as well as -- and perhaps especially -- what Jesus DID NOT SAY HERE.
Because once again, this is one of those passages which, when lifted out of its context -- both Scriptural and Cultural -- is so often and so tragically made to say something other than what Jesus intended for it to say. Heaping truck loads of unnecessary grief and guilt upon poor precious people who are just trying by God’s grace to rebuild their broken lives.
Trust me! Over the years, having dealt up close and personal with many, many people, I have heard some of the most atrocious applications of this passage. This to the point where emotionally and spiritually fragile individuals, whose lives have just been rocked by their own tragic divorces, now have whatever fragments they have left of their broken lives crushed by well-meaning, but grossly misinformed, Christians errantly and judgmentally spouting this passage. And then in fine Pharisee-esque style, walk away from them, leaving untold wreckage in their wakes.
Not here. Not in this PODCAST. No way!
Jesus doesn’t do that.
Please note that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
And PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE share this podcast with your friends.
Sometimes things really are as simple as they seem. This will certainly be true in this PODCAST, as we discuss together one of Jesus’ most remarkable statements.
We could use a whole series of words to describe what Jesus said, all of which begin with the letter “S.”
His message was surprising, as Jesus will say something that sounds totally out of character for Him.
His message was sobering, as His words contain a warning that, as you will hear, went completely unnoticed.
His message was simple; in fact, you could boil down all that He said in this powerful passage to one simple word. One word that truly is the Gospel in miniature.
Leave it to Jesus to take what we make so complicated and turn it into something so simple.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
From my heart to yours, HAPPY LISTENING!!!
When we last left our old friend, John the Baptizer, his faith was in a free-fall.
He was here last week, sort of, to tell you his scintillating story in his own words. (If you have not heard that PODCAST, may I respectfully request that you listen? A story that I promise you, you will never forget.)
Think of it. John… The man whose coming was predicted by the prophets… Whose birth was foretold by an angel… Who identified and introduced Jesus to the world…
John the Baptizer didn’t believe in Jesus any more.
His situation was dire, languishing as he was in Antipas’ Dead-Sea-Side prison (on Eastern side of Dead Sea), his life literally dangling by a thread. The madman Antipas holding in his bloodstained hands the frayed ends of that thread...
Tormented, no doubt John was, by the unobstructed view he had of his boyhood home. directly across the Dead Sea on its Western shore, adopted and raised as John was by Essenes of Qumran…
John had to have THE answer to his doubt-fueled, double-edged question, and only Jesus was the only one who could provide the answer that he (and sometimes we) sought.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for your podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING.
John the Baptizer is, by his own admission, a walking contradiction. As you will hear in this PODCAST, he had a remarkable beginning, and yet a dismal crash and burn.
In a word, his faith in Jesus COLLAPSED, completely.
His is quite the story to tell. But as you will hear me say, it is John’s story to tell, not mine.
So, if you can employ a little sanctified imagination, I will do my best to be true to John’s story, and respectful of John’s memory, as I sort of try to “become” (if I can put it that way) John the Baptizer.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING.
It happened in the no-nothing little town called Nain.
Why there? Why to that woman? What was the point?
And most importantly, as you will learn in the PODCAST, what does this teach us about the nature, character, and heart of God? His heart towards me. More significantly, His heart towards YOU!
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!
In so many of our past podcasts in our Jesus in HD study, we have examined many of the things that Jesus did.
In this PODCAST, we will take a good long look at something Jesus NEVER did.
WWJND? What Would Jesus NEVER Do? Certainly not this!!! Jesus NEVER did this. When you discover what He never did, you’ll be so eternally grateful that He never did. And never will. Not to you. Not to anyone.
And because He never did this, we love Him, and admire Him, and aspire to be like Him all the more.
You will find this to be so endearing a study that I cannot wait for you to get into it.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!
Jesus was a master-builder, a trained and professional artisan, a teknon, a worker in wood and stone.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus knew all about soil, sand, rock, and proper foundations on which a house can stand strong and secure against floods and winds.
So the question becomes, on what foundation are you and I building our lives?
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!!!
They say that confession is good for the soul. So here goes: I confess that I'm feeling terribly conflicted about the passage we discuss in this PODCAST.
On the one hand, this is as sober and serious as it gets, Jesus' climax to His signature sermon.
Yet on the other hand, I find myself strangely comforted by His words. Comforted because they explain SO MUCH of what we see done today in Jesus' name.
If you know of anyone who has some mental obstacles to understanding who Jesus is, THIS is the message for them to hear.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
God bless you as you listen.
The Apostle Paul died a very troubled man. As did Peter. As did John. As did Jude. Know why? They shared the same concern.
The identically same concern that Jesus addressed rather pointedly here in this PODCAST.
Rather than speak for Apostles Paul, Peter, John, and Pastor Jude, I’ll let them speak for themselves. And as you hear them, please know that they are speaking to us.
Please note that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
If it is a blessing, PLEASE “Share” with all of your friends.
God bless you as you listen.
Sometimes things really are as simple as they sound.
As you will hear in this PODCAST, this little truism was never more true than it is of Jesus’ words here at the tail end of the Sermon on the Mount.
And believe it or not, Jesus swerved right into the middle of what has become a tragic distortion of our beliefs, especially among a younger generation of pastors and the churches that they lead.
It’s time for us to recalibrate our theology, in order for our beliefs to fall in line with what Jesus taught.
Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING!
My friends, get ready to grow some goosebumps as you listen to this PODCAST.
Consider this your very own personalized tour, with me as your humble tour guide, as together we travel the storied streets of the Via Dolorosa. A short walk riddled with “Ah Ha” moments, too many to count!
Enjoy.
Please note that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
Thank you for listening. God bless you as you do!
I am away from my beloved Safe Haven family, helping to lead another Study Tour in Israel.
While I am away, please enjoy this Encore PODCAST.
The cards were unfairly stacked against her. By anyone’s definition, she was a total loser. This woman was by anyone’s standard the quintessential poster-child of the societal outcast.
She lived on the fringes, neglected, or even worse, forgotten by everyone.
Forgotten by everyone, that is, but Jesus.
This one encounter, between Jesus and this notorious woman, changed her life forever.
It might just change yours.
Please note that with some web browsers, it might take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.
It is, without a doubt, my absolute favorite spot in all of Israel. Which, given my love for the land and its people, is quite a remarkable statement.
In this PODCAST, you will hear where it is, and why it is.
Here’s a clue: It’s the Apostle Peter’s favorite spot too.
Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.
HAPPY LISTENING, and please “Share” this podcast with your family and friends.
Welcome to a Passover Seder. In this PODCAST, we will give you an overview of this blessed event, celebrated by our Jewish friends all around the world.
In this presentation, we will place a particular emphasis on the many pictures of Jesus painted through the symbols, blessings, foods, and other traditions included in a Passover Seder.
Nothing could be more appropriate for our consideration, especially during this time of year.
This presentation was recorded on Good Friday night. You will be amazed at the clarity, the high definition, in which these images of Jesus emerge throughout this celebration.
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God bless you as you listen. Please “Share” the link to this podcast with your family and friends.
Let me begin this PODCAST with a little bit of Bible trivia. Fun little factoids to tickle your fancy:
You may know that there are 66 books in the Bible.
But did you know that there are 1189 chapters and a grand total of 31,102 verses (KJV)?
Well, on the surface, these #’s might make it seem like a daunting task to even begin to understand Bible.
