Scripture Talk by Grace Church: Recent Episodes
Grace Church, Palestine, Texas
Every week, Pastor Trey, Scott, and maybe a guest or two break down the scripture of the week and take audience questions.
In this, the last episode of at least this form of Scripture Talk, it's all about Christian community. Western Christianity makes a big deal about our personal salvation. Certainly, we need to form a deep, personal, and saving relationship with Christ, but that is meant as a point of embarkation - not arrival. Our relationship with Christ is meant to draw us closer to God and God's people. For the final time, Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy look deeply into Godly community and this thing we call church.
Revelation is not just weird creatures with even weirder numbers of eye balls, death, destruction, and eventual victory. It opens with a section that's a lot more like Paul's letters with God passing messages, through John, to various churches. In these brief letters, there's both encouragement for what they're doing well and challenge on where they still need to grow. It's God talking in a mode that we all should know well. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy recognize that we can all see ourselves in these same journeys and need to hear the challenge alongside the praise,
So much of the Gospels feel like a fantasy land to us. We know that they tell of true events, but their ability to directly access Christ in a tangible way - to walk with him, talk with him - is so far from our own faith experience. The Road to Emmaus, in Luke 24, is different though. Yes, they talk directly to Jesus but only recognize him at the last moment. This is a faith experience that we can have, where we realize in retrospect, that God was there with us the whole way. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy point out that this is also an experience that we are meant to have together.
It's Pentecost, once again. We are reminded that the Spirit is with us, once again and that miracles are possible, once again. Since that same Spirit is with us and that it never went away, we can know that things can always get better. We may feel like the world is getting away from us, but that is our own lack of faith in God. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott, live from the Texas Annual Conference, pull our eyes back to inherent optimism of the Christian faith.
Jesus rises to Heaven, but the story of God's people keeps going. It's not that Jesus is gone. It's that he's given us the power that we may keep the mission going. Earthly kings keep the power. Jesus gives us away and gives us the opportunity to be apart of the greatest story ever told. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott focus in on our continued mission as God's people.
You ever wonder where is this whole thing going? When you're thinking of devoting your life to something, it's important to consider what's its end goal. What's the vision statement? Saving the world? Conquering the world? Curing cancer? Making money for shareholders? The end of Revelation is God's vision statement - everyone at peace, everyone having what they need, everyone at one with God. However, this being God, it's more than a pie in the sky future. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy remind us that this outcome is already guaranteed.
Gentiles receiving the Holy Spirit? To the average Jewish Christian, circa shortly after Pentecost, this still would have seemed mildly crazy. They'd been trained, since birth, that only a narrow band of people got a connection with God. To see the Holy Spirit jumping that barrier was a show of just how powerful God's new way of doing things was. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy discuss that this ability to jump across boundaries is a hallmark of God's work in the world.
Jesus ran into skeptics in his own time. He knew that you're never going to satisfy everyone because at the core of faith in God is still an act of faith. For some, no amount of miracles or declaring himself the Messiah was going to be enough. That's true in our own time. People trip over the leap of faith. However, Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott challenge us as Christians to not be the thing that people trip over on their journey towards Christ.
If Christianity has been doing one thing consistently for the past 2,000 years, it's radically changing lives. Behavior change is one of the hardest things to do as any teacher, psychologist, or public health officials can tell you, yet stories, like that of Paul in Acts 9, is a common thread throughout human history. If you judge something by its fruit, then one of the Holy Spirit's consistent impacts has been lives turned around. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy point out where the proof is in this pudding.
Doubting Thomas? Really? Is that the take away here? It seems more that Jesus is calling out all the disciples for having the easy avenue to belief. They get to literally see Jesus, to walk with him, and to eat with him. Instead, it's a warning that belief is going to get harder from here. That their task will be to lead a world to belief that do not have the same advantages that they had. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy connect with their task because it's become our task - making disciples in a skeptical world.
Upon leaving the Last Supper, Jesus goes on a journey. He's betrayed by a friend, arrested by his enemies, subjected to series of ridiculous show trials, tortured, killed, and buried. John 18-19 give us the most detailed window into the physical and emotional pain that Christ endures. However, in examining the climax of Christ's earthly life, we have look past the mere facts of what happened and go to the motivation behind it all. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy pull our focus to that fact that he went through all of that because of us and for us.
Jesus enters Jerusalem in triumph. His followers celebrate. The crowds gather. The authorities grumble. For us, as Christians, it's the cue for the climax of Jesus's earthly story, and he begins this climactic week with a spoiler of the ending - his ultimate victory and is kingdom on earth. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy remind us that, when God puts God's mind to something, there's no doubt that it will be accomplished.
Paul is a man who will flourish at whatever he sets his mind to, and Philippians 3, we get rare testimony by him as to his accomplishments. According the Judaism of the time, he lived a close to perfect live. He did the right things, studied the right things, and dived deep into the right groups. If anyone could look at their religious accomplishments and believe that they'd earned their place at God's table, it's Paul. Instead, it counts it all as nothing because Jesus is all that matters. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about our failed attempts at earning grace and our deep need for discernment.
