Grounded & Growing

When God revealed Himself through Scripture, He did not mask Himself behind mysteries and riddles. Listen today to learn how the Bible helps us see God clearly and know Him truly. ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Clarity of Scripture Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trumpet Ministries, visit the Sword & Trumpet Website . For m...

Where did our English Bibles come from? Join us to learn how our modern translations were developed, and how you can know and love Christ better through them. ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Preservation of Scripture BIBLE STUDY TOOLS: biblearc.com, blueletterbible.com, stepbible.org For a more detailed introduction to the preservation and translation of Scripture, see the book God’s Word Written b...

God has providentially preserved the Bible ever since it was written. Listen to learn how familiarity with our copies of the Bible can increase our confidence in the  Bible's trustworthiness. ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Preservation of Scripture BIBLE STUDY TOOLS: biblearc.com, blueletterbible.com, stepbible.org For a more detailed introduction to the preservation and translation of Script...

The Bible is a reliable witness to reality. Join us to learn about God's trustworthiness and why His character leads us to trust the Bible. ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Inerrancy of Scripture (4 Part Series) Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trumpet Ministries, visit the Sword & Trumpet Website . For more theological c...

Are the words of the Bible more significant than the words of any other book? Join us today to learn about God's authority and how He exercises His authority through the Bible. RELATED EPISODES From the Mouth of God: Inspiration and Authority Third Culture and the Loss of Biblical Authority ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Authority of Scripture Inspiration, Authority, and the Christian Third C...

The Bible is God's word to us. Listen now to hear how God spoke to the biblical authors, and how He still speaks today. RELATED EPISODES From the Mouth of God: Definitions From the Mouth of God: Inspiration Theories From the Mouth of God: Biblical Support From the Mouth of God: Inspiration and Authority ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Inspiration of Scripture - Part 1 The Inspiration of Script...

How do we know what writings should be included in our Bibles? Join us to learn the questions we need to ask to recognize which writings were spoken by God. RELATED EPISODES Approaching Canon Principles of Canon - Part 1 Principles of Canon - Part 2 Old Testament Canon New Testament Canon Is the Apocrypha Scripture? Close of the Canon ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Canon of Scripture (3 Part Serie...

Scripture is essential to all true faith. Listen today to hear how God reveals Himself through creation and through the Bible, and why it matters. ARTICLES FOR FURTHER STUDY The Necessity of Divine Revelation (7 Part Series) Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trumpet Ministries, visit the Sword & Trumpet Website . For more the...

Why does justification by faith alone matter? Because if we discard or downplay it, we are of necessity also discarding and downplaying grace. If our works are necessary to complete our salvation, then God’s grace isn’t sufficient to save. If our gospel is to be God-glorifying, it must be God-centered. And if it is to be God-centered, it must be grace-based. That is, it must be about what God has...

Jesus does not require anything of us poor wretched sinners except that we come to Him in faith. His love is offered freely to all who are willing to receive it. This grace compels us to obey. As Isaac Watts expressed, “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.” This kind of love demands that we give everything—my soul, my life, my all. If we come to Christ with hearts brimming...

What is the relationship between faith and works? The apostle Paul taught that we are saved by grace through faith apart from works. If we are justified by faith alone, why does James say that Abraham was “justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?” Did James disagree with Paul's gospel? Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about...

Scripture speaks consistently of salvation coming to those who believe, those who have faith. That much is clear, but the bigger question is, “What is faith?” This episode answers that very question. Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trumpet Ministries, visit the Sword & Trumpet Website . For more theological content, visit t...

The work of Christ by which He accomplished our justification is the linchpin of the gospel. Until our sin problem is dealt with—that sinful nature which we exercise in rebellion against God—the rest of the blessing of the gospel remain aloof. It is Christ’s atoning work on our behalf which provides not only justification but all of redemption.  Support the show A production of The Sword and Trump...

To appreciate justification we must first realize who we are and where we are headed apart from Christ. Without God’s grace, we are: justly condemned to eternal judgment, under divine wrath, alienated from God, in bondage to sin and Satan, and captive to our hearts which prefer the darkness of sin to the light of Christ. Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn m...

 J.C. Wenger said it is a “queer notion that because the Anabaptists were vigorous in their demands for a life of earnest Christian discipleship, they were therefore unclear on grace and justification.” In the same context he references Menno Simons, who set forth a clear doctrine of justification by faith, one compatible with Reformed doctrine. Menno does, however, constantly emphasize that any t...

Did the Anabaptists believe in justification by faith alone or were the Reformers alone in that view? While we often associate justification with Reformed doctrine, many early Anabaptists accepted justification as an essential gospel doctrine too. Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trumpet Ministries, visit the Sword & Trumpet...

In our efforts to emphasize the importance of obedience, we sometimes hesitate to teach that justification is experienced apart from our works. We fear that, if people realize that they contribute nothing to their standing before God, they will consider themselves free to sin. If we are saved simply by believing, does that not free us to live however we want? The opposite is most certainly true. O...

The nature of Christ’s atonement is becoming a common discussion. It’s an important one, since the atonement is a foundational tenet of Christian doctrine. The atonement is no secondary or tertiary issue. Christ's atoning work is essential to the gospel. His work on the cross is what makes it possible for sinful men to be reconciled to a holy God. Our salvation rests upon Christ’s atonement....

The authority of Scripture is unquestionably one of the fundamental issues of our time. Other presenting issues (such as the atonement, hell, sin, etc.) reveal the underlying issue. We don’t think of ourselves as operating under the authority of the Bible. Sure, we reference the Bible when it supports our view. We use it to validate our opinions, but we don’t allow it to shape them. Until Scriptur...

Persevering faith is not oriented inward, where we dig in, work harder, and do better. Rather, it is oriented outward. Our faith—our confidence—is in Christ. We are to hold fast our confession that Christ has accomplished salvation for us and that we will be saved if we put our faith in Him. Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trum...

Scripture reveals who we really are. It cuts through our facades, exposing our true selves. When it works on us, we are laid bare before God. Though we may be able to maintain a veneer of righteousness in our own efforts, Scripture peels it back and uncovers our sinful hearts. And in the final judgment, it will reveal our sin before the thrice-holy God. Not one thing can be hidden from Scripture’s...

In Christ we can rest from the toil of self-righteousness—our striving to be good enough, our attempts to atone for our own sins. True rest, gospel rest, is experienced when we come to Christ, believing in Him, trusting in Him, and receiving the good things God offers us in Him. Support the show A production of The Sword and Trumpet Ministries. To learn more about The Sword & Trumpet Ministrie...

Christians ought to be confident people. Not in ourselves and not in our works, that's self-righteousness and self-centeredness. Our confidence is never in ourselves; we are those who "put no confidence in the flesh." Our confidence is in Christ. We know, because God has said it is true, that Christ has accomplished salvation for us. Our confidence is in Him. Support the show A prod...

In his call to faithfulness the author of Hebrews is careful to point us to Christ. We are to “give heed to the things we have learned,” not neglecting the salvation God offers us. But the all-important question is: where is that salvation found? In the law? In Moses? In some other historical figure? In some other moral code? No, but salvation is found in Christ. We confess Christ, our mediator, o...

What we believe about the gospel is important. Actually, important is an understatement. The gospel is the very core of the Christian faith. What we believe about the gospel is one of the single defining realities of Christianity. In fact, what we believe about the gospel makes the difference between heaven or hell. This feature episode is an in-depth look at six different views of the gospel, foc...