I mean, where do you start?
Well, my friends. That’s why I am here. Think of me as the lubricant that makes the machinery of your life run smooth.
Lest you find those #’s to be somewhat dispiriting, what if I told you that we could summarize the entire Bible in only 3 verses? 3 verses that tell the tale?
Want to know what they are?
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HAPPY LISTENING!
Welcome in this PODCAST to one of the most ignored and blatantly disobeyed passages in all of Bible to the needless/unspeakable hurt of so many of us.
May I tonight bare my soul as Jesus bared His?
Believe it or not, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addressed what was then, what is today, an all-too-common spiritual practice of unconscionable spiritual abuses. Abuses that were taking place in so many of the synagogues of Jesus’ day, and in so many churches today.
For the sake of our souls, we MUST understand what Spiritual is, why it happens, whether or not it is or has happened to us, and how to guard against it.
Honestly, if people would simply take Jesus’ words to heart, that in and of itself would absolutely transform our Christian experiences #For.The.Better. And frankly, it’s not that hard to do.
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HAPPY LISTENING!
You talk about a passage that hits us right where we live. This is it. You’re about to hear one explained in this PODCAST!
The operative word in this passage? Jesus said it three times: “Worry!” As in, “Do not worry!”
I can even summarize Jesus’ message even more concisely than that. How about just one word? “Relax.”
Jesus assured the precious people on that hillside that day (and us!) that when it comes to the pressures and problems of life, they and we CAN Relax! As if to say, “I’ve got your back. I’ve got it covered. I can handle it. I will handle it.”
His message, as explained in this podcast, reverberates with a blazing bright message of hope and encouragement.
Allow Jesus to dispel your dark clouds of worry, and to replace them with His matchless peace.
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God bless you.
OK! You may well be wondering, “Are we really going take an entire message to talk about fasting?”
As you will hear in this PODCAST, Yes! We are indeed! And for some very good reasons.
Just the mention of the word sounds like something out of an ancient Byzantine Orthodox liturgy. Certainly not something relevant to our fast-paced 21st century get-up-and-go, hectic, frenetic lifestyles. Which is precisely the point!
The fact that our lives have indeed become so deliriously fast-paced (Get it? Fast-paced? When talking about fasting? A little pun there.) demands that we build this discipline into our lives.
And just to give you one tantalizing clue as to where we are going with this: Fasting has much more to do with our time than it does with our food. As you will hear me propose in this message, fasting is much more of a time-management issue than it is a food-management issue.
It’s not at all surprising, really, that Jesus followed up His presentation of The Lord’s Prayer with this invitation to fast. Because here’s the thing: We can approach our newly-discovered insights on The Lord’s Prayer with all kinds of renewed enthusiasm and excitement about praying the way Jesus taught us to pray. (I certainly hope you do!)
But the raw reality of the situation is this: Many of us simply don’t have the time or take the time to pray. To get alone with God. To embrace the silence, an endangered species in our day, a silence in which we prayerfully consider the significance of each phrase of The Lord’s Prayer.
I mean, if your life is at all typical, as you run here and rush there, you barely have time to eat, let alone time to pray. Which, again, is precisely the point!
So take some time -- relatively very little time -- to listen to this podcast. It may just change your life in a really, really good way.
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God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE “Share” the link to this message with your friends.
HAPPY LISTENING!!!
It’s one of the most beautiful verses in all of Scripture… which, ironically, may not actually be in the Bible.
But as you will learn in this PODCAST, it really doesn’t matter. Because what Matthew quite possibly did not write, Paul most certainly did.
Paul ascribed glorious praise and power to His sovereign God who quite possibly broke Paul’s heart. His heart broken by a shattered dream, an unfulfilled longing.
Yet through Paul’s resilience, we can and WILL derive much comfort in the face of our own shattered dreams, broken hearts, and unfulfilled longings.
This podcast is for you!
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HAPPY LISTENING, and may God richly bless you as you do.
Does your faith ever flicker or falter? Are you ever besieged by doubts, pesky thoughts that call into question God’s love, God’s goodness, God’s presence in your life?
You are not alone, as you are about to hear in this PODCAST.
There is a battle being waged right before our eyes, a battle of good versus evil, a battle of the forces of light against the forces of darkness, a spiritual battle centered squarely upon you… and me.
Which explains the reason why Jesus taught us to pray as He did.
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As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, it is my sense that far too often in the Christian community at large, we display a woefully naive and underdeveloped understanding of person-to-person forgiveness.
Too many times I get the sense that our default position is to demand of the one who is wronged his or her need to forgive the one who wronged him. While at the same time almost giving a pass to the one who committed the wrong in the first place. As if to say, “Yes, it’s too bad that someone hurt you. But you are obligated to forgive that person, whether they acknowledge the hurt they caused or not.”
I mean, is it not one of the most basic of Christian ethics to say to someone who has been deeply wounded, “You need to forgive the person who wronged you, love the person who wronged you, and be reconciled with the person who wronged you. No matter what”? Whether or not they make any attempt to right the wrong that they committed? Whether or not they repent of the wrong, or even admit their wrong?
A woefully inadequate view of forgiveness which (IMHO) ignores Jesus’ purposeful and particular and pointed and powerful usage of the word “debts.”
A naive view of forgiveness which, in far too many cases, only amplifies the pain caused to the one who is wronged. (When we demand of the one who was wronged a forgiving spirit, while neglecting to suggest any obligation on the part of the one who did the wrong to right the wrongs that they committed, or in Jesus’ words, to settle their “debts.”)
A woefully underdeveloped theology of forgiveness which only empowers and enables hurtful behavior.
Which forces me to ask, Why do we do this? Why do we hold the persons who are hurt accountable to forgive the ones who hurt them, without equally holding accountable those who caused the pain to their biblical obligation to right the wrongs that they committed? Thereby empowering dysfunctional behavior on the part of one who caused the pain in the 1st place? Which only motivates them to continue to hurt others with no accountability whatsoever.
Is this really what Jesus meant to teach here, in the Lord’s Prayer, when He taught us to pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”? That no matter what the hurt, how deep the hurt, we just forgive. End of story.
I don’t think so.
You might be in for a pleasant surprise as you listen to this podcast.
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THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!!!
Welcome to this Encore PODCAST.
While I am away speaking to a wonderful group of precious college-age students at a place near and dear to my rather sizable heart -- Hartland Christian Camp -- we travel back into the Safe Haven archives for this most insightful lesson.
As you are about to hear, Jesus lived and taught in a spiritual climate remarkably similar to our own. You will be AMAZED at the parallels.
This will explain to you, so very clearly, why so many "Christians" treat others and behave before others the way they do.
The insights taught here helped me to gain a whole new perspective on the world in which I live, and an even deeper respect for Jesus as He navigated the world in which He lived.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
God can sometimes seem so distant. Remote. Removed from the intricate details of our daily lives.
BUT HE’S NOT. As you will discover by listening to this PODCAST.
God is closer to you than you can possibly imagine.
OK, here’s a pop quiz for you. When Jesus wanted to convey to the people He loved in the single most culturally-emphatic way, just how close God is to YOU, what image did Jesus invoke?
You, my friend, are in for quite a surprise.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
Welcome to this encore presentation of the introductory PODCAST that launched what was then, back in November of 2012, a brand new and exciting and life-changing series: Jesus in High Definition.
