Painful Truth Saves Podcast: Recent Episodes
Kohl
I am a simple man past my mid twenties who wants to help change the world for the better. Life has both been difficult and easy, I have a complicated past. I live in Minnesota and wish to share some of my experiences with you. There will be times where some content might seem controversial, but the Bible is often described that regardless.
Grace, mercy, kindness, and gentleness aren't always synonymous to "nice". English words often have deeper meaning, especially since the Bible covers complex depth when it comes to how we treat people. This episode is meant to show that being overly nice can be detrimental to someone's growth (and can be in fact a sin because you are refusing to tell the whole truth). Sure, I have been guilty of hiding the truth too, nobody is free from sin. My point is that we have to be able to admonish without sounding like Bible-bashing bigots.
Sanctification is a long process, it should take you your entire life to mature and grow in relationship with God. Nobody said it would be an instant learning process. This brief episode talks about the sin nature still living in us even after we have died to it through Christ. How is this possible? Well, this episode aims to answer that...haha!
This is just a thought that came across my mind, there are Biblical ties to back it. I have to be clear I do not actually know for certain about the idea, but am just using the resource I have: God's word and logic. It's a quick listen and food for thought. I like being curious about God's word and studying it.
I wanted to pour out my fascination with the intricate details observed by scientists to redirect my praise to God who made our universe so beautiful. Evolution cannot explain the purpose of beauty found in nature. How marvelous are the big things and small in our reality! Praise and adoration belong to Him.
Depression can be rather difficult to overcome, especially when you've become apathetic and full of despair. See, depression by itself isn't really an issue because many people in the Bible show signs of depression. When it becomes all we think about is the point where it truly becomes all-consuming. This is a difficult statement, but this type of depression is true selfishness in the sense that all you think about is your problems, hardly truly thoughts of other people. The Devil is very crafty when he puts those evil thoughts in your head that you are a burden to everyone, don't listen to those lies. Some people want to be burdened because that is who they are, helpers. God will give you grace if you are going through a difficult season if you ask for it. Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it.
Analogy, parable, story, they all help make complex things easier to understand. When it comes to God's thoughts, how much more complex can it get? Jesus had an excellent way of using analogy in His parables when speaking to the disciples. These small stories helped grasp details, however, not everything was clear to everyone. There were a lot of times where Jesus had to use plain language to help people understand what He meant. Sometimes Christians today avoid using analogy, and I'm not really sure why. I think using a relatable way to get someone to understand a difficult concept can be incredibly helpful. I am showing you Biblical proof that it is a good thing to talk about...well...good things! Use analogies that tie to a Biblical concept when other words fail you, but also be sure to make the message the same in order not to add further confusion.
We have to be very careful with what we say as Christians. We can completely mislead people down the wrong path if we choose to be belligerent. Nobody really likes a Bible basher, this is not how we are supposed to "minister". All things that we say and do must be done with grace, kindness, love, and mercy. This also does not mean that you have to be "sheepish", you can be firm in what you say along with holding those virtues. This type of speaking requires a lot of patience and help from the Almighty.
I am far from perfect and don't try to sound like I am a "know-it-all". There are a lot of things I don't understand fully, so I'd thought it would be good to explain that I am just trying to fulfill God's great purpose. I guarantee I'll make mistakes, but God has enough grace for us all. I really only need to do this once. Thank you for understanding.
Forgiveness is required for those coming to faith and those in faith. The Bible does say "How can God forgive you if you are not willing to forgive yourself?" There is a bit of nuance to the issue that many don't realize right away. Forgiveness doesn't really mean that your pain will disappear or that you forget what they've done. I can speak from personal experience that forgiveness has "lessened" the pain to the point where I hardly think of those things and even have compassion for those who have wronged me. This episode covers some of the detail left out.
How can we know the Bible is accurate if there are so many English translations? I have heard this question asked many times and find that there is a legitimate question there. I personally trust what the Bible says because it is consistent in the versions that I trust. There are versions that seem to go well beyond the original intent of Scripture and some versions that simply re-word things so that some might understand the message better. Also, why is there so much division in the Christian faith? How can anyone trust the faith if many are divided about it? The unfortunate fact is that people often argue about things that don't matter in the long run and end up dividing. Our own imperfection makes it possible to have conflicting views about what the word says. I am one to believe in the word regardless of division and translation because there are things greater than "tradition" and "preference".
We have to admit that there are many questions that can't be answered by the Bible alone, the Bible does not cover every possible subject known to mankind. However, it doesn't mean that the Bible is not accurate and is going after the narrative of what God did, what He is doing, teaching, love, hope, and everything God cares about. The Bible does have the answers to what truly matters in this life. This is a deep dive episode that covers the idea that some of our greatest questions will not be answered until we die. There is a lot of mystery left in the Bible, which I think is done on purpose.
