Ron Johnson Discipleship Podcast

The coming of Jesus means "good news of great joy for all people!" (Luke 2:10) Our Christian worldview provides a unique vantage point as we navigate the many challenges of life this side of eternity. In our podcast today, we'll provide what Doug Wilson calls, "Six Stone-Cold Reasons for Confidence and Upbeat Optimism" as we approach this Christmas celebration!  Find out more a...

As we ramp up to Christmas, it's a great time to be reminded of the impact our Savior King, JESUS, has on culture. Jesus came to save sinners and to transform human hearts. Doug Wilson reminds us that, "Cultures apart from Christ cannot avoid decadence...and must eventually call down the chaos." This is where we are today. But this condition is nothing new. The problem is unbelief and th...

Thanksgiving is in the rear-view mirror and Christmas is just around the corner! And for Hunter Biden, Christmas has come early. On the first day of December, President Biden granted "a full and unconditional pardon." After months of assurances that "no one is above the law," Biden's actions sure scream otherwise! His miscarriage of justice gives us a moment to reflect on the d...

Life, and especially our life together in the public square, can be highly complicated and difficult for Christians to navigate. President elect Trump has been assembling his cabinet and he's nominating individuals who are outside of the DC establishment. They all share one common characteristic: they are disruptors. Each appointee is hand-picked to dismantle the current broken and corrupt system....

Most Americans expressed concerns that our country was headed in the wrong direction. The election gave them a chance to turn things around and they sure did! We witnessed an overwhelming reversal in leadership, culminating in what looks like a clear majority in both the House and Senate and President Trump back in the White House. We discuss the priorities of this new administration in light of b...

Today we talk about the stunning results from the presidential election. What was behind the greatest political comeback in history? Where do we go from here?

The final command of Jesus to His Church is what we have come to call the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-19). It involves sharing the gospel with all nations and teaching these new disciples to obey all the commands Jesus has given. How does this command of Christ square with a robust doctrine of free speech?  Does this obedience to Christ involve coercion or force? How does the Old Testament law...

In Acts 4, Peter and John are accused of spreading "propaganda." They were banned from the public arena and threatened with severe punishments if they continued speaking. Sadly, their experience is the norm in most parts of the world as approximately 70% of the earth's population live in nations where religious liberty is highly restricted. This is because religious liberty is itself a r...

On today's podcast, I am joined by my good friend, Apostle Keith Tucci. Keith serves as the Senior Leader for the Network of Related Pastors ( NRPastors.com ) and has a rich history of biblical cultural engagement. We discuss the role of Christians in the upcoming national election. How should we approach this responsibility? What issues are at stake? Why is this election important? What happens i...

One of the most common myths we hear today is that Christianity is a form of cultural oppression. If Christians have their way, what will become of the unbelievers or non-religious? While these are valid questions, an equally valid question is what is the impact of a secular government on the rights and liberties of others? Since secularism has no transcendental ground for its claims, what keeps i...

Our Founders all agreed that civic freedom was impossible apart from Christian virtue. American statesman, Samuel Adams observed, “Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt.” Republics do not survive apart from republican virtue. When Christ is rejected, a long line of fallen, petty, self-seeking poli...

Many Christians are completely satisfied with the notion of a secular federal government serving as the referee for determining what is officially "moral" behavior when it comes to public policy decisions. They are uncomfortable with the idea of bringing Jesus into the public square. They want a gospel that is "unfettered" from all the political baggage that makes things so con...

Should our morality as a nation be grounded in God's will or the will of the people? Ironically, our advocates for a liberal secular democracy are okay as long as the majority is not held by Christians, especially those who run for office or who try to legislate according to biblical morality. Then you are labeled a "threat" to democracy! How do we apply the Lordship of Jesus to our publ...

In our cultural skirmishes, a common tactic is to use a pejorative label to attack or to discredit your enemy. One of those labels attached to believers in Christ is the name "Christian nationalist." It evokes scary images of the Inquisition or the Salem witch trials. If you wear that name badge, you are an object of scorn and derision. So, what is a Christian nationalist, anyway? If we...

The Bible declares, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."( Proverbs 1:7) This means we have two choices as a nation. We can seek and follow the wisdom of God as we order our life together or we can reject God and His law and pursue the path of radical autonomy. If we will not be governed by Christ, we must necessarily be governed by someone or something else. Neutrality is a...

The Scriptures clearly define the role and scope of government. All those in authority are God's servants. Their authority is not absolute but delegated. They are tasked with the power to punish wicked behavior (Romans 13:1-4). In other words, there is a legitimate form of government coercion and an illegitimate expression as well. As Doug Wilson warns, “Before fining someone, or flogging him, or...

While Christians are often attacked for trying to bring our worldview into the public arena, those doing the accusing often hide behind the veil of neutrality. They act as if they are non-biased and without their own agenda. Of course, this is patently false. And as they work to advance their own agenda, they use words to destroy all who disagree with them. Their favorite tactic is to weaponize th...

It was Benjamin Franklin who noted, “Our new Constitution is now established, everything seems to promise it will be durable; but, in this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes." And it seems that governments who ignore their constitutional boundaries must levy ever-increasing amounts of revenue, via taxation, to simply maintain the ever-expanding bureaucracy that results. As Chris...

For the Christian, life is simple. God's authority outranks that of the king. The king is to do what God says, not the other way around. But for the secularist, what outranks the highest human authority? Herein lies the problem. An autonomous state will , in the end, commit overreach and the rights of the people will be trampled. This overreach is often manifested in the area of taxation. As Doug...

In America today, we are witnessing the epic failure of democratic secularism. Secularism is the false belief that we can function as a nation and society without any reference to God. Whether it's the frightening assassination attempt on our former president or the recent White House leadership coup, we are witnessing the profound loss of justice, order, civility and individual liberty that resul...

On today's podcast, we discuss some of the high points from the Alliance Defending Freedom conference Pastor Ron recently attended. We also talk about the power of our words to shape the world around us. And we marvel at the way God uses the most unlikely people to accomplish His kingdom purposes. Once again, our Christian worldview helps us make sense of it all! Find out more at https://ron-johns...

The late Francis Schaeffer observed, "When truth retreats, tyranny advances." This has never been more evident than in American culture today. Without a transcendent standard, objective truth, there is no limit to what governments can do, and no accountability for their actions. On this 248th birthday of American independence, we must renew our commitment to stand boldly for the truth as...

Have you ever wondered why "Pride" month is observed every June? And why do we designate the entire month when Veterans, for instance, are given only one day? What is the connection between Ishtar and the month of June? Where did the idea of "pride parades" come from? And why is Whoopi so mad??? We'll discuss all of this and more in our podcast today. Find out more at https://r...

The Stonewall uprising and the resulting movement were ignited by a female with male attributes, a fighter, a protector of alehouses, a fierce, angry, raging leader of those who crossed the boundaries of gender, the inciter of a multitude of feminized men. And like Ishtar, the goddess of storms, her name was - Stormé. Ishtar had returned and unleashed a storm that would set in motion a movement th...

No other symbol was so prominently associated with Ishtar than the lion. In ancient prayers and poems, she was referred to as the "great light, lioness of heaven." The lion was her chosen platform for waging war and inflicting vengeance. It should come as no surprise that just two doors down from the Stonewall Inn was another bar called "Lion's Head," the same sign that, in anc...