I know my friends in the midwest will laugh at us here in the Pacific Northwest when I say this. But when it snows, oh, around two inches, the city and state virtually shut down. Well, we are into our third straight day of snow, now approaching a full foot.
Consequently, there will not be a Safe Haven study tonight. As a result, I will seize the day and take you all the way back to the beginning, to where our study started. Jesus in High Definition, the very first lesson.
In this first lesson, we will provide you with an overview of the entire Bible -- think of it as looking at the box-top of a puzzle -- so that we will understand exactly where the individual "pieces" of the Gospels fall within the grand sweep of the biblical drama.
By harmonizing the four Gospels -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John -- we have been studying the life of Christ in chronological order, from the first utterances of the angels heralding His birth, to His crucifixion and resurrection.
It is our sincere hope and expectation that as we immerse ourselves in Jesus' life and ministry, we will fall more deeply in love with Him, and become more and more like Him.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy this little side trip back in time as we revisit our very first study in our wonderful series, Jesus in HD.
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If you were ever going to hear just one message on the mysterious and majestic practice we call prayer, let this PODCAST be the one.
Finally we come to the crux of the matter regarding this glorious thing we call prayer.
So much is going to become so clear in just the next few minutes: Questions about unanswered prayers. Questions about why God even designed this thing called prayer. Questions about the purpose of prayer. Questions about what we ought to pray for, and what we don’t need to pray for.
Why prayer sometimes doesn’t seem to work. Yet why every time we pray biblically, it ALWAYS works.
So much to talk about. I am so glad you are here to share in this discussion with us.
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HAPPY LISTENING, and may God richly bless you as you listen.
My friends, there is a new day coming! Learn all about it in this week’s PODCAST.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Why?
It is THE question that haunts each and every one of us.
Why?
Why do bad things happen to us? Why doesn’t God answer my prayers? Why did God let this happen? Why doesn’t God just fix this?
In this PODCAST, you WILL discover the answer.
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Thank you for listening. And please “Share” this podcast with your friends.
In this week’s PODCAST, believe it or not, Jesus answers THE question that has haunted church/ministry leaders for years:
Why are they leaving the church in droves?
The answer is so obvious, that it is staring us right in the face. And yet, with all of the blogs and books devoted to answering this question (and IMHO missing the point completely), with the gallons of ink that has been spilled on reams of dead-tree paper, how do we miss such an obvious answer?
Fact is, in His Sermon on the Mount, in His run-up to what we commonly call The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus definitively answers this singularly significant question:
Why are they leaving the church in droves?
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HAPPY LISTENING
And if this podcast is a blessing to you, please share the link to this podcast with your friends.
God bless you as you listen.
In this PODCAST, you will learn one singularly simple concept which, if you take it to heart, will change your life forever.
It is my sense that in contemporary Christian culture in America, we have lost sight of the elegant simplicity spoken of in the New Testament. And consequently, we have lost so much of God’s blessing in the process.
So here’s to simplicity, with the hope that your life overflows with God’s bountiful blessing as we together apply this principle to our lives.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
And PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE “Share” the link to this lesson with all of your friends.
God bless!
I'll just say this: If you were ever going to listen to one Jesus in HD PODCAST, please, please, please listen to this one.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
What a glorious night we had at the Safe Haven.
We included several of our precious children and young people in a Living Nativity, during which I gave five separate snapshots of Christmas.
Think of this PODCAST as five for the price of one. Rather than painting a panoramic portrait, as I try my best to do every week, we instead looked at five different photographs, viewing Christmas from five difference angles.
In short, we isolate five aspects of the Christmas story that you might not have considered before.
I think you will find this podcast to be a blessing.
If you do, PLEASE share the link to this podcast with your friends, with my compliments and my sincere thanks.
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HAPPY LISTENING, and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Coming at just the right time, this PODCAST will, if we take Jesus’ words to heart, transform our lives in ways that we cannot even begin to imagine.
I offer it to you as a gift of love from my heart to yours.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
And if it is a blessing in your life, PLEASE share this podcast with your friends.
In this week’s PODCAST, I am going to take a great big risk and tell you a personal story. A story that I have on rare occasions shared with individuals. But this will be the first time I’ve ever told this story in a public setting.
I tell this story for a number of reasons.
First, of course, because it goes right to the heart of this podcast’s passage. It illustrates precisely the issue to which Jesus was referring here in Matthew 5:33-37, a subject of monumental importance as far as Jesus’ teaching was concerned.
Second, because it gives to you a bit of personal context, a piece of the portrait of my life within which my teaching takes place.
Third, because if the old adage is true -- Like pastor, like people -- or as the OT puts it, “Like people, like priest” (Hosea 4:9), then this explains why there has evolved a pandemic of phoniness in our churches.
Fourth, because this became a defining moment in my life and ministry. It cemented for me an approach to ministry, an approach to life, for which, over the years, I have paid a hefty personal price. And for which I continue to pay a hefty price.
Fifth, because this was one of the most disillusioning experiences of my life, and sent me reeling in terms of my faith. I would not be overstating the case to suggest that it prompted a crisis of faith, not to mention cemented for me what was becoming my perception of the Christian life and church life as a game people play.
Sixth: This story perfectly frames Jesus’ concerns as He addressed them here in His Sermon on the Mount.
We have much to learn together.
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HAPPY LISTENING, and please share the link to this message with others.
The topic of this PODCAST is one of those subjects that touches us all, deeply and profoundly. The ripples of any divorce, every divorce spread their concentric circles far and wide.
Which compels us to take a sober look at exactly what Jesus DID SAY HERE in Matthew 5:31-32, as well as -- and perhaps especially -- what Jesus DID NOT SAY HERE.
Because once again, this is one of those passages which, when lifted out of its context -- both Scriptural and Cultural -- is so often and so tragically made to say something other than what Jesus intended for it to say. Heaping truck loads of unnecessary grief and guilt upon poor precious people who are just trying by God’s grace to rebuild their broken lives.
Trust me! Over the years, having dealt up close and personal with many, many people, I have heard some of the most atrocious applications of this passage. This to the point where emotionally and spiritually fragile individuals, whose lives have just been rocked by their own tragic divorces, now have whatever fragments they have left of their broken lives crushed by well-meaning, but grossly misinformed, Christians errantly and judgmentally spouting this passage. And then in fine Pharisee-esque style, walk away from them, leaving untold wreckage in their wakes.
Not here. Not in this PODCAST. No way!
Jesus doesn’t do that.
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God bless you as you listen.
And PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE share this podcast with your friends.
Well, here we are once again...
Faced with yet another passage (if you can believe it) too often ripped out of its context, twisted into a pretzel, and made to say something other than what Jesus intended it to say.
There is an issue addressed in this passage, and in this PODCAST -- a monumentally important issue -- so important that we must understand what this passage means.
The fact of the matter is that this issue -- what this passage DOES actually mean -- is so absolutely important that Jesus said something in this passage that He never said anywhere else.
Jesus actually said that we must even stop worshipping God and first fix this issue -- whatever this issue is (I’ll tell you in a moment) -- before we can resume our worship.
So the issue, addressed in this passage, must indeed be a vitally important issue, yes? Yes!
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God bless YOU as you listen!
I am SO excited about this PODCAST. Excited because so much is about to become so clear as we look at this together.
If you took the entire Sermon on the Mount, and boiled it all down to one singular soundbite, the over-arching theme, its one takeaway…
It would be Matthew 5:20, “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”
OK. But... What in the world did Jesus mean by that?
