Practicology Podcast

We all love to be insiders – to have special access and privileges. That’s exactly what God does for every believer in the Lord Jesus. Of all the gospel blessings God gives us in Christ, the highest one is likely this – he adopts us as his sons. Are you enjoying your VIP status in God’s family? Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Follow the Practicology Podcast...

Even though sin and temptation often get the better of us, we don’t need to succumb to a defeatist attitude and give up. In this episode, the Apostle John teaches us to adopt a humble, optimistic, can-do attitude in the battle against sin. By faith, you can do this! This is the final episode in a mini-series on overcoming sin in our lives. See also episodes 116 and 118. Scriptures Referenced...

C.S. Lewis said, “Joy is the serious business of Heaven.” And when Jesus Christ turns water into wine at a wedding banquet, he is showing us he isn’t a killjoy – he is the one that satisfies our innate thirst for joy. Scriptures Referenced: John 2:1-11 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Follow the Practicology Podcast on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MandMsPo...

Contemporary culture thinks that obeying God is oppressive. But the truth is that obeying God’s commands is liberating. The way we become our true selves is by denying the sinful desires inside us and by obeying God’s Word instead. This is the second episode in a mini-series on overcoming sin in our lives. Scriptures Referenced: 1 John 5:1-15 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more epis...

All of God’s people need a dairy diet. So… got milk? Sometimes the Scriptures speak of moving on from milk to solid foods, but in Peter’s teaching, there is no spiritual growth for any of us apart from milk. Catch the practical appetite aids at the end to help increase your dairy consumption too! Scriptures Referenced: 1Peter 2:2 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. F...

[This episode touches on some sensitive subjects and may not be appropriate for younger listeners.] We like to think that some of our sins are private, not harming anyone but ourselves. But the Apostle John exposes such thinking as delusional. When we indulge in “private” sins like pornography, we’re not only participating in the sexual exploitation of others; we’re also ro...

In Judo one learns not to resist when attacked, but to yield. In a very real way, the gospel teaches Christians to do the same. Whether it’s Satan, or your own guilty conscience accusing you of sin, learn to agree with the charges. When you do, the enemy’s attack to harm you can actually strengthen your enjoyment of Christ. Scriptures Referenced: Rom 5:6-8; 8:32 Visit PracticologyPodca...

How do you respond when someone tries to correct you? Your reaction is one of the telltale signs of whether you are truly a wise person or not. From the wisdom literature of Proverbs, this episode provides four reasons to listen well to words of rebuke. Scriptures Referenced: Prov 9:8-9; 12:1; 13:18; 15:31; 17:10; 25:12; 27:6; Jam 3:17; 5:19-20 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Foll...

At first the empty grave made Mary Magdalene’s day worse. But then it started making things better and better. The resurrection of Christ is not just a fact of history, and a hope for the future, but a reality that transforms the present. The empty grave is bigger than your bad day! Scriptures Referenced: John 20 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Follow the Practicology Podcas...

Why is Good Friday called Good Friday? What is so good about that day? In this ultra-brief episode, Mike & Matthew tell you what you need to know about Good Friday. Scriptures Referenced: 1Cor 5:7; 1Cor 15:3-4; 1Pet 1:18-20; Rom 14:5; Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Follow the Practicology Podcast on Twitter and Facebook

We’re bombarded daily with messages and spiritual truth claims from every direction. How can we distinguish the true from the phoney? In this episode we work through 1 John 4:1-6 and learn to activate, calibrate, and comfort our spiritual baloney detectors. Scriptures Referenced: 1 Joh 4:1-6; Joh 16:33 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Follow the Practicology Podcast on Twitte...

The Christian gospel stands or falls on the issue of whether or not Jesus Christ rose from the dead. But why is that? Tune in to hear Mike & Matthew explain the personal implications of the resurrection, and what evidence exists to justify the gospel’s claim that Jesus is alive. Scriptures Referenced: Lk 24:3; Jn 20:28-29; 1Cor 15:3-8, 44 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes....