The Parable of the Prodigal Son deserves its place in the scriptural Hall of Fame. It's a beautiful story of God's grace that looks at humanity as we are and shows the depth and power of God's love for us anyways. Despite being 2,000 years old, it connects today as well as it did for its original audience, but we often leave out its true depth. There's celebration, and challenge. It was aimed at sinners and Pharisees. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy push us to look at the message behind both of the brothers.
Our world can be a sea of temptation, and human beings are often convinced that no one has ever felt what we've felt. So, when we run up against temptations, we give ourselves that excuse of - "no one could possibility resist." Paul puts the lie to all of that. Everyone is tempted, but through the power of God, no one has to give in. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott lead us to set our relationship with God as our guiding light.
All life is interested in survival. Animals, bugs, plants, and humans each do what they need to do to physically make it. For humanity, there's a yearning for a deeper level of existence than subsistence. We long for purpose, depth, and meaning. From a theological perspective, this is our built in instinct to seek God. Pastor Trey and Pastor Scott push us all to seek that rather than looking in all the wrong places.
Jesus goes off into the wilderness fasting the whole time. Satan shows up at his weakest possible moment and tempts him. The fascinating thing about these temptations is that none of them are objectively bad. They're just not what God wants for Christ. Jesus is able to send the devil packing because he has an absolute commitment to the will of God. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy see the embedded challenge for us all to do the same.
Jesus takes the core of his crew up with him to a mountain top, and they get an all timer of a spiritual experience. Moses and Elijah show up. God speaks. Christ glows. You can understand why Peter wanted to stay, but they don't. Instead, the dive straight back into difficult ministry and failure. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy connect the transfiguration and a call to ministry that maybe, we're supposed to do something with all that power.
Forgiveness is a powerful thing. To not give it is to purposefully destroy your own soul. To not receive it is to live without closure. Aren’t we glad that God, in Christ, does not withhold forgiveness? The story of Joseph and his brothers nestle forgiveness in a more decidedly human realm. Joseph received great harm, but does not return it. Instead, he forgives and saves God’s people. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy challenge us all to forgive even as we can never expect the same of another.
Connecting with God makes a tangible difference in more than just our afterlife. A relationship with God and truly seeking after God within that will lead us in the places that God needs us to go and will lead us to God's peace. To live a life without God means that we miss out on all of that and are stuck instead with merely our own limit set of resources. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy recognize the very human temptation to do things on our own but also our need to repent from that.
Paul has a far different view of Christ than the disciples, who knew the earthly Christ directly. His encounter with Christ happens on a more spiritual level, but it also brings about a much bigger transformation. He is the mirror image of Judas. Judas went from being Christ's friend to his enemy. Paul went from being Christ's enemy to being one of his greatest advocates. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy help us seem ourselves in Paul as one who can be transformed by a spiritual encounter with the risen savior.
Humans yearn for purpose. This is not a strictly religious passion. You don’t solely learn about a need for purpose from a pastor or a Sunday School teacher. There’s something far deeper in the soul that says, “there most be more to this life.” That voice is part of how God wired us to seek out our calling, and what Jeremiah 1 connects us to is that we’ve had the purpose laid out by God from the beginning. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy tease out the often convoluted way that we come to our Godly purpose.
Nehemiah captures this wonderfully hopeful moment in the history of God's people. They landed themselves in exile because of their own behavior, but now, they're back. They rebuild Jerusalem, and in chapter 8, gather around and recommit themselves to God's law. It's an image of God's grace playing out on a national scale. They've been given this second chance. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Stacy dive into why they needed this chance, what they did with it, and what we can do with ours.
As John tells it, turning water into wine isn't just a miracle of Jesus, it's his first public revelation of his glory. It's a miracle rooted in joy, celebration, and community. It paints a picture of Jesus as a person who met people where they were and sought to bring them together. This looks distinctly different from how a lot of Christianity operates in the modern day. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott attempt to point us in this more Christ-like and joyous direction.
The Magi get their own Christian holiday, Epiphany, and that in some traditions is almost as big as Christmas itself. They are the first Gentiles to bow down and worship Christ, and they even get to play in a role in keeping the Christ child alive. Just like Mary, Joseph, the Shepherds, and the City of Bethlehem, they signify that some different is happening here. The people who should be excited. the hierarchy in Jerusalem, aren't. Instead, a band of outcasts, Gentiles, unwed mothers, and ordinary folk welcome a savior for all. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy invite us all to join this same band of misfits.
Of all the texts covered on this show, we keep coming back to John 1. Even trying to present a wide variety of texts, inevitably, we find ourselves back to John’s opening words laying out the big picture of who Christ really is. All scripture matters and can tell us something about faith, God, and ourselves, but in a book of important words, John 1 contains some of the most important. It gives us the most explicit explanation of who Christ is and why that matters so much. It’s a thesis statement for the divinity and grace giving sacrifice of Christ.
What must it have been like to raise the Messiah? Luke gives us the only insight into that, and in it, Christ looks remarkably human. It's the story of a 12 year old boy who freaks is parents out by not being where they expect him to be. It shows the human Jesus learning, growing, and already showing signs of what is to come. It's a reminder that even for Jesus, life is a journey. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott examine that the joy that comes in this snapshot of a young savior.