We are about to find out. And I promise you this. When we do find out, we will be so incredibly encouraged.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
This is going to be fun, and oh-so-instructive.
This is the kind of a lesson I LOVE to teach.
Did you realize that in Matthew 5:18, Jesus made one of the single most dramatic, declarative statements He would ever make?
In one sweeping sentence that we explained at length last week, Jesus affirmed the Bible -- every book, chapter, verse, word, letter -- as absolute truth.
Through the process of Revelation, whereby God revealed Truth to His writers, and the process of Inspiration, whereby God guided His writers to write down that Truth w/o error, we now hold in our hands a precious book that 2 Timothy 3:16 (CEV) rightly calls “God’s Word.”
Revelation. Inspiration. In this PODCAST, we consider together a matter of Interpretation. How to understand the Bible... properly.
WhatDoesItMean???
Because the sad fact is this: By stringing a few unrelated verses together, people can literally make the Bible say anything they want it to say. Anything! And they do.
We.Do.Not. We have far too much respect for the Bible to play fast and loose with its divinely inspired text.
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HAPPY LISTENING!
The scene could not have been more chaotic. Crowds clamoring for Jesus’ blood. The blood-thirsty mobs hurling their false accusations at Jesus as they tried to convince the Romans that this man needed to die. The Roman soldiers salivating at the prospect of torturing yet another helpless victim.
And through it all, once the mayhem ended, once the maelstrom calmed down, the echoes of one question continued to reverberate against the city’s walls and over her cobblestone streets. You can read this singularly significant question in John’s account of Jesus’ execution.
Pilate, the Roman governor who held Jesus’ fate in his blood-stained hands, looked Jesus right in the eye and inquired of Him a three-word question that, in a haunting sort of way, continues to resound in our day.
Jesus had just said to Pilate, “What I say is true.” Pilate then sneered and cynically asked Jesus, “What is truth?”
In this PODCAST, we will discover the answer together.
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May God richly bless you as you listen.
I’m telling you… If anyone knew how to make someone feel affirmed, feel that they have value, that they have purpose, that they are significant, it was Jesus. This little PODCAST is going to be fun and oh so inspiring!
We began last week’s discussion with these words: “I cannot think of a more beautiful tribute to committed Christ-followers than Jesus’ words here in the Sermon on the Mount: ‘You are the salt of the earth.’”
Ditto for this week, referring to Jesus’ brilliant and blazing affirmation of every single one of us, including YOU: “You are the light of the world.”
I honestly do not know what kind of a day you had today… But no matter what kind of a day it was, when you wrap your mind and heart around these words, “You are the light of the world,” Jesus will absolutely make your day, your week, your month, your life. YOU are the light of the world.
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God bless you, and HAPPY LISTENING!!!
“You are the salt of the earth.” Trust me when I tell you that those 7 simple words were in reality the loftiest compliment, the highest praise, that Jesus could have conferred upon us, His people.
I promise you that you will be both encouraged and challenged as you listen to this week’s Safe Haven PODCAST.
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HAPPY LISTENING, and may God richly bless you as you do.
Is it really true?
That the gateway to God’s blessing in my life opens wide when people say hateful, hurtful, spiteful, or malicious things about me? Or when they treat me in a hateful, hurtful, spiteful, or malicious way? Simply because I desire to live a righteous life, rather than an unrighteous one?
In this PODCAST, you are about to learn how blessedly true that really is.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Get ready to be encouraged. Super-encouraged, truth be known.
I say this because THE THING that everybody wants (and I say “everybody” without any fear of contradiction, without any worry of exaggeration)… THE THING that everybody wants is readily available, and ours for the asking.
It’s just that so many people have no idea what it is they really want. But trust me, we all want this…
You could call it the “Search for the Holy Grail.”
The Holy Grail: defined in two ways by our friends at the Webster Dictionary website:
- In its formal usage: The cup/chalice from which Jesus supposedly drank in the Upper Room during the Last Supper, sought after (some would say) protected throughout the Middle Ages by the Knights Templar.
Which is NOT the Holy Grail to which I refer.
- Informal usage: Something that we all very much want, but that is very hard to receive or to achieve.
Which is indeed the Holy Grail to which I do refer.
However, I would dispute the part about “very hard” to receive or to achieve.
As we are about to discover in this PODCAST, it’s not hard at all to find and to enjoy that Holy Grail -- that which we all so desperately want and need (even if we don’t realize what the “that” is for which we are so desperately searching).
Leave it to Jesus to offer a blessing that includes the word “meek,” the word which the noted Bible scholar William Barclay called “the most untranslatable word in the New Testament.”
Dr. Barclay was right. As you are about to hear in this PODCAST, I know of no other statement made by Jesus that has been so universally mistranslated, misinterpreted, or misapplied.
Except that Jesus did not come up with this...
Believe it or not, Matthew 5:5 is a quote taken verbatim from the Old Testament, specifically the book of Psalms, even more specifically Psalm 37, and even more particularly Psalm 37:11.
Consequently, it is only in the understanding of that singularly significant psalm that we can correctly understand and apply Matthew 5:5, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” to our lives.
Let me assure you that the words of this beatitude were and are revolutionary. We are talking about a world view here, one that is not natural. No one by nature has a single strand of meekness woven into his or her DNA.
And yet, as we will soon see, meekness is essential for you and me to develop if we long to live dynamic, vibrant, victorious Christ-centered lives.
And since this is the only blessing out of the eight beatitudes that Jesus quoted from the OT, in order for us to fully understand, appreciate, and apply this third beatitude to our lives, we must first understand Psalm 37 from which it comes. A truly remarkable psalm! A genuinely heartwarming psalm. A psalm that will confer upon you the totality of the blessing that Jesus pronounced on the masses who gathered on that hillside that day to hear Him.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Jesus pronounced this amazing blessing on His people: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
An amazing blessing to be sure. But is it an empty one? Who of us is actually “pure in heart”? Did not Jeremiah pronounce our hearts “desperately wicked”? Yes, I’m afraid he did.
And who of us can actually see God? Did not God tell Moses that “no one can see Me and live”? Yes, I’m afraid He did.
So what gives with this blessing, and its corresponding promise?
Oh, my friends. As you listen to this PODCAST, you are about to see some things that you have perhaps never seen before.
If it is a blessing to you, PLEASE share it with your loved ones and friends.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Did you know that there are nine different Greek words used in the New Testament to refer to grief, sorrow, sadness, mourning? Nine!
As you are about to discover in this PODCAST, there needs to be a variety of words because sadness is such a large part of our daily lives.
If you think about it, the whole of human history is a solemn story largely written with the ink our tears.
Sorrow, sadness, grief, and mourning are often the threads of which the human tapestry is woven.
Yes, it’s OK to mourn, to feel sorrow, to know sadness, to experience grief. On multiple levels, with multiple levels of intensity. The biblical writers understood this, legitimized this (if I may use that word), so that we need not feel guilty, ashamed, or somehow unspiritual or spiritually inferior when we do.
Sorrow and sadness are legitimate human emotions.
In fact, there are times in each of our lives when it would be inappropriate not to feel sorrowful or sad, or to mourn. Indeed, there is a wealth of insight, a richness to the human experience that can only be realized in the shadows of life. As our Arab friends so often say, “All sunshine makes a desert.”
So it probably will not surprise you to learn that the word translated mourn in Matthew 5:4 — “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” — is the strongest of those nine Greek terms.
