In the Fire

This week we spend an episode looking at the book of Ruth - yes, the whole thing! One of the most fascinating books of the Bible, and certainly one of the most overlooked and important ones, the story told here gives us plenty to look to as believers (and non-believers, too!). It gives us several examples of people that we can follow in our daily lives, and connects in some very interesting and si...

The Book of Psalms teaches us a lot. It includes the heights and depths of human emotions and the incredible characteristics of God (among many other things). Notably, each Psalm has a different theme. Some are Psalms of praise, some of lament or sorrow, and some of prophecy or royalty - just to name a few. In episode 25 of 'In the Fire' we take a look at various examples of each of these themes,...

At the beginning of Jesus's great Sermon on the Mount, he outlines a list of ways that Christians are to live our lives (The Beatitudes). According to him, these driving characteristics of believers are important in a couple of key ways. First, they are encouraging to us as followers of God as they allow us to receive heavenly rewards in the day of judgement. Second, they allow others to see these...

Shortly after Jesus rises from the grave, he disguises himself for a fun little conversation with two guys on the road out of Jerusalem after witnessing the Crucifixion. It's the content of this conversation that we are most interested in here, though. These two followers of Jesus are experiencing doubts in their faith - and rightfully so, as they just watched as their savior was killed. So, how d...

For our first Easter episode, the fellas take a look through Mark’s Gospel (specifically, Mark 15) to see how he writes about the moments leading up to Jesus’s crucifixion, death, and ultimate resurrection. A close look at the details that Mark describes in his account of these moments reveals that not only was Jesus crucified and resurrected to conquer death, but in the process he was also tragic...

In this episode, we journey into the book of Philippians (specifically, Philippians chapter 4) to learn some life lessons from Paul. In this chapter, Paul writes about the idea of being content with what we have – or do not have – in our lives. As we dig into how Paul describes a true life spent following Christ, we find that it all comes back to the idea of perspective. Find out what that means b...

It's a simple fact of life: our words can be used to build others up, tear others down, stir up trouble, or calm down a situation. Believe it or not, the Bible spends a lot of time focusing on the power of speech and how we should carefully watch the words that come out of our mouths. The ability to control one's speech is often equated with wisdom in Scripture, so it's no mistake that some of the...

Welcome to the 19th installment of 'In the Fire' with Justin, Peter, and Thomas! This week, we revisit our friends David and Paul and address the topic of worship. Take a trip with us into 1 Chronicles 16 and Romans 12 as we see how David and Paul give us Biblical examples and lessons on what it truly means to worship God in spirit and in truth. We find out that worship is a lot more than a Sunday...

If you've listened to this podcast so far, you've heard that humility is a concept that comes up quite often throughout Scripture. Since we've discussed it so frequently to this point, we figured we'd spend a full episode on the subject. Listen and read along as we take a journey into the fourth chapter of the book of James before seeing what Jesus teaches us about having a 'childlike' humility in...

The second part of a two-part series, this episode takes a look at the many names used for Jesus throughout the Bible. These include actual names (Immanuel, for example) as well as various things Jesus is called (like 'Son of Man'), and like we saw last week, each name carries its own special significance. As we find out, these names point to messianic themes throughout the Old and New Testament i...

The Bible makes it quite clear from start to finish that we are to take God's name with fullness of sincerity, awe, and reverence. From the Ten Commandments to the words of Jesus himself, the name of God is a powerful piece of our lives and our faith. Further, the Bible contains hundreds of different names in the Hebrew language that refer to the Lord, with each of them revealing a new characteris...

Some of the greatest writers of the Bible spend time focusing on what it means to have wisdom, where wisdom comes from, and how we can seek it out in our lives here on earth. And while there have been many 'wise' individuals in world history (both fictional and real), there is a clear distinction between worldly wisdom and that of God. That's what we discuss in episode 15 of 'In the Fire' as we ba...

After Jesus teaches his first parable, his disciples ask, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?" To answer this question, we take a look at that very first parable, the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13 (also found in Mark 4 and Luke 8). By digging into this passage and other parts of Scripture, we try and dissect why Jesus used parables in his teachings and how we can look back at them no...