If the Gospel of Luke was a musical, Mary gets the opening number. It's not just that she gets the first long speech, but that what she says sets up all that is to come through Luke, Acts, and beyond. The Magnificat is all about God fulfilling God's grand promise to set things right, and she phrases it in the past tense. The show has started, and because it's started, we can be confident how it will end. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy sing Mary's praises as the exemplar of our own faith.
Bethlehem looms large in the Christian imagination. Especially if you only go to church a couple times a year, it might be one of two city in the Bible that you can name, but in the reality of first century Judea, it’s just a small farming town on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It’s the City of David, but that didn’t make it rich or important. So, why is the Savior born there, as Micah foretells? Maybe, God values something more than early greatness. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk through what this wildly different value structure can mean for us.
The birth of Jesus upends everything, and one man was chosen to be the herald of that: John the Baptist. John got his own herald: his father, Zechariah. This work of heraldry declares that John is indeed important, but it's because of what Christ will do and how he will witness to it. Zechariah's song is also a song of realized hope - the child that he had hoped for and the savior that he has been awaiting. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy show how this song can become our song as well.
A fig tree blooms. Summer is coming! We are so programmed to think of the end of the age as something terrible, but Christ describes it as momentary disruption followed by summer (not winter). We celebrate this kind of incoming age every year. Christ's life was its own apocalyptic event. It ended an age and brought in a new one. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott examine how we are better off in this age than we were before, and what that might mean for the age to come.
In the face off between Jesus and Pilot, both of them were rulers. Pilot represented the greatest earthly empire to date. Jesus represented a kingdom so out of this world that Pilot couldn't comprehend it. Through this conversation, Jesus makes clear which kingdom you want to be a part of. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy delve into the stark difference in kingdom and ruler.
All things (not just all good things) come to an end. We know that the Bible contains a lot about the End Times, but often, we misunderstand what they mean. We link them with disaster movies, where all of humanity is destroyed, but the end of all things, in Scripture, is always the chance for God to do something wonderful and new. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy look at Christ's prediction that the Temple will fall and seek the hope that it has for us.
What we need to believe is simple enough. God is real. God loves you. God gave us Christ who died for us. We can have salvation through that sacrifice. However, the next level question from there is far more challenging. Why did that sacrifice work? Why is that what gives us access to God's grace? This is where the Letter to the Hebrews comes in. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy dig through Hebrews' occasionally dense logic to get at the true nature of Christ.
We ran into some truly horrific technical issues with our first attempt to get this episode up online, but here it is in its originally intended form. Ruth is a headline figure in Scripture. She's in King David's family, which means she's in Christ's family. She's also a Moabite woman, who would have been as social reject by God's people at the time. What makes her a pillar of faith? It's her choices. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy look at how Ruth chooses God and how we can do the same.
Man cries out. Jesus hears him. Man gets healed. Man begins a journey following Christ. The Gospels contain a lot of healing miracles, and Mark's Gospel is particularly focused on them. This one's different, though. It tells us more about the healed than the healer. It shows us a model for our own Christian journey. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy examine how we should walk based on how this man walks.
We sing a lot about how we know God personally. How God walks with us, and talks with us, and tells us that we are God's own. Do we stop and think about who we are actually walking and talking with? That's the challenge of Job 38 - to take in the utter magnitude of God's greatness. God, in responding to Job, stretches out the true breadth of God's power. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott guide us all into to stare into the true nature of God.
The bits where Jesus talks about money are some of the most feared sayings in the Bible. Most Christians know them deep inside, and most Christians don't follow them to the extent demanded by Christ. It's one of the reason that we're so sensitive around church based money talk. The story in Mark 10, where a rich man walks away unable to give it all up, is certainly in that category of terrifying challenge. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy examine the inescapable nature of this Scripture.
Job is an ancient poem about an equally ancient question. Why do bad things happen to good people? The human brain loves the idea of, "do good, get good" and "do bad, get bad." However, our reality seldom lines up that cleanly. In a faith context, the question rests even more uncomfortably. If God is good, why do bad things happen to God's people? Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy dive into Job, who he is, and how he sets a faithful example of navigating a painful world.
Esther is one special lady, and the Book of Esther is an equally special story. It's a book that definitely in the Bible, but God is not a direct character nor really directly referenced. For Esther, then, to be more than just a hero story, we have to think deeper about how God actually works in the real world. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott lead us to look for God in hidden places that are also right in front of you.
Once again, our good friends, the Disciples, are the wonderful fools that can give us hope. Jesus talks to them about his sacrificial death. They argue about how will be the most important - missing the point entirely. If there's hope for them, then, there's hope for us. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy lean into that hope and the joy that came come in God's upside down world.
God parts the Red Sea, defeats Pharaoh Pharaoh, and let's God people go. Moses is not the hero of this story. God is. God beats the super power with the uncontrollable force of the sea. God does the impossible. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Stacy link this to our own impossible situations and our own times of holding out for hope. God is there in those as well.
