TRC Chattanooga Podcast

Whose image is on you? If Jesus had been asked whether it’s lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, what would you have said? In Matthew 22, the Pharisees and Herodians, two factions who agreed on nothing but their hatred of Jesus, set what they thought was the perfect trap: a yes-or-no question about a hated Roman tribute coin. In this lesson, we look at how Jesus springs the trap on them, why the coin in...

Have you ever prayed for a loved one who seems determined to run from Jesus? If God is sovereign in election, why pray at all? Last week we saw God’s purpose in election, and this week Paul shows us what to do with it: pray, preach, and keep believing. Paul explains how Israel, zealous for God but “not according to knowledge,” stumbled over the very Messiah the law had always pointed to and tells...

Have you ever wished you could trade places with someone, if it meant their salvation? That’s exactly what Paul says in the opening of Romans 9 - a grief so great he could wish himself accursed for his unbelieving kinsmen. From there Paul turns to the hardest (and one of the most contested) doctrines in all of Scripture: God’s sovereign election. In this lesson, beginning with Paul's proper dispos...

Do you know, really know, that you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit? What does it mean that you are to be adopted by God, with a new birth certificate that says you were born in heaven? Romans 8 is one of the most beloved chapters in all of Scripture, and Paul opens it as the thanksgiving that answers the cry of Romans 7: Christ has come, and there is now no condemnation for those who are in...

Have you ever assumed you already knew everyone God does - and doesn't - love? What if the nation you most feared and despised turned out to be the very people God was working to save? The story of Jonah is all too often regarded as a children's tale about a big fish, but in today's lesson we unpack it as something far weightier: God confronting the most powerful, most brutal empire on earth, and...

Jesus warns his disciples against unforgiveness. His warning is so strong that it is uncomfortable for many modern listeners to even hear. This comes in the very same passage as Christ's directions for church discipline, therefore we also consider how it relates and applies to discipleship in the Church. Listen as Pastor Glenn Jones exhorts the congregation from Matthew 18:35 to practice forgivene...

Have you ever wondered about how sanctified you can be in the Christian life? Can you free yourself completely from sin? What about the Spirit of God living in you? What about obeying God's Law and putting to death your sin? Romans 7 is one of the most disputed passages among theologians regarding whether Paul is describing the present life of the Christian or not. And while that dispute is necess...

Have you ever felt the weight of warning someone you love, only to watch them walk away unmoved? Do you know the difference between being responsible for someone's soul and being responsible to warn it? In Ezekiel 33:1-11, God gives the prophet a sobering parable of the watchman on the wall — the one who sees the sword coming and must sound the trumpet, whether or not anyone listens. Pastor Kurt S...

Jesus gives the disciples instructions on corrective discipline within the congregation, which has historically been identified as a true mark of the Church. In these specific verses, Jesus calls all Christians individually to work to maintain genuine and unbroken relationships with one another, telling us that we much go to our brother if he sins against us so that repentance and restoration can...

When you think of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, do you think about your own death and resurrection? Do you ever look forward to the day you will never die again? Well, you should - every day, in fact - and that's exactly where Paul's letter takes us next. After the Apostle completed his Gospel presentation in Romans chapter 5, he chose to launch into a series of apologetic questions and answers agai...

In this lesson, we reach the end of Paul's Gospel presentation in Romans chapter 5 where Paul turns to his application of the Gospel in the life of the Christian. What is the fruit of the Gospel? Peace with God. And how is it possible that we can have peace with God? Because we have been reconciled to him in Christ Jesus and we are now friends of God, by grace alone. Listen as Pastor Glenn Jones p...

God works through covenants. Jesus, in his earthly ministry, worked in light of God's covenant with Israel. This affected how and when Jesus went to those who were outside the covenant God had established in the Old Testament. In this lesson, we hear about a Canaanite woman coming to Jesus to beg for him to heal her demon possessed child and the response the Lord gave to her because of her faith....