Consequently, if you have ever mourned, or are mourning now, you will receive enormous comfort from God Himself as you listen to this podcast. Simply click HERE to listen in.
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HAPPY LISTENING!
It is mentioned 611 times in the Bible; 147 times in the book of Psalms -- the prayers, the heartfelt pleas of God’s people as they (we) reach out to Him.
It is the universal cry of the human heart. Down through the millennia of human history, our most precious literature is replete with references to this elusive quality.
Yet, in our culture, in our day, I hardly ever hear it mentioned anymore. It has indeed become a casualty of a culture in collapse.
In its place, we are witnessing a coarsening of our conversation. Hate-speech fills our airwaves. Violence fills our streets. And an increasing sense of isolation floods our souls.
In this PODCAST, as we continue with our rich and rewarding study of Jesus in High Definition, we will rediscover together this missing facet of a dynamic faith.
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HAPPY LISTENING!
Have you ever sat back in wonder while beholding a masterpiece? In this PODCAST, you are about to do just that.
Not my sermon. No, no, no, no, no. We’re talking here about Jesus’ signature sermon.
A masterpiece: You could call it His pièce de résistance, magnum opus, tour de force. (You pick the synonym.) Jesus’ message on the mountaintop exceeds all of those lofty designations.
A masterpiece: An artistic wonder the sheer power of which compels us to look or listen in amazement while we behold its beauty.
It is no wonder that as Jesus concluded His inspired and inspiring masterpiece, “the crowds were amazed at his teaching” (Matthew 7:28).
They had never heard anything like this before.
And neither have we.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
This week, my dear bride and I are ministering at a place near and dear to our hearts -- Hume Lake Christian Camp. But fear not, my friends. I have not left you in the lurch.
In this Bonus PODCAST, you will hear a message that I spoke at Hume some two years ago, one that contains my favorite and most personally meaningful biblical principle.
Jesus used a metaphor familiar to His original audience -- yet a metaphor not so familiar to us -- to convey one singularly significant thought. What His listeners heard Him say that day -- and what you will hear Him say to you today, especially after understanding this most meaningful metaphor -- is this: “I will take care of you NO MATTER WHAT!”
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
...And all I can say is, “Oh my...”
We are going to connect several dots in this PODCAST. So much about to come into focus. AND we will complete a major segment of life and ministry of Jesus. In the coming weeks, you will notice a dramatic change in the tone and themes of this Jesus in HD series.
But for now, light bulbs are about to come on in your head as we place a rather remarkable and compelling story under the spotlight. And you might even experience a tremendous sense of healing, relief, and release as you watch Jesus in action.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Are you ready to have a life-changing discussion? And believe me, I don’t use that term “life-changing” lightly. There is nothing clichéd about that.
In this PODCAST, you are about to be introduced to a concept which, if we will fully embrace it, will change our lives AND revolutionize our relationship with God in ways that we cannot as of yet even imagine.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
They were ready to kill Him on the spot. They had the motive -- Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath. They had the means -- an inexhaustible supply of rocks. They had the opportunity -- Jesus stood before them, a sitting duck for their carefully aimed stones.
In this PODCAST, you will hear Jesus on trial for His life. And in defending His life, He will call a full complement of five witnesses to testify on His behalf. A quintet of compelling witness who will leave no doubt that Jesus is exactly who He claimed to be -- God Incarnate, God in the flesh.
Your faith will be bolstered, your spiritual life strengthened enormously as you listen to Jesus on Trial.
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HAPPY LISTENING!
It is indeed the singularly significant question that every single one of us must answer at some point in our lives.
Not only that, but we must answer this one question correctly.
In this PODCAST, you will hear the question asked, listen as the question is answered, and understand why the answer to this question is absolutely true.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
It begins...
Those two words sound sort of ominous, don’t they? And well they should.
I won’t give anything away here. No spoiler alerts necessary. Except to say that I have a feeling that in this PODCAST, you are about to meet a soulmate. Someone who “gets it,” someone who understands what you’re going through, what it’s like, how it feels...
And someone who can offer you truck-loads of comfort, compassion, encouragement, and understanding.
This message is for YOU.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
I woke up this morning with these words ringing in my ears, “We must never forget.”
Our salvation was paid for with Jesus’ blood. That we will never forget. But there is a whole heavenly host of precious committed Christ-followers who have gone on before us, without whose testimony we would never have heard about Jesus’ shed blood. They shed their blood too. And that, we must never forget.
So in that sense, our salvation was paid for first and foremost by Jesus’ shed blood. But by the shed blood of countless saints who are in Heaven today -- men, women, and children who shed their blood rather than renounce their faith; men, women, and children who passed their spiritual legacy onto us.
Of them it must be said, “We must never forget.”
You are about to hear a bonus PODCAST, a message that I gave two summers ago at a very special place, a place near and dear to my heart: Hartland Christian Camp. The audience consisted of the most wonderful high school campers you’d ever want to meet.
The theme of the evening? “We Must Never Forget.”
They must never forget. We must never forget as well.
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THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!
I’ve got some great news for you. The best news, really. Courtesy of Jesus, and the 3 Gospel writers -- Matt, Mark, Luke -- who recorded these precious, life-giving, spirit-refreshing words.
In this PODCAST, we are about to consider together one of the most exciting sayings of Jesus in the entire Bible.
Quite a claim, I understand. But I am confident that in the next few minutes, you will see that this passage here in Mark will indeed live up to its advance billing.
Trust me. If you have ever felt spiritually burdened, weighed down by your inability ever to be good enough to be loved by God, or to enjoy His pleasure, this is for you.
May you find great refreshment for your some-times-troubled soul.
I sure did.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
Here, in this PODCAST, is some much-needed hope for every brokenhearted mom. Not to mention every brokenhearted dad.
This hope comes courtesy of a man named Levi, though you’d never know it by reading his account of Jesus’ life and ministry.
While there is scant little detail in the Bible regarding this remarkable man (Levi is mentioned by name a grand total of only 5 times), scratch beneath the surface and we could write a book about him.
Levi deserves our focused attention, and we will be all the richer for having had this discussion.
A polarizing figure, Levi was. They either loved him or hated him. Or to put an even finer point to that: The religious hated him; Jesus loved him.
And in loving him as Jesus did, Levi becomes a living, breathing canvas on which the heart of Jesus is painted in vivid colors and bold relief.
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HAPPY LISTENING!
The time bomb starts ticking. A time bomb that will one day detonate, the concussion of which will reach around the world and throughout human history. An explosion that will result in Jesus’ execution.
It all starts here in this story that you are about to hear.
There is so much going on here that I cannot possibly even begin to tell you about it with these written words. You’ll just have to listen to this PODCAST to take it all in.
Believe me, it is quite stunning.
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HAPPY LISTENING.
Time for us to have a vitally important conversation. A discussion about a topic that touches each of our lives in a profoundly personal way.
Tonight, courtesy of a leper, of all people, we are going to develop a theology of sickness and disease.
Don’t let that word, “theology,” throw you. It’s a compound word, theology is. Theos is the Greek word for God; logos is the Greek term for word. “Theology” refers to words about God. So in this PODCAST, we will have a discussion about sickness and disease, one that includes God. Because trust me, God very much wants to be included in this discussion. And God needs to be included in this discussion.
We’ll look together at exactly what happened. Then we’ll make some observations about what happened. And finally, we’ll draw some very important and practical conclusions about how this story impacts our lives, especially when we are sick.
