Haven Today

Despair can loom over us like a fearsome giant. And doubt can become like a prison cell. John Bunyan envisioned both in The Pilgrim’s Progress but he didn’t forget—God has provided a means of escape.

Because he loved the world, Demas deserted Paul. So, when we read about Demas’ silver mine in The Pilgrim’s Progress, red flags go up.

It was a delight to the eyes, but deadly for the discipleship journey with Jesus. In The Pilgrim’s Progress, Vanity Fair represents the world we live in and our need to flee to Christ.

In his wisdom, Solomon wrote about how, “there’s nothing new under the sun.” And a book written 350 years ago, a Christian masterpiece, is a good example.

Christians often talk about spiritual battles, but what does God’s Word tell us about them? What do we do when we find ourselves in one?

The cross is at the very center of what it means to be a Christian. It’s a symbol of weakness and foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those who are being saved, it’s the power of God.

“Bad news sells,” they say, but only in news headlines. When it comes to the Gospel, we’re tempted to soft-pedal the bad news. Yet without that truth, there is no Gospel.

On this episode, David Wollen, with special guest Tyler Van Halteren, talk about how the storyline of The Pilgrim’s Progress maps onto the common experience of the Christian life.

It’s the most important Christian book most believers today have never read. Yet for three centuries, it was read and cherished by Christians everywhere.

What’s Revelation primarily about? Is it the future, the end of the world, the Antichrist? A closer read invites us to put our focus somewhere far better—the Lord Jesus Christ.

They’re known as the “lukewarm” church. Jesus warned them that unless they turned back to him, he would spit them out of his mouth.

Jesus told an ancient church that he held a special key in his hand and that there was a door only he could open. What did he mean by this?

When it comes to spiritual maturity, there’s a difference between reputation and reality. We often cannot discern between the two, but Jesus does. In Revelation he says, “I know your works.”

Thyatira was a bustling center of business. The church was not experiencing direct persecution, but Jesus was about to send trouble their way. Why? Just one word …tolerance.

Some cities mentioned in the Bible are familiar— like Jerusalem or Ephesus. But what about Pergamum. Jesus wrote a letter to this church and said, they were living where Satan had his throne.

Jesus makes it clear to the church in Smyrna: Some of them would be imprisoned and some would face death for their faith. But Jesus is equally clear — DO. NOT. FEAR.

Ephesus looms large in God’s Word, and the Apostle John pastored this ancient church for decades. However, Jesus had a concern and a warning for them that still applies today.

John had seen and heard Jesus more times than he could count. So why did he fall on his face in fear when Jesus appeared to him during his old age?

Near the end of his life, the Apostle John was exiled on an island. Jesus appeared to him in a vision and instructed him to write down letters for seven churches. These letters are as relevant today a

Where is your hope? And just as important for a Christian, when is your hope? In other words, is your hope in this life or in the life to come?

C.S. Lewis knew the cost of following Christ. But when he met his wife, that cost became even more personal. Tune in to hear about Lewis’ marriage and the great wedding feast of the Lamb.

When C.S. Lewis finally turned to the Lord, he faced scrutiny and rejection from many. But he had finally found joy, the joy of Christ.

A dying mother and trench warfare. Both painful experiences for CS Lewis. But in the midst of terrible suffering, God used those experiences for good.

He was a once-in-a-generation intellectual whose Christian witness impacted millions of lives. But how did C.S. Lewis come to faith?

What’s the relationship between grace and effort in the life of a Christian? And how does the humanity of Jesus enter into that question?