When we faced with tough challenges, enemies, impending doom, fight or flight kicks in. Our brain dumps all kinds of chemicals. We want action. When King Jehoshaphat found himself in that kind of situation. He prayed. He found rest in the Lord. He knew who battle really belonged to. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy discuss how all our battles are really that same way, and how we should rest in the Lord.
A lot of people worry that they are unworthy of God’s grace that they’ve messed up too many times or can’t seem to ever get it together and be perfect. Truth is that they’re right. None of us are worthy. None of us can get it together on our own. The true Good News of Jesus Christ is that we don’t have to do it our own . Christ died for us even though we are unworthy. Christ welcomes us in no matter who we were before. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott celebrate what this means for us now and forever more.
Fun fact: all Christians are a dwelling place, a living temple for God, here on earth. We can live and move in the world as living testimonies to the reality of heaven and how it can be experienced right here and right now. In Christ, all the barriers that exist between us and others can come down. That’s great news - maybe some of the best news ever! Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy delve into the thorny question of why then don’t we live like it more often?
We can’t begin to picture what Christianity would look like without Paul. God clearly called the right person, who was a combination dogged missionary, highly scripturally literate, deeply obedient to God, and a tremendous writer to boot. Yet, Paul started out the enemy of Christianity - not a friend. It took the work of Christ and a brave Christian named Ananias to bring Paul from enemy to evangelist. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy look at the Road to Damascus as a model for Christian love and evangelism. (Also, stay tuned after the episode for some thoughts how reaching out to skeptics.)
Seek and you will find! Knock and the door will be opened! The gate is narrow! Few will go through it! The Sermon on the Mount can give you whiplash. Those four statements happen within 7 verses of each other. They feel like contradictions, but often, Jesus asks us to search deeper within our souls to realize that they are both true. If we seek, we will find - the narrow gate of obedience. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy seek to find the truth in between the seeming contradictions.
Our universe is a beautiful and ordered machine. Scientists spend their entire lives trying to fathom small corners of it, but God created it in a moment, put it into motion, took a step back, and called it “very good.” The entirety of creation is God’s canvas. Humanity holds a special place in that as the only piece of creation done in God’s image. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy attempt, at least, to fathom for themselves what it all means.
God can help us through whatever we need to get through. God is there for us in any circumstance. We often look for earthly circumstance to change in order for us to find peace, but that's not the reality. The message of Philippians 4 is that no matter what broken stuff might be happening around you, you can find your peace in God. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott connect simplicity in life and simply relying on God.
God as the potter and us as the clay doesn't just mean that God made us once and then stopped. A potter starts with a lump of clay and slowly (and occasionally forcefully) shapes it into something beautiful. If it starts to get a little out of shape, the potter will work it back into shape. It's the same with our journey in God. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott talk about what it means for God to actively shape our souls.
God and God’s people have not always had a smooth relationship. God has always been faithful, but they people certainly haven’t. Still, when the people run up against disappointment of their own making, it still hurts. Isaiah 64 is one of those places where the hurt bubbles up, and the prophet, speaking for the people, cries out. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy explore how the people (and us) land in this predicaments and what it means that God sticks with us anyways.
People don’t always treat the Good News like it’s all that good. Or, at least, people don’t always treat the purveyors of the Good News all that kindly. In Mark 6, even Jesus Christ himself gets rejected in his home town, and he passes that warning onto his disciples as he sends them off to do ministry of their own. It’s a stark reminder of what all Jesus went through for us and what following in his footsteps really means. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy connect Christ’s own rejection with our need to support the ministry of others.
Jesus healed a lot of people. Of course, he did. It’s one of the headline things that we know about Jesus, but if you think about it, it doesn’t make a ton of sense. He really didn’t have a lot of time. His whole earthly ministry only lasted three years. He was and is the most important person on the planet. He couldn’t of “had the time.” Yet, he took it anyways. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about how Jesus set an example for us that real love and care often happen in the interruptions.
Paul went through a lot for the sake of the Gospel. He got imprisoned, shipwrecked, executed, physically afflicted, attacked by mobs, and much more. Every time he reflects on it in his own writing though, he doesn’t dwell on the suffering or the pain or what he lost, instead, he zooms in on what he has and cannot lose - Christ in him. It’s a hopeful reminder of what our salvation truly means. He have something that can never taken from you. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about how Paul and other testify to the power of Christ by what they’re willing to do for the Gospel.
Turns out, Jesus throws the party that you want to go to. At least, that’s what the story of Levi in Mark’s Gospel seems to say. Jesus calls Levi, a reject tax collector. Levi gets a group of other previous rejects together, and all the Pharisees can seem to notice is that everyone is having a better time with Jesus than they would be with the Pharisees. When the literal Son of God and source of salvation is present, the party really gets going. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott point at the fact that the same thing is true in the church today. Party on!
Sin had to start somewhere. In the Bible, it starts with Adam and Eve. A snake helps them give into something that was already in them, and they messed up. You might think that you would not give into a talking snake, but we all give into temptation at some point or another. As soon as we could make our own choices, there was always the chance that we'd fail at them. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy connect our failures with God's faithfulness and forgiveness.