The Bible often has extremely applicable wisdom from thousands of years ago and sometimes has descriptions that seem eerily similar to things stated in the New Testament hundreds if not thousands of years later. You will learn of some of the so called "coincidences" in the Old Testament that give a similar if not perfect description of events that did not come for a long time. There are even hints of the End Times described in Revelations in the book of Daniel. The truth is, nothing is truly a coincidence when it comes to God. God seems to like to use seemingly small events to fulfill His greater plan. I highly encourage you to read the Old Testament on your own sometime, there is actually a lot of interesting stuff. The rules and regulations are a bit tedious and lengthy, but then there is prophecy and stories abundant that make modern connection. I'm marking this Episode as "explicit" because I mention blood, I don't ever swear.
Jesus commands that we are to be perfect because His Father is perfect, but is this really possible? Realistically, many use the word too often and perfection is not obtainable. In the world we live in, there isn't anything that is perfect besides what God is capable of. However, there is another side to this commandment: Jesus only commands this knowing the future. We cannot obtain holiness on our own (being perfect), this is impossible. With God, all things are possible though. The key phrase is "with God", we need His help. We can only be seen as perfect when we ask for Jesus' help in our repentance.
Jesus teaches his disciples to go above and beyond loving their neighbors by loving their enemies. We should try to learn this ourselves because it can actually help learn some humility. Animals are not capable of the many horrifying acts of cruelty we do. We can be capable of having so much jealousy we kill people, hating until we murder, commit crimes of passion in lust, become lost in our own consciousness, dream of extreme torture methods, the list can go on and on. Once we realize we are part of the same human race that does extreme evil, it gives us the ability to look inward to see how broken we are. This is a difficult reality, but God does desire that everyone knows Him. This includes people we think may not deserve it. God's gift is free to those who are willing to accept it and turn from their evil ways.
Christians cannot tolerate sin, God hates sin and instructs us to hate it as well. This does not mean that we hate the people that do these things. This episode talks about what tolerance actually means because it is thrown around too flippantly online. I also cover the idea that we should not attack people for what they believe because it simply is not a good strategy. Nobody will listen to us if we seem like we hate non-believers for what they do. We all have to be willing to listen to people's stories first and try to relate the best we can. Everything Christians say must be done with grace, kindness, patience, and mercy. This does not always mean it will sound "nice" though. There is a lot of nuance we all have to learn.
Pain, suffering, and evil are not easy to deal with. The Bible never states that our lives would be free from it, in fact, it states that we will endure it while alive. The podcast episode talks about some experiences of pain and gives context to a greater purpose. It is never "easy" to change your mindset about difficult topics. Some people suffer when they are very close to God, this is especially difficult to understand. God often allows pain and suffering to expand His glorious purpose. What we should aim to understand is that our lives are not permanent on this world. There will be a day where all people must bow down to Jesus in the end. For those who have passed, there is extreme hope they are in Heaven waiting for judgement day. We need to learn to have an eternal perspective of life.
This episode, I talk about the benefits of starting a prayer journal. Writing out my prayers has been a wonderful practice that I try to do every day (give or take missing days). Not only do I grow closer to God, but it gives me a way to talk about what I'm feeling in the moment. The Bible does say to pray continuously, so this is what I do instead. I find it easier to express thoughts in writing rather than speaking. There are times where I pray for other people, pray for specific events in my life, pray for my enemies, pray about the persecution people face, along with anything that comes to mind. Prayer does not have to be fancy, you can be respectful and casual with God.
Testimonies, for those that don't know, are personal stories of how someone accepts Christ into their lives and eventually tells how their perspective turns around. I have been through some tough situations as a developing adult in my younger days. I definitely had more of a "trouble in paradise" situation where my parents were Christian but often fought. Half of the story talks about the pain I've been through and half talks about the good things that have happened because I finally realized I was worthwhile. I also realized I was not following Jesus nearly as well as I had thought from the time I accepted Him at 10. May this touch your life and provide perspective, share this if it helps you.
I wanted to start with something interesting: Miracles. In this episode, I talk about what miracles I have seen in my life as a witness that they still happen. I also explain that "insignificant coincidences" may end up being answers to prayer. I do know that God sometimes answers prayers in very odd ways. He can use other people, he can cause circumstances to line up perfectly, he can say no, he can say yes, he can delay it to a point in time you won't be aware of until you remember you had asked for it. The hardest part is accepting your own miracles, there are so many you don't see.