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HAPPY LISTENING!!!
It's a wonderful little chorus, the wonder of which is found in its repetition: "I have decided to follow Jesus. I have decided to follow Jesus. I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back. No turning back."
In this PODCAST, you will hear about the day that Peter first sang that song.
And even though this happened to Peter a-way back then, his story has so much to say to us today regarding our stories.
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Does the word, “boundaries,” mean anything to you? As in establishing boundaries, and not feeling guilty about that? If not, it will in just a few brief minutes.
How about the word, “No”? As in saying “No” to someone, and NOT feeling guilty about that?
How about purposefully leaving some things undone, leaving some needs unmet, just because you need a break, and not feeling guilty about that?
My goal in this PODCAST is pretty simple and straightforward: To absolve you of guilt. To lift off of your sagging shoulders a weight that far too many of us having been carrying for far too long.
You are about to get a glimpse of Jesus -- under enormous strain and a crushing pressure -- that might just surprise you.
And when you do, it will be life-changing.
Please note that depending upon your web browser, it might take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play. HAPPY LISTENING!
Today was a day that I will NEVER forget.
Nor will our son, Dave. Nor will our family.
My son was ordained to the ministry today, in an age-old tradition that dates all the way back to the first days of the Early Church.
We read in Acts 13, "(The church leaders) placed their hands on Barnabas and Saul to show that they had been appointed (by God) to do this work."
Today, church leaders placed their hands on my son.
I was given the unspeakable privilege of giving to Dave what is commonly called "the charge," or challenge. A term taken from such Scriptures as 1 Timothy 1:16, "This charge I commit to you, son Timothy..."
I offer it here to you because a charge to an ordination candidate is equally a charge to the church he serves, as well as to the Church as a whole.
I hope that you will find it inspiring and edifying to your life and your faith.
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Welcome to the world of spiritual warfare. A world in which you and I live and -- frankly -- battle each and every day.
This one incident in the life and ministry of Jesus raises for us all sorts of practical spiritual questions, questions that we need to answer. Questions that we will answer in this PODCAST.
Fair to say that Satan would prefer to remain in the shadows and work behind the scenes, rather than to be brought front and center like we are doing in this study.
He does not want to be exposed. He does not want to be understood. Out of sight, out of mind.
So if I may be blunt and to the point: Satan does not want you to hear this podcast. Which makes me all the more thankful that you are listening in.
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REJECTION. I can hardly bring myself to say the word sometimes.
REJECTION: A word loaded with searing memories, deep scars, and jaded emotions.
REJECTION: Is there anything more painful? Is there anything more devastating than loving someone who who spurns your love?
May I get personal with you for a moment? May I have your permission to ask, Have you ever felt the betrayal of rejection? Have you ever loved someone or someones, only to have him/her/they walk out of your life, perhaps forever? Have you ever loved, only to have your love spurned? Loved with what the poet might call an unrequited love?
Trust me: You are not alone. As you will be reminded in this PODCAST.
Welcome to a day in the life of Jesus. No Saturday in recorded history ever began so wondrously. And no Saturday in history ever ended so tragically.
And no Saturday in recorded history has ever had so much to say to so many of us, including you. And even including others about whom who care so much.
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May these simple words, offered in humility, be a continual blessing in your life.
WWJD? That is the question we are attempting to tackle in this PODCAST. If I was tweeting this on my Twitter account, I would use #MindBlowing. Yes, what Jesus did was THAT remarkable.
Each week, I follow a predictable pattern when I teach. If you have listened to any of these podcasts, you will readily recognize this pattern. Basically, I read the passage, explain the passage, and apply the passage.
This week will be one notable exception.
I will indeed read the passage. I will then attempt to explain the passage in as clear and compelling and captivating a way as possible. But as for an application of the passage, I will leave that to you. Because, truth be told, I’m really not sure how to apply the passage.
This is one of those times where I am left with more questions than answers. Important questions to be sure. Questions which, in today’s Evangelical climate, we must consider and must answer.
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The cards were unfairly stacked against her. By anyone’s definition, she was a total loser. This woman was by anyone’s standard the quintessential poster-child of the societal outcast.
She lived on the fringes, neglected, or even worse, forgotten by everyone.
Forgotten by everyone, that is, but Jesus.
This one encounter, between Jesus and this notorious woman, changed her life forever.
It might just change yours.
You can hear all about it by clicking HERE.
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It’s THE question that I get asked more often than any other. And believe me, I get asked all sorts of questions. But in one form or another, I so often get asked some incarnation of the question, Why do you believe that the Bible is true?
A perfectly fair question, if you think about it. I mean, the Bible is an ancient book, written from a place and about a place far, far away, and written so long, long ago. It is filled with funny sounding names. Weird stuff (at least what appears weird to us) takes place within its pages. And yet, we are asked to live our lives and to gamble our eternities on the teachings of its ancient texts.
So comes the question: Why do you believe that the Bible is true?
Ironically, I always find it tremendously challenging to answer that question. NOT because of too little information, but because of TMI -- too much information. It’s like, Where do I begin? It’s like when you walk into a banquet room and walk up to a beautiful, bountiful table overflowing with rich and widely different delicacies, each of which is designed to make your mouth water. Where do you begin? That is my challenge whenever I am asked the question: Why do you believe that the Bible is true?
Consider this latest PODCAST -- our latest in our Jesus in HD series -- my humble attempt to answer that question. Just please keep in mind that it is only a small part of a much bigger answer. Yet, a compelling and convincing answer, it is. So compelling and convincing that maybe, just maybe you won't ever have to doubt the Bible again.
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Have an Android Mobile Device? Get the Safe Haven Android App by clicking HERE!
It’s called the most beloved verse in all the Bible, no pun intended as it is a verse about God’s love.
It’s called the Gospel message in miniature.
It’s the most memorized verse in the Bible, and usually the very 1st verse most of us memorized.
John 3:16 is all of that, and so much more.
But note this: John 3:16 did not come out of a vacuum. It came out of a singularly important conversation that Jesus had with a singularly important individual -- the man named Nicodemus.
Nicodemus: a man we need to meet up close and personal. Nicodemus: a man from whom we will learn some startling lessons.
In a very real sense, in this PODCAST we will expose a hidden family secret, one that affects every single church represented by you, my precious listeners.
So sit back, open your heart, and spend a few minutes with us as we meet the man who came to Jesus at night.
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It wasn't a pretty picture, the day that Jesus visited the Temple -- His first official trip after the beginning of His ministry to that holiest of all holy places.
But holiness is not what He found there. Not by a long shot.
Can I say this reverently? Jesus lost it. He lost it BIG TIME. You can hear all about it by clicking HERE.
So here are the 3 questions that we must answer in light of the goings-on high atop the Temple Mount on that unforgettable day:
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What in the world was going on there that caused Jesus basically to go ballistic?
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Was Jesus’ reaction to whatever was going on appropriate? Inappropriate? And why?
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What could this possibly have to do with our lives today? (More than you could possibly imagine!)
You’ll discover the answer to all three in this podcast.
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Welcome to a Jewish Wedding!
Not just any Jewish wedding. But THE Jewish wedding! The Jewish wedding where Jesus -- for the VERY. FIRST. TIME. -- chooses to reveal Himself as to the person He truly is: Almighty God in a fully human body. What we call the Incarnation. Deity who took on humanity.
Now that is quite a statement. But it is an accurate statement. You can hear all about it by clicking HERE.