When Jesus died on the Cross, three of his disciples (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) make a point of saying that veil of the temple was torn in two. Why do they record this specific fact, and what does it mean? Taking a look at the book of Exodus as well as a few passages in Hebrews, we break down the symbolic, historical, and spiritual significance of the veil being torn. Ultimately, we draw some key c...

The last two weeks, we've covered Romans 13 and Romans 14...So, what could this week's passage be? You guessed it - Romans 15! This episode, we learn more from Paul as he discusses building each other up with encouragement and glorifying God by submitting to each other in humility and patience. These truths bring us back to the idea of hope and how believers can approach life in this world knowing...

We're back for the 11th episode of "In the Fire." This time, we move from last week's Romans 13 study to take a look at the very next chapter, Romans 14. Divisions in the Christian Church go back to the very beginning, so how are we called to handle differences in beliefs? That's what we hope to learn from Paul in this chapter as he writes about how to interact with other believers who may have di...

In light of recent events in the United States, our tenth episode takes a look at a difficult topic: how we, as Christians, are called to respond to our governing authorities - and more importantly, how this factors into to the greater Kingdom of God. Paul and Peter both write that we are to submit to those in power, but what exactly do they mean? And to what extent are we to do so? We answer thes...

After a week off for Christmas, we are back to take an in-depth look at John 15. Specifically, we closely examine the analogy used by Jesus of the vine and the branches, and how we fit into that and God's larger plan. Our apologies for the truncated episode...part 2 of this one had some issues in the upload process and was forced to be cut off. However, please enjoy the first part of John 15 and b...

With Christmas just around the corner, this week's episode looks at one of the most important people in the entire Bible: Mary, the mother of Jesus. Grab your Bible and jump into the fire as we discuss the great example that Mary can set for us with her faith and courageous service to the Lord. This week's Scripture comes to us courtesy of Luke - specifically, Luke 1. Get in the Christmas spirit a...

What are some things that you do to find peace in your life? What are some things that get in the way of that? This week's episode addresses some of these issues by looking at the circumstances of (soon-to-be king) David's life in 1 Samuel and examining his response there and through his own words in the Psalms. Find out how you can attain Biblical peace through God and His Son by taking a listen...

We dive into one of our most difficult passages this week as we read Revelation 4. This pivotal chapter in a book packed with meaning and intrigue provides us with an all-important view of God and His sovereignty. Grab your Bible and listen in as we break down the importance of the chapter and draw connections to the Old Testament, the Gospels, and more. Be sure to like, subscribe, and share if yo...

"Vanity of vanties...All is vanity!" - or so says the writer of Ecclesiastes. But what exactly does this mean? Is Ecclesiastes really meant to make us feel depressed about our lives on earth, or is it actually pointing towards something far greater and more hopeful? This is what we take a look at this week as we dive into one of the Bible's more challenging books. The wise words in Ecclesiastes 1...

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, the three guys take a look at examples of thankfulness in the Bible. How can we look up to Paul and David, and what can we learn from the life of Jesus about giving thanks at all times? That's the question we try and answer here as we check out some passages from Ephesians, Psalms, and Luke. Enjoying the show? Be sure to like, subscribe, and share!

What is love? That's the question of the day for the third episode of "In the Fire." Listen in as the three guys enter the furnace once again, this time to spend some time on Biblical Love, where it comes from, and what exactly it means. This week's Scripture is from 1 John 4, John 5, and Galatians 5. Be sure to like, subscribe, and share if you enjoy listening to "In the Fire" - we are glad to ha...

In this episode, the guys jump into a lesson as old as the world itself: God's supremacy over all the earth. This week, we take a look at Scripture from Isaiah and Daniel and tie it into a couple New Testament passages from Philippians and the Gospel of John. We learn about pride with our old friend Nebuchadnezzar and other ancient kings and contrast that with the humility we see in Jesus. Just fo...