This passage of Romans introduces the primary questions that the Apostle Paul will deal with over the next several chapters. Paul re-engages his Jewish opponent's objections and explains how their behavior and beliefs are completely out of accord with father Abraham whom they so deeply love and respect. Most importantly, Paul gives his audience a clear picture of the doctrine of Justification by e...

Some theologians have called this passage of Scripture the most important words ever written in the history of the world! In this lesson, we hear the climactic conclusion to the Apostle Paul's Gospel and why his Gospel is more honorable than any other good news that mankind might claim to have. Behold, the righteousness of God, which has been made manifest, not by the law, but by faith! Listen as...

How does Jesus want us to read his parables that were given almost 2000 years ago? What do the parables mean for us today in light of what they meant for those to whom they were first given? The parables tell a very specific story and we must learn how to hear to them rightly. Listen as Elder Fred Thompson preaches from Matthew 13 on the 8th Sunday of Trinity Season, July 26, 2026.

James' Epistle goes to great length to teach us how to use the tongue. In this text he goes so far as to say we should all be slow to speak and quick to listen, especially when something upsetting has taken place. But even more so, James is saying that we should be quick to listen to God's word and learn from God how to treat others in difficult situations that kindle the anger of man. Listen as P...

The first half of Romans chapter 3 is the ground work for what Paul will answer in detail later in Chapters 6 through 11 of his letter. But even more than simple foreshadowing in his own letter, Paul draws us into the courtroom on the final Day of Judgment, demonstrating to everyone that God will not give any mercy to those who bring objections or complaints to him - for all are under sin and no o...

Today we return to one of Jesus’ most familiar teachings; the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13. To begin with, we consider why familiarity with Scripture can sometimes dull our hearing rather than deepen it. Then, moving through the sower, the seed, the soils, and the fruit, we find that this Gospel story invites the hearer to examine the condition of their heart by how it responds to the word o...

Isaiah tells us to seek the Lord while he is near. This does not mean what many modern readers think it does, as though this were a call by preachers for people to get saved every time they hear the Gospel spoken. Rather, this is a call for God's people to respond to God, himself, when his word is spoken and his fellowship is offered - namely when they gather together on the appointed day as a con...

Romans chapter 2 stands as one of the Apostle Paul's harder sayings in the New Testament. Whether it is his act of impersonating his opponents, warning against religious hypocrisy, or telling Jews how unimpressive their circumcisions are outwardly... Paul destroys any potential strongholds his opponents think they can take refuge in so as to survive the coming Day of judgment. Listen as Pastor Gle...

The progress of the Kingdom through the Gospel works itself out in the world a certain way: First comes the Gospel, then conflict, then conquest, and finally peace. God gives life to the new order of the Kingdom while he lets the old order of the world starve and perish as the Gospel spreads throughout the nations. Listen as Fred Thompson preaches from Matthew 10:34-42 about Jesus bringing a sword...

This is our second week in Paul's letter to the Romans. In this passage, the Apostle Paul begins to proclaim his Gospel, telling the Roman Christians that his Gospel is more honorable than Caesar's Gospel because it brings the Apocalypse now: Salvation to every believer and wrath to every unbeliever. No one has to wait until the final judgment, because the Gospel of Jesus Christ brings God's right...

Men as husbands and fathers are invested with great glory and responsibility, therefore the Apostle Paul reminds Timothy that the story of Genesis teaches us exactly who God made us to be and how our actions can result in either the blessing or cursing of those whom God has placed under our care. Listen as Elder Glenn Jones gives the exhortation to our fathers on the occasion of Father's Day, June...

Trinity Season marks the beginning of our first sermon series through a letter of Paul in the New Testament. The letter to the Romans is not only Paul's greatest and most treasured work in the Bible, it is also one of his most debated among theologians. This week, Elder Glenn Jones takes us through the introduction to the letter, setting the background context for its purpose and the reason behind...

The book of Hosea is an ever present and relevant word from God to his people, and that includes present day Christian nations that were built upon the truth of God and once faithfully served his Kingdom. In Hosea, God promised to raze Israel to the ground in judgment through a foreign nation, yet he offered them mercy and hope that he would raise them to the heavenlies if they repented and turned...