Which taunts us with this intriguing question: Why in the world did Jesus choose that time, in that place, to do that?
Why there? Why then?
The answer will amaze you. Because the answer includes you. Yes, you.
Trust me: You are in for a treat!
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Welcome to our presentation of a Passover Seder, a celebration observed by-our-many Jewish friends, a festival that has been taking place every year for more than 3000 years.
They have done so ever since that defining moment in the book of Exodus when God commanded His chosen people to commemorate their miraculous deliverance from their 400 years of bondage in Egypt.
Tonight we are going to connect so many of the dots that we have talked about these many weeks that we have been together, studying together Jesus in HD.
As we noted several weeks ago, Jesus celebrated this holy day every year of His life. And even during this past week, millions of Jewish people the world over gathered in their homes, with their families and friends, to celebrate this festival of Passover.
In this podcast, we are about to discover in a way that you will never forget that God wove into the very fabric of the ancient Passover story a far larger and greater story of redemption that encompasses every one of our Jewish friends, as well as the entire world, including you and me.
As we do, please keep in mind the overriding significance of Passover as beautifully summed up by Morris Joseph in his book, Judaism as Creed and Life: “Passover has a message for the conscience and heart of all mankind... It is Israel’s, nay God’s, protest against unrighteousness. Wrong, it declares, may triumph for a time. But even though it be perpetrated by the strong against the weak, it will meet with its inevitable retribution at last.”
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OK, be honest. Does your faith ever falter?
Would it help if I admitted that at times, mine has?
The good news, the GREAT news, is that if or when our faith falters, we are not alone. You can hear all about this by clicking HERE.
In this podcast, you will meet three remarkable individuals, two of whom battled with their own faltering faith.
But here’s the thing: While their faith in Jesus may have at times faltered, Jesus’ faith in them NEVER faltered. And that’s the key. Even when our own faith falters, Jesus’ faith in us will NEVER falter.
Now THAT’S something worth celebrating.
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“I’m not good enough.”
Ever hear those words echoing in your mind? I do. More often than you might think. Certainly more often than I would like to admit.
I can tell you from personal experience that those four words are paralyzing. Paralyzing to our Christian walks. Paralyzing to our service to Christ. Paralyzing to our ministry to others. Paralyzing to any expression of joy in our lives.
“I’m not good enough.”
The devil delights in calling to our minds our past failures. He preys on our personal weaknesses. He is THE master at making us feel insecure or inadequate.
Well, we need not feel insecure nor inadequate any longer. Meet Andrew and Peter, blood brothers and the very first disciples of Jesus. As we consider their backstories -- and quite compelling, they are -- you will realize why the words, “I’m not good enough,” NEVER have to vex you again.
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Welcome to Junior High/Middle School Camp!
I am in Atlanta for training to become a Walk Thru the Bible instructor. So while I am away from my beloved Safe Haven family, I offer to you this bonus podcast, recorded last summer at Hartland Christian Camp.
My goal in this message was to paint a portrait for these precious students of just how much God loves them... AND YOU!
To do so, I chose one of the most beloved of all of the parables that Jesus taught. Care to make a guess?
I will dare to make this bold prediction: If you listen in to this podcast, you will come away with a whole new and fresh appreciation for what it truly means to be loved unconditionally.
To be loved by a God who does not love you if... Or love you when... Or love you because... You will hear what it means to be loved by your God who loves you, period. No qualifications. No caveats. No conditions. He just loves you!
Which is exactly what it means to be loved unconditionally.
As you can probably tell, I am THRILLED that you are joining us for this podcast discussion.
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If He had been a president, they would have called it Jesus’ Inauguration Day. If He was an earthly king, His Coronation Day. If Jesus was a student, it would be remembered as His Graduation Day or Commencement. Commencement: as in the beginning of something strategically significant.
It was all of that, and so much more. One day in the life of Jesus. But oh, what a day. A day after which nothing would ever be the same again.
Come share the moment with us as we vicariously participate in this singularly significant day through the eyes of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
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It was epic in the extreme. I have no doubt that nature held its breath. Every angel in Heaven craned their necks to get a better view. Every demon cheered their hero on, hoping against hope that finally Jesus would be destroyed, once and for all, even before His earthly ministry began.
How did the devil do it? How could he possibly think that he could win? What strategy did he employ in his efforts to topple the King of kings from His throne?
Would it surprise you to learn that he employs the exact same strategy today, against us? He does. Like a prowling lion, the Apostle Peter wrote, the devil is determined to defeat us.
In this podcast, you will learn how he attempts it, how he sometimes succeeds, and God’s antidote against it.
Though I originally gave this message to my beloved flock at The Safe Haven, my throat was so sore and my voice so scratchy that what you are actually going to hear is virtually the same message as given to the precious high school students this Winter at Hartland Christian Camp.
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This is a bonus podcast.
Normally, each week I upload the latest in our Jesus in High Definition podcast series. But this past weekend, I took a break from my beloved little flock at The Safe Haven, where the Jesus in HD podcast is recorded, in order to speak at a High School Winter Camp in CA. Hartland Christian Camp, to be exact. One of my all-time absolute favorite places on this planet.
So in place of a Jesus in HD podcast, I reached back into the archives to a message I gave last summer at a Junior High Summer Camp. A brief word of explanation as to what you will hear...
I usually begin a camp on the opening night by handing out to each student a 3x5 card. I then invite them to write down the one question that they would ask God if given the chance. You might be amazed at the questions they would ask. As you will hear in this podcast, I closed my eyes and randomly selected three of the two hundred or so questions that I received. Those three questions were, sadly, typical of most of the questions that those precious students would ask of God. The three questions were these:
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Can I get my dog back?
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Why weren’t You there for me?
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Why are You so mean?
So this message that I gave on the Monday evening of that week-long camp is my attempt to answer those questions.
What would you say to a group of junior higher/middle school students who are basically asking God, Why is my life so painful? Or, to put it another way, If You are so loving, and if You are so powerful, why do You make me hurt so bad?
This is my best attempt at the answer.
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You know what amazes me about the Bible?
Well, lots of things amaze me about the Bible. But this may well be the top of my list: “It is today as it was then.”
“It is today as it was then.”
I never cease to be amazed at how little has changed in the intervening 2000 years since the Bible was completed.
Human nature is as human nature does, and human nature hasn’t changed all that much.
Which is why I’ve never bought into the argument that the Bible is an outdated, irrelevant book that has nothing to say to us today. Fact is, the Bible has a ton to say to us today.
Case in point: Last week, we looked at the landscape of the Israel of Jesus’ day from a physical/geographical point of view. We discovered then that we have many lessons to learn today from the desert. The wilderness.
In this week’s podcast, we will focus the landscape of the Israel of Jesus’ day from a spiritual point of view.
Here’s what’s so amazing to me: The Jewish landscape in first century Israel was strikingly, and I might add alarmingly, similar to the Christian landscape in our country in our day.
It is indeed today as it was then.
If you’ve ever wondered why Christians say the things they say, do the things they do, and act the way they act, then this podcast is for you.
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The lovely little land of Israel. There is on this planet nothing that rivals Israel for its beauty, mystery, and meaning.
Think of Israel as the “stage” on which the biblical drama is lived. We cannot begin to understand that drama until we know something of that stage.
That’s what this podcast is all about.
We are about to turn a corner in our study of Jesus in HD, and discover in some detail the wonder of Jesus’ adult life, ministry, teaching, and miracles. Consequently, this brief overview of the Land is coming at just the right time!