What should I do when my friend has fallen into sin? The work of restoration is a valuable and much needed ministry, but it cannot be attempted in a self-confident, mechanical manner. With sensitivity and very helpful insight from Galatians 5-6, guest contributor Stephen Grant teaches us to help up, hold up, and build up one another. Scriptures Referenced: Mat 18:15-17; Gal 6:1-6 Visit Practicolog...

We might not want to admit it, but some of us worry that heaven will be a let down. The final chapter of John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress can help chase such doubts away and replace them with strong hunger pangs for heaven. Tune in to set your mind on the welcome and wonders of heaven. Scriptures Referenced: Rev 21:4; 2Pet 1:11; 1Cor13:12 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes...

Struggles with depression, doubt, and despair are a somber reality for many of God’s people. If that is your experience, you aren’t alone in walking that dark path. Many noble Christians have had to endure these trials – including the character, Christian, in Pilgrim’s Progress. Is there deliverance from Giant Despair and Doubting Castle? And where can we find hope to carry...

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” That famous quote is true, isn’t it?! And yet we still go on comparing ourselves to others in every sphere of life, even in the church. So through his characters Christian and Faithful, John Bunyan shows us how we can learn to compare ourselves with other believers in a way that serves our joy instead of stealing it. Scriptures Referenced: Joh 21...

The life of a Christian pilgrim is not easy, and it would be much harder if we didn’t have other believers to support us. This is what a local church is for. In Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan illustrates a high view of the local church, and teaches us some needed, insightful lessons about how our church fellowship can be a more Christ-exalting experience. Scriptures Referenced: Psa 26...

Long before Adventures in Odyssey invented the Imagination Station, John Bunyan conceived the Interpretation Station. There the Interpreter teaches us many lessons to help us on our heavenly pilgrimage. Who should we choose as spiritual guides in life? How do we overcome sin, live with an eternal perspective, and persevere through attacks on our faith? The Interpreter (who represents the Holy Spir...

Attention: the 2023 Practicology Reading Challenge begins now! This February join us in reading John Bunyan’s classic adventure tale, “The Pilgrim’s Progress.” Tune in to hear more or less everything you need to know to join in. There will be a prize draw for those who finish the challenge. See the Practicology website for a reading schedule!

What would it take to make you sing again? If you could hear what God calls you, that would do it. If you could know how God feels about you, that would do it. If you could see how he clothes you, that would do it. And if you could see what he’s promised you, that would do it too! Scriptures Referenced: Ps 149; Mar 1:11; Luk 15; 1Joh 2:25 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Foll...

The gospel is Good News For You – which is why we are calling this new series that explains the gospel “GNFY”. In this first episode of the series, we think about the Christian teaching of substitution – how does it work that the ancient historical death of Jesus of Nazareth impacts us today? How could his death atone for my sins? Scriptures Referenced: 1Cor 15:3-4; Titus 2...

For many of us, our joy can take a hit in January and February. Often we assume that negative emotions are a sign that we have done something wrong in our relationship with God. But what if the opposite was true? What if we could learn to hear a different message from our emotional struggles, a message that (strangely enough) would bring us comfort? For Christians, our negative emotions can actual...

We don’t know what changes 2023 will bring, but we do know one thing that won’t change – God will still be faithful. We can be up and down, but God’s faithfulness to us doesn’t hinge upon whether we are up or down. The church in Corinth had more than one issue that needed cleaning up, but God was faithful to them because God always sticks by His people. And as Matthew...

While good grandmas might go on shopping sprees at Christmas, Grandma Athaliah preferred killing sprees. And in one of her evil rampages, she almost succeeded in wrecking Christmas forever. Thank God for Aunt Jehosheba, though! Dale Ralph Davis has memorably called her “the Lady who saved Christmas.” This Christmas we need to keep our spiritual armour on, be ready to serve as God&#8217...

What if the most difficult times of life are actually the times in which God is working most actively to bless us? In this episode journey back to the strange scene in Genesis 32 where Jacob wrestles with God. When it comes to God and his desire to bless us, we always need to expect the unexpected! Scriptures Referenced: Gen 32:22-32 Visit PracticologyPodcast.com for more episodes. Follow the Prac...