One of the great existential questions that humans face is, "Who am I?" Sounds simple enough, but the amount of ink spilled trying to answer that exact question boggles the mind. Yet, as people of faith, the answer is simple enough. Who are we? We are children of God - chosen, adopted, and given a fully inheritance. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott explore the nature of our divine part who chose us.
It's Pentecost time, once again. The Holy Spirit descends - as promised. The Church is born out of people being gathered together and empowered. The era that we still live in, where the Holy Spirit is present with us, is inaugurated. The early church did a ton with this Spirit. Christians around the world today are doing a ton with this Spirit. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy ponder aloud whether we too are doing much with that same Spirit.
Christ's ascension into heaven left the early followers in a weird place. What happens next? They get given a mission, but even that sounds impossible. Carry the word to the ends of earth? How? They're given a promise, the promise of God's Spirit. But, what is that? When will it come? They know the promises of God that have come true but have to trust in them now. Pastor Trey and Pastor Scott look at how we as modern Christians find ourselves in a similar moment of uncertain and still have a similar mission.
Jesus came into the world to blow wide the doors on God's love and grace. We are super used to that idea. The early disciples were not. They grew up in a much more closed down religious environment, and it wasn't clear how they were going to adjust. In Acts 10, Peter sees what God is doing - using Gentiles, Roman Legion Gentiles, and Peter leads the church in welcoming them in. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott look at Christianity at its best and most open and worst - at its most closed off.
Acts 8 describes what must have been an extremely strange day for Philip. He’s going about his business, and boom, now he’s ministering to an Ethiopian high official. As soon as that’s over, boom, he’s off to an entire other place. It’s one wild ride. But even in the crazy, he takes time to journey with a man that he didn’t know and help him come to Christ. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott look at this story as a good example of modern evangelism - not street corner yelling but intentional journeying.
Picture this: you're being held prisoner by a deadly enemy. That enemy has killed before. They will kill again. All they need you to do is to stop doing one thing. What do you do? Well, in Peter's case, the one thing that the Temple leadership wanted him to stop doing was preaching the Gospel. He chose not to stop - telling them so to their face. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy wonder aloud how many would do the same?
People like the idea of telling like it is - until it's directed at them. Still, some times, people really do need to hear it like it is. This is what Peter does to an assembled crowd at the Temple in Acts. He shows them their role in what happened to Christ. He, also, doesn't leave them there. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott dive into the balanced view of mercy and justice, caring and conviction that Peter sets up.
We once again return to John 20:19-31 for its balance of the joy of Resurrection and its realistic depiction of Christian life. Jesus appears out of nowhere into a locked room, but one disciple misses the joyous appearance. Thomas struggles with belief, and Jesus meets him where he is. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy focus on how we are all Thomas. We didn't get to see Christ first appearance. We doubt sometimes. Christ meets us too - where ever we are.
Jesus is risen! Roll credits! Mark is already the shortest Gospel, but through historical research, we've found that it's probably even shorter than originally thought. The story ends at 16:8, not 16:20. This short ending of Mark ends jarringly abrupt. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy work through this sudden and uncertain feeling ending passes the torch to us in our Christian walks.
Did you ever know one of those kids who marched to beat of their own drummer? The whole class was making volcanos, but this kid was drawing unicorns. Maybe, you were one of those kids. Well, in Mark’s telling of Jesus entering Jerusalem, he, too, focuses on what he cares about whether you agree or not. He’s interested in the donkey, where it came from, how it’s going back, how they didn’t steal it. Why, this donkey obsession , you may ask. It makes clear that Jesus is the Messiah, and that’s all that Mark really care about. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy look at the story of Jesus entering Jerusalem and how it sets up the true nature of who Christ is.
Jesus knew what he faced - painful death. Some Greeks approach him, wanting to hear something, and they certainly get an earful. Christ gives them his steely resolve to do what he was sent to do, and in doing some, he call us all to do the same. He was just as human as we are. He knew that he would feel ever bit of it. He did it anyways and paved the way for us to receive eternal life. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy gather back together in the studio for the first time in a year to explore the depth of Christ’s humanity.
We had some serious Internet and technical issues, when this episode was supposed to air. So, here in its entirety is Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy running through John 2. It's an opportunity to see Jesus put on his angry eyes and be reminded of God's justice for those who defile God's house.
Jesus gets lifted up, so that he may be lifted up. Then, he gets lifted up. Clear? John 3 is famous for containing the a window deep into the core of Christian faith, and this Greek pun sits right there at that core. Jesus gets lifted up on a cross, so that he may be exalted - making a way for us into eternal life. He then ascends into heaven. All of these are the same word in Greek that roughly translates to being lifted up. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about living our lifted up life now and forever.
Our bodies are God’s Temple, though we have freedom in what we can do, not everything is beneficial, and we should keep ourselves in a way that glorifies God.
The Wise Men of Matthew 2 have captured the Christian imagination for millennia. We've given them royal titles, numbers, names, elaborate backstories, and camels. We painted them, dressed up as them, and celebrated them. Why do they hold such a special place in the Christian story? For gentile Christian in the early church, the Wise Men looked like them - non-Jewish people finding and worshipping the savior. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy explore how the Magi also look like us as modern Christians.