You will be amazed at how familiar stories in the Gospels will now move from two dimensions into a full 3D. And how this knowledge of the Land will put your life experience -- right now, right here, in real time -- into its proper perspective. My thanks to Dr. James Fleming of Biblical Resources for his many insights that contributed to this podcast.
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Be honest with me now... Have you, or anyone you know, ever been besieged by doubts? Have you ever silently wondered to yourself something like this: Is this Christian thing for real? Can I really truly trust the Bible? Is Jesus the real deal?
If so, I have good news for you. You are not alone.
Wait until you see who went through his own crisis of faith. You may be in for a huge and shocking surprise.
AND you may be especially surprised at what Jesus thought of him.
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...is another man’s treasure.
Or should I say, One man’s trash is Almighty God’s Treasure?
Or is it both?
You’ve certainly heard of him: Mark, the author of the 2nd Gospel commonly referred to as The Gospel According to Mark.
Would you believe me if I told you that Mark’s personal story goes right to the heart of the heart of God? That Mark’s story reveals to us the one attribute of God’s character that I, for one, find to be utterly irresistible?
Let me further clue you in on this: Mark’s story graphically illustrates the absolute best and worst in a certain individual, the identity of whom will definitely surprise you.
Indeed, through Mark’s story we will witness the growth of one individual and the redemption of another.
And for good measure, Mark’ story addresses an issue that for many, many Christians often causes a crisis of personal faith. One that we’ll address in this podcast.
So needless to say, there is a lot going on here, all wrapped up in a nice but not-so-neat package known to us simply as Mark.
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Thirty years in about 30 minutes or so. That was the goal. We didn’t quite hit it. But we did cover thirty years in about 45 minutes.
Which is to say, we know very, very little about Jesus’ childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. All of which spans a grand total of thirty years.
Which makes what we do know that much more significant.
There are basically two, and only two, incidents in the first thirty years of Jesus’ life that are highlighted by the Gospel writers -- 1 by Matthew, 1 by Luke.
One dreadfully frightful, the other in some ways comical, heart-warming, and yet sobering.
One of which we looked at last week -- Joseph, Mary, and Jesus fleeing to Egypt in the wake of Herod’s Holocaust -- that from Matthew.
This week we’ll look at the second incident -- this one no less significant.
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Mothers, think back to what it was like when you gave birth to your firstborn child – the fears, the insecurities, the feelings of inadequacy.
Now imagine that when you did give birth, it was not in the clinical cleanliness of a hospital room or birthing center.
Imagine you were in a cave, dark and alone, unsanitary to the extreme, no nurse, doctor, or midwife to help you, and you are all of 13 or 15 years old, in what was essentially a foreign country, away from your family, with only your fiancé to help you.
Add to all of that the political climate of the world Mary was living in – a world of crushing oppression fueled by a brutal and barbaric military occupation.
Furthermore, if we discover nothing else from the birth narratives in both Matthew and Luke, we at least learn this: There are some people in this world who are without a doubt the very incarnation of evil.
Such was the power of Rome, and so was the person of Herod.
From this point on in all four Gospels, every miracle that Jesus performs, every lesson that Jesus teaches, every person whom Jesus meets, every action that Jesus completes will all be done under the watchful and wary eyes of Rome, the imperial power to whom Herod had sold his soul.
With that in mind, can we even begin to imagine the world into which Mary gave birth to her son?
You will learn so much more about that world as you listen to this podcast.
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Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:34-35).
The virgin birth. A dual miracle. An unprecedented, never-seen-before-or-since, one-time, life-altering, history-changing event.
How did it happen?
What kind of a man would this virgin born baby boy grow up to be?
What does the Virgin Birth means to your life and mine.
Discover the answers to these questions, and so many more...
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“That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified” (Luke 2:8-9).
Do you see what is so singularly significant about that statement?
You will after you hear this podcast. Trust me, you may never hear nor read the Christmas story in quite the same way again.
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How much thought do you put into the gifts that you give at Christmas?
I have no doubt that the Wise Men put a considerable amount of thought into theirs.
The three gifts that these mysterious visitors from the East presented to Jesus -- Gold, Frankincense, Myrrh -- tell a remarkably riveting story. Indeed, the single most compelling story that has ever been told.
That story, so beautifully symbolized and so clearly communicated, in a curious combination of three unusual-yet-fascinating gifts.
Spoiler Alert: After hearing this message, you may never look upon a manger scene the same way again.
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His eyes blazed with the fire of conviction. His voice thundered as he peered out from behind his uncut hair and unkempt beard. He wore a camel’s-hair garment bound with a leather belt. He ate a strangely strict diet of honey and grasshoppers, of all things.
Yet when he spoke, the people trembled. Why?
Who was this strange specter that haunted the barren sands of the Judean desert? Where did he come from?
What was it about him that caused Jesus to pay him the highest of all possible compliments -- “Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptizer” (Matthew 11:11)?
You are about to meet one of the most remarkable people ever to walk across the biblical stage in this epic drama we call “Jesus in HD.”
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“Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers” (Matthew 1:2). This seemingly boring and benign statement shockingly reveals in stunning detail the sizable heart of Jesus, and what should be the heart of every one of His followers -- including you and me.
How can that be true? Over the years, I have discovered -- much to my delight -- that many of the Bible’s most stunning insights, some of its most tantalizingly life-transforming truths can be found in the most unlikely of places.
Case in point: Jesus’ genealogy. There are buried within its laundry list of strange-sounding names jewels to be harvested, gems to excavate, rare and precious stones to uncover.
In just about 45 minutes or so, you might just discover -- to your own delight -- that your view of God will never be the same. AND for no extra charge, you'll also discover God's view of you. (Here's a hint: It's pretty cool!) All of this -- if you can believe it -- from Jesus' genealogy.
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“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).
Believe it or not, those 17 simple words comprise one of the landmark, foundational verses upon which our faith, and therefore our lives, rests. Yet, when I read them aloud, there are no bugles blaring, no angelic choirs singing, no lightning flashing, nor thunder pealing. My reading of these words never elicits from anyone any audible ooohs or aaahs.
Maybe, just maybe that’s because on the surface at least, these 17 words sound for foreign, so unlike the way we talk, so hard to relate to. "In the beginning was the Word"? As someone said to me just recently, "My mind has always just sort of glazed over that verse." I can see why.
That being said, it would be impossible for me -- impossible for me -- to overstate the importance of this opening verse that introduces to us the Gospel According to John.
Listen to this podcast, and you will quickly understand why.
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While on its surface, Luke 1:1-4 may not seem like a remarkable introduction to this "greatest story ever told," I can assure you that Luke's little lead-in contains several nuggets of pure gold. You are in for some surprises as we formally kick-off our chronological study of the life of Jesus.
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Welcome to this introductory lesson that launches this brand new series: Jesus in High Definition. By harmonizing the four Gospels -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John -- we will study the life of Christ in chronological order, from the first utterances of the angels heralding His birth, to His crucifixion and resurrection. It is our sincere hope and expectation that as we immerse ourselves in Jesus' life and ministry, we will fall more deeply in love with Him, and become more and more like Him.
In this first lesson, we will provide you with an overview of the entire Bible -- think of it as looking at the boxtop of a puzzle -- so that we will understand exactly where the individual "pieces" of the Gospels fall within the grand sweep of the biblical drama.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy our study of Jesus in HD.
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