Rethink Faith with Nelson Jackson III

I've Been Managing People Instead of This: What Genesis 1:28 Really Means Genesis 1:28 told humanity to subdue the earth, not image-bearers. But when we refuse to govern the ground inside us, we start managing people. And we call it leadership. I'm recording from a hotel room in Fort Lauderdale while on tour. My calendar looks like it lost a fight. But my relationship with God is why I&a...

Most high-achievers never stop to ask the right question. Not "am I producing enough?" but "am I actually filling the space my effort created?" This episode unpacks mālāʾ, a Hebrew word from Genesis 1:28 that most people skip right past, and why it reframes everything about presence, legacy, and what you leave behind in every room you walk into. You can be productive. You can b...

Most people stop at fruitfulness. They produce something good, someone benefits, and they call that obedience. But Genesis 1:28 doesn't stop at be fruitful. The very next command is multiply — and in Hebrew, those are two completely different words with two completely different assignments. Pārāh is the apple. The thing you carry, the thing you build, the thing you pour yourself into. But Rāb...

Most of us know we are supposed to build something. A course. A book. A community. A resource. A conversation that needs to happen. And most of us have been sitting on it — and calling that wisdom. In this episode, Nelson sits with the uncomfortable gap between what we know we are made to do and what we have actually released into the world. Drawing from Genesis 1:28, he unpacks the Hebrew word pa...

In this episode, you'll learn why Genesis 1:28 gave humanity 5 commands before sin ever existed—and what that means for your calling today. Before the world existed, God chose you (Ephesians 1:4). Before you were formed, He knew you (Jeremiah 1:5). Then Genesis 1:28 gave humanity 5 commands before the fall: • Be fruitful - Produce what's inside you • Multiply - Make it grow beyond the fi...

The Hebrew word for sin appears in the Bible long before it means  what religion taught you. And once you see where it actually starts,  the whole conversation about guilt, shame, and your relationship  with God changes completely. Chata (חָטָא) — the Hebrew word translated as "sin" throughout  scripture — first appears in Judges 20:16 describing elite slingers  who would not miss their...

Most people who love God and still feel stuck aren't failing — they're  building on a foundation that was quietly bent before it ever reached them. This episode traces one of the most overlooked patterns in all of scripture:  The moment interpretation replaces revelation. It starts in Genesis 3 — not  with the fruit, but with a question. "Did God really say…?" That single  ques...

What if the behavior you keep confessing is only the symptom of something deeper? In this episode, Nelson unpacks the difference between fighting sins and addressing the condition underneath them. Through the woman at the well, Cain and Abel, David and Bathsheba, and Peter’s denial, we explore how Scripture reveals the root beneath the visible struggle. This is not about shame. It is about learnin...

Why do you keep falling into the same sin even after confessing and repenting? The church taught you to fight sins (plural), but Jesus warned about the empty house. In this episode, we break down why the reason you're stuck isn't a willpower problem—it's a diagnosis problem. You'll discover: • The difference between sin (singular) and sins (plural) in 1 John 1:8-9 • What Jesus&...

What if the version of yourself you're chasing was never meant for you? If you've ever felt like you're failing as a Christian or constantly falling short, this episode will change everything. Most of us have been taught that "sin" is just about breaking rules—but the Bible actually uses five completely different Greek words that your English translation flattens into one....

What if sin isn't what you think it is? The Greek word "hamartia" means "to miss the mark"—an archery term. It's not about breaking rules. It's about aiming at the wrong target. In Genesis 3, the serpent convinced Eve she was missing something she already had. She was already made in God's image (Genesis 1:26-27). But the serpent said, "You will be like...

What if the word "sin" doesn't mean what you've been taught? Not because the Bible got it wrong, but because somewhere between the original Greek and our English translations, we lost something critical. In this episode, we're going back to John 8 and the story of the woman caught in adultery. The religious leaders are ready to stone her. They throw her at Jesus' feet...