Paint a picture in your mind of the perfect life - not a new agey version of your perfect life but the ideal human existence. What do you see? You probably see someone loving, care, and kind. Whether you know it or not, you probably see someone who looks remarkably like Jesus, which makes sense. He lived the only truly perfect human life. We all aspire to that standard. But, where did it start? How did he get off on the right foot? Luke 2:22-40 show the infant Jesus both living up to the law and looking forward to the ultimate act of love on the cross. Pastor Trey and Sister Brandy continue their work of taking the cute out of Christmas and link it instead to the story of salvation.
The world often views the business of speaking for God as an older person's game. Our image of pastors, prophets, and apostles usually involves grey hairs, long beards, or serious suits. We intend to think that the wisdom required comes with age. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is living, breathing proof that it's not always that way. Mary was 16 years old, when she saw the angel, committed to God's plan, and sang her song. She demonstrates a depth of faith and commitment that few have ever mustered. That's not half bad for a young woman not yet out of high school. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy look at Mary and see that no matter how you slice it, she's one impressive, God following lady
John the Baptist knew at least three things. The way that people were worshipping God was a problem. A way for everyone to come home to God was at hand. And, he wasn't the one to bring it about. Everyone kept wanting John to be that answer, but John, like a good prophet, pointing everyone in the right direction - towards God among us. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy try to face cast John the Baptist and examine what he tell us about Christmas.
The story of God's people goes through these cycles. We're saved. We mess up. We suffer. God saves us again. The Old Testament is essentially a thousand years or more of these cycles. At the end of each is God's redemption - God's grace, and each of these cycles point us in the direction of Christ who breaks the cycle for good. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott explore a moment where Isaiah got to announce the end of a cycle.
The Christian year has a rhythm. Each December, we celebrate Christ’s birth. Each spring, we remember his suffering, death, and resurrection. Just on the verge of summer, we turn our eyes to the decent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. But, the Christian year always begins with the end. The first Sunday in Advent is the beginning of a new Christian year, and traditionally, it’s a time, when we read some words from Christ about the end of the age and how his birth begins that process. Pastor Trey takes a break from his vacation to talk to Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy about what it means to live in this in between time - between incarnation and final victory.
Earthly powers think that they’re so great. False gods will always be in your face trying to grab your attention - trying to show their so called might. This was true for the early Christians and their experience with the Roman empire, and it’s true to today with the thousands of things that steal your time with false comfort. None of these things are truly powerful compared to God. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy discuss what it is to catch a glimpse of God’s true might.
We all have God given abilities. We all have callings from God to use those talents. That is a part of why we exist - to love and serve the Lord. To not do so is to fundamentally miss a part of the Christian life. Jesus uses the Parable of the Talents to paint his picture vividly. Not everyone is equally talented, but everyone is given something. Pastor Trey and Sister Brandy discuss what it means for us all to step out of the shadows and onto the stage of God's kingdom building work.
We all have thoughts on governments. We all have feelings on specific governments, taxes, law, etc. Jesus tells us to give to governments what belong to be them, but the under toe of all of it is that everything belongs to God. We live a world that still has governments, but we are governed by a higher power - God and God alone. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy examine what this means for us - particularly on the eve of a presidential election.
It is perhaps easy to tell people how to follow Jesus. We've been given a pair of lovely testaments that are God's word. Read those. Tell people about what's in them. Job largely done. There is one more critical step that Christ gives us in Matthew's Gospel. Live that way yourself. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy examine how hard that last step has been for us over the past 2,000 years.
Moses is the greatest of God's prophets. Moses led God's people to the promised lands. Moses doesn't get to enter said promised land. One of these things is not like the other ones, and yet they are all true of Moses. Moses does mighty things for God, but he is still human and complicated. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy think through this complicated man and the transfer of leadership that this moment creates.
Anyone who has kept a night watch will know that it's no mean feat. Staying alert and ready through constant boredom for the odd chance that something might pop off can lull even the most strident into a state of less than readiness. The long wait for Christ's return is no different. We know that he's coming, but when? No one knows. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott challenge us to answer Scripture's call to stay alert!
Moses is gone for a minute, and the people completely lose it. Okay, he was gone for a few weeks, but still, a guy should be able to go up a mountain to commune with God without the whole show falling part! What happens next is an intriguing scene, where Moses and God argue, but Moses is arguing to save the covenant. What does this mean about God? What does this mean about our relationship with God? Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy may not know either, but they explore the bounds of who we know God to be.
Most Christians who made it through their children's Sunday School days can close their eyes and recall the parable of the Good Samaritan. It boils down to Samaritan good! Priest and Levite bad! Be like the Samaritan guy! And it does, but what's a Samaritan? Why does Jesus highlight them specifically? Turns out, their a hated enemy, and this parable runs a lot deeper than do nice things for people. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy dive deep into the more radical underpinning of this well known story.
Christians are meant to model our behavior after Christ himself. We all know this on some level, so the question becomes do we live it? We are called to put others before ourselves - to have care of others always in view rather than our own ambitions and needs. Certainly, that’s what Christ did, when he went up on that cross to die for us. As we look at how we live as Christians, though, it should make us uncomfortable. Do we live it? Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy examine the state of our love of neighbor and how it relates to toilet paper.
We are all equal in the eyes of God. God loves all of God's children equally. That's the mark of a good parent, and God is the best parent. So, is it fair then that some people get things and other don't? Shouldn't a fair parent give everyone exactly the same thing? Nope, that's not how God's kingdom works. It's run by God, and God gives according to God's purpose and according to need and according to calling and according to a thousand other things. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy sort through how we should then approach the world.
Forgiveness is difficult. Forgiveness is a process. At the same time, forgiveness is necessary in the life of faith and literally does the body good. Our world suffers in cycles of unforgiveness. Christ calls us to break that cycle. We've been forgiven. We, then, in turn pass that forgiveness along. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott work through this picture of a more forgiving world.
We have heard the Love Commandment from a lot of corners of scripture. Christ talks about it a lot, but in Romans 13, Paul takes his swing at it with two additional wrinkles. Love involves more than not actively harming your neighbor as the Law talks about, and we should probably get to about the business of loving because time is running out. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about how broad this love is meant to be and what it means for this to be a commandment.
Matthew 25 transports us to the final judgement. God sits on the throne to separate those bound for paradise and those bound for punishment. So, what matters in this final calculus? Riches? Earthly greatness? Major accomplishments? Nope, turns out it boils down to how our faith has led us to serve others. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy help navigate this grand separation and talk about what it means to be among the sheep.
We tell the story of Noah and the Ark to children because animals are cute. If you really ponder what happens though. It's not really a kids' story. Spoiler alert: almost all of humanity dies. Noah and his family, on the other hand, live. Why? Because Noah is faithful to God. He's faithful before the story. He faithfully builds this giant ark. He faithfully sets out on this journey. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott talk about this faithfulness and the challenge of ark logistics.
A gospel has to start somewhere. Yes, they tend to start at the beginning. It's a very good place to start. Their concept of what a beginning means though is entirely different. Mark starts with Christ's ministry. Matthew and Luke start with Jesus's genealogy and birth. John starts at the literal creation of all things, shows how Christ was there, and sets a super big picture for Christ's story. God, there at creation, come to earth to bring about grace. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy get philosophical about what this means - as John would have wanted it.
Our current moment in history, thought leaders, brands, whatever keep reminding us that "we're all in this together." Certainly, that is a message that Paul wants drive home in Romans. You're all different. We need all of that and more. People are still going to be people. Love them anyways. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy remind us all (themselves as well) that Christian living always involves making the love choice.
The Lord's Prayer gets said a lot. For most Christians, it got ground into our head at some point, and we can say it as a reflex. How often do we stop to really think about what it says? Do we grasp the great theological hope and responsibility that it expresses? Do we see the closeness to God that it implies? Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, and Pastor Scott remind us of how bold a picture God's world it paints. One that is at the same time both already here and just over the horizon.
Jonah got himself stuck in some find of a fishy situation. God wanted him to do a thing. Jonah ran. God put Jonah in time out, inside a fish or a whale or a whatever. Jonah, to his credit, comes around, cries out to God, and begrudgingly does what God needs him to do. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about how this makes him a realistic disciple. He needs some help, like the rest of us, to get there.
Christ gives us a whole lot. He gives us a totally new life - if only we'd have faith. He takes us from where we started (however deep down that was) and lifts us up into some truly heavenly surroundings. All it takes is faith, and that faith transforms our prospects and our lives through God's mercy and a grace. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about how we get there and how we keep each other there.
Are you worried about the end of time? Does the news get you down? Do you think that the end must be coming soon? Good news! We have no idea! Really, we don't. God knows, when the end is coming, but literally only God knows. For us instead, our task is to keep on keeping on. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about our need for urgency to carry out God's calling in the world - not a call to fear some eventual end.
God is mysterious. God knows things beyond what we can know. God's wisdom is enough to make fools of us all. God's problems are big enough to make any earthly struggle seem meaningless. Yet, God sends God's strength into the world to help us carry out burdens. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy revel in how great God is and how great God's care for us is.
Abraham and Sarah wait close to a century to have a child. God makes them that promise, but still, there is even more waiting. Finally, long past any logical time for child-rearing, they are given Isaac. Then, out of nowhere, God call on Abraham to sacrifice Isaac - the promised child the hope of many nations. Abraham obeys without question. Why? Is it because he knows that God won't make him follow through? Or, does he simply give God that much priority? Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy show that you can learn about the life of faith regardless of your answer.
Life can be dangerous, and not always just in the things that go bump in the night kind of way. Often, it's the people that we know best that can hurt us the most. Christ saw this in his own life with Judas's betrayal. However, way back in Matt 10, he warned the disciples and, thus, us, that it will be that way sometimes. Pastor Trey, Sister Brandy, Pastor Scott, and Stacy talk about how even through the suffering and betrayal, we belong to God.
Jesus sends out his disciples with a tremendous amount of power and not much else. Yes, they can cast out demons, heal people of diseases, and generally minister as Christ would, but they only get the clothes on their back, a good walking stick, and a good set of sandals. They have to rely on God for everything else. God will take care of them but only what they need. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk through what this looks like for ministry in the 21st Century (with special appearance from Project G650).