Sunday: "Hosanna! Save us!" The crowd celebrates Him as their hero. Friday: "Crucify Him!" Same crowd demands His execution. Five days. What happened? When given a choice between Jesus (innocent) and Barabbas (a murderer), the crowd chose the murderer. How do you go from celebration to execution in five days? Most of us are making the same mistake. We want "Hosanna"—G...

There's a verse in the Bible that most men skip right over. It's tucked into 1 Peter 3, easy to miss if you're not paying attention. But this one verse has the power to completely shut down a man's prayer life. Not slow it down. Not delay it. Shut it down. And here's the wild part: It has nothing to do with your faith. Nothing to do with how much you pray or how often you...

Men love quoting Ephesians 5:22. "Wives, submit to your husbands." They'll post it, frame it, and use it to win arguments. But ask them about verse 25? Suddenly, they have somewhere to be. Because verse 25 doesn't give men a leadership manual. It gives them an assignment so extreme that most preachers just skip it. Paul uses the same Greek word to describe what husbands should...

The real reason women won't submit: She's not rebelling. She's responding. This episode is for women who have been called rebellious when you were just responding. And for men who genuinely want to understand. We break down what the Bible actually says about biblical submission for women—and why you can't maintain what was never modeled. IN THIS EPISODE: ✓ The real reason women...

Everyone knows 1 Timothy 2:12: "I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent." It's quoted in debates about women in ministry, biblical submission, and whether women can be pastors. But that's not where Paul started. Verse 8 comes first—and it's about men: "I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands,...

Fear or love—which one is driving your relationships? In this episode, I expose why the 5 love languages teach Christians to operate from fear instead of biblical love, and how this framework gives narcissists the playbook to manipulate you. Discover: • Why 1 John 4:18 proves fear and love can't coexist • How love languages make you vulnerable to manipulation • God's actual blueprint in...

"We say God is love. So why don't we know how to love ourselves?" Over 90% of people don't believe they are lovable. And here's why that matters: The way you love yourself becomes the blueprint for how you love everyone else. In this episode, we're uncovering the revelation hidden in Matthew 22:39—"Love your neighbor AS yourself"—and what it really means whe...

Most of us have been confusing conditions with boundaries our entire lives—and it's destroying our relationships. If you've ever felt like love was given until you messed up, or wondered why setting boundaries feels like you're being unloving, this episode will change everything. In this episode, I break down the biblical difference between conditions and boundaries: • A condition w...

What you call love might actually be destroying your relationships—and the Bible reveals why. In this eye-opening episode, I break down the four types of love in Scripture that most Christians have never learned: agape (God's unconditional love), philia (friendship love), storge (family love), and eros (romantic love). You've been taught that all love is the same and unconditional. But t...

Jesus once called Peter "Satan" to his face—not because Peter was evil, but because Peter was opposing God's plan with good intentions. Peter had just received revelation from God. He had just been called "the rock." And then, moments later, Jesus says: "Get behind me, Satan." What happened? Peter's words—spoken out of love and protection—stood in opposition...

Are you using the Bible as a weapon against others instead of a mirror for yourself? This is the most dangerous spiritual mistake we can make—and it's keeping us trapped in condemnation instead of walking in restoration. In this episode, I break down the #1 biblical mistake that even mature believers make: reading Scripture AT others instead of FOR ourselves. The Bible isn't a weapon to...

Joel 2:25 restoration: What the enemy stole and the hidden key to getting it back. Discover God's promise to restore the years the locusts have eaten and reclaim everything Satan took from your life. EPISODE OVERVIEW: Joel 2:25 contains one of the most powerful promises in Scripture: "I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten." But there's a hidden key...

THE DANIEL FAST ISN'T WHAT DANIEL DID The Daniel Fast isn't what Daniel did in Daniel 1, and that's why the Daniel Fast keeps failing. In this episode, we uncover the biblical truth about the Daniel Fast, why Daniel never called it a fast, and the critical difference between faithfulness and fasting. If you've done the Daniel Fast every January and nothing changes, if you keep...