There was a formless and chaotic void. God spoke, and, bang, a universe sprang into existence. Like clock work, God crafted every corner - light, dark, sea, land, plants, animals, humans. They all received God's creative touch and each in their turn was declared good. The big picture headline of creation is that God carefully ordered God's creation and saw the joy in it. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about how this creation story gets taken some weird places in modern discourse but still lands back at a powerful and purposeful God.
Pentecost has been on the church calendar for just about ever. It's the birth of the Church with the descent of the Spirit. Yet, it often falls by the way side - important but not a focus. Yes, Easter and Christmas are more important, but Pentecost is a close third for important Christian holidays. It's the day that our work as the church really got going, when we were filled with God's power. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about what that power is and what we can do with it
Jesus rises into Heaven. It's a glorious moment, but one that begs a pretty obvious follow up question: "Now what?" Christ, ever the good teacher preempts that question with his own statement, "I'm leaving, and now, the job of teaching is yours." Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about how we continue to carry that torch and how we have the wind of the Holy Spirit at our back.
Esther kind of rocks. She gets put in an impossible situation with the lives of her whole people on the line. She faces down a king and a deadly enemy using her whits. Above all, she accepts that God put her in a particular place at a particular time, and for a particular task. She faces that calling even if it means her death. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about how God has a purpose for all of us, and we all will be called upon to use what we've got for God.
Heaven is for real. We get to go there. Christ made a way for us, and by following Christ, we get on that way. Following Christ, though, also means loving this life and striving to answer God's call in it because God is present here too. Christ, in presenting our heavenly home, also gives purpose and meaning to this life. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about balancing a hope for heaven and a joy here and now.
If you've ever been to a funeral or a funeral home, even if you've never been inside a church, you've encountered Psalm 23 - specifically the King James version. It's up there with John 3:16 as one of the most well known pieces of Scripture, and we associate it with death and heaven. True that it ends with a promise of dwelling with God forever, but this Psalm is all about God carrying your through the slings and arrows of this life with comfort and joy. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy testify to this passage's power to carry us through our current troubles.
An air of mystery hangs around the Walk to Emmaus. How did they not know it was Jesus? Why didn't Jesus let them know right away? The mystery helps paint a real picture of what the life of faith is like in a post-Ascension world. We also don't always know it, when we are talking to God. We too have to navigate a touch of mystery. We too have an opportunity to encounter the risen Lord. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about how these encounters should affect our lives.
Jesus's disciples had a distinct advantage over modern believers. They walked with Jesus, talked with him, saw the miracles for themselves, and bore direct witness to the resurrection. They saw his hands and his pierced sides. Yet, still they doubted. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy seek to keep this in mind as we wrestle through our own doubts and skepticism.
Christ is rise! He is risen indeed! Jesus rose from the dead. His disciples slowly discover this fact over the course of that first Easter morning - first Mary, then Peter, then John. We, as the reader, get that dramatic irony. We’ve known it all along, but we get to watch them wrestle with it and come to see that the promise had come true. Jesus went through a lot, but neither death nor the Romans could hold back God. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy talk about how that is still true today.
Anyone who grew up in church grew up with Palm Sunday. The music is bigger. It’s not quite Easter, but as a kid, you get to walk around church waving a plant. Rad. What does it mean? Who cares. I don’t have to sit still. We celebrate this moment in Christ life because it’s him declaring victory before the battle has even started in earnest. It’s a moment that we can be assured of Christ’s final victory. It’s a glimpse of God’s true kingdom come and will done. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy relate this directly to the challenges we face in our current moment.
Are feeling as dead inside as a valley of dry bones? Has the whirlwind of suffering that is our world right now got you down? Well, we’ve been here before. Centuries ago, God’s people found themselves in Exile, and they despaired - fearing that they’d never return and that God had left them. God hadn’t. Instead, God led God’s messenger, Ezekiel, into a desert of dry bones to drive home the ultimate point: God can and will always make new life. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and Stacy apply this directly to our lives in the midst of coronavirus.
Jesus knows us - like really, deeply, truly knows us. He knows what's good, and He knows what's bad. It can feel dangerous to stare deeply into one who knows us so well. The Samaritan woman in John 4 has one of those opportunities to come face to face with Jesus, hear his hard true, and comes away feeling loved by the Savior. That's the thing back Jesus. He knows what's wrong, and still gives us grace. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about what this can mean for us too.
People get frustrated. They lose faith. They want to go back to the things that they are comfortable with. A faith journey may involve moments, when you don't see God as clearly. Certainly, this happened to the Israelites in the wilderness. They ran out of water, freaked out, and wanted to go back. It all gets squared away. God hadn't abandoned them. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about how this happens constantly in the modern world and the same is true about God now as then.
John 3:16 is a like number one hit of the summer but for scripture. It's everywhere. It's the piece of the Bible that, especially Evangelicals, are mostly to know. But, do you actually know how it fits into the Gospel of John? Did you know that it was given in response to a Pharisee that had essentially become a seeker? In this episode, Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about where this scripture comes from and how to move through doubt in a healthy way.