The Riverchase Readings

In today's podcast, we explore a passage where Jesus sheds more light on the second coming. He tells us that everyone, both righteous and evil, will hear his voice and be resurrected. Some will be resurrected to life while others will be resurrected to judgment.

In today's reading we explore the doctrine of the 2nd Coming of Christ. The Bible makes it clear that God has set a day in the future in which Christ will return to judge the living and dead. On this day the dead in Christ will rise. The "day of the Lord" will be a day of resurrection to life or resurrection to judgement.

In today's podcast, we encounter a turning point in the history of the world. Something happens to exponentially accelerate the sinfulness of mankind. We learn that every intention of the thoughts of people was continually evil. Humanity had become depraved. God decided to judge humanity by bringing about a great flood. In this flood we witness decreation. Thanks be to God that Noah finds favo...

In this Psalm, David is pursued by his enemies and is falsely accused of wrongdoing. He appeals to God to vindicate him. David calls upon the righteous judgment of God to set all things right.

In the church, we find that God calls us to bear with one another as we walk this pilgrim pathway. The Bible brings an interesting tension of "taking care of your business" but also "bearing the burden of your brother/sister." The law of Christ is to love each other and to help bear our brother or sister's load of hardship.

John the Apostle reflects on what makes Christianity different. Long ago Cain hated his brother and killed him. Jesus calls us to a new paradigm of love and care for our brothers and sisters. Cain asked the question, "Am I my brother's keeper?" John answers emphatically - YES!

In our readings today, we see two different paradigms. Lamech was a descendant of Cain, and his mantra in life was to exact revenge on whoever tried to hurt him. Jesus, in his kingdom, calls us to a different way of living. Jesus calls us to the liberation of forgiveness.

In Genesis 4 we witness the first murder in human history. To make matters worse it is not just murder but it is fratricide. In this narrative, we see a young man named Cain who allows jealousy and rage to overtake him. He allows sin to master him and never takes full responsibility for his actions. Instead of having godly sorrow that leads to repentance, he has worldly sorrow that is only concern...

In Psalm 6 David is struggling. He is physically sick and is languishing. To make matters worse his enemies have risen against him. David does the only thing he can do. He decides not to look at his circumstances or what is inside of him but he looks up to God for help.

Jesus Christ took on flesh so he could experience the pain we go through. The ultimate enemy facing humanity is sin which leads to death. God had to become flesh so that he could go into death to rescue us. Jesus died so that he could destroy the power of death.

John tells his readers that to remain in sin is to follow the lead of the devil. The devil's master tactic is to try to enslave us to sin and drive us deeper into death. One of the main reasons came to this world was to destroy the works of the devil.

In our story, we will see the theme of the "head crusher" come with the defeat of Goliath by David. In Genesis 3:15 in the protoevangelium, we see the promise that the seed of the woman will crush the head of the serpent. David's defeat of Goliath is a foreshadowing of how Jesus will crush Satan with his victory on the cross.

In Genesis 3 we get the first mention of the gospel - the protoevangelium. In this passage, we find grace and hope that one day the "seed of the woman" will crush the head of the serpent. In God's blessing to Abraham, we see the overturning of the curses issued in Genesis 3. The "head crusher" will come from the family of Abraham. We know the "head crusher" to be...

David calls out in the morning for God's deliverance. David has been slandered and maligned and he is calling out for God to help. David celebrates God's faithful love. David exults in the idea that he can come to God's sanctuary. David calls out for God to judge evil. David turns his pain over to God.

Peter warns us that our threat is real. The devil is a real entity that is seeking to destroy our faith. We are called to be humble and look to the Lord as our strength. As Christians were are to actively resist the devil and his schemes.

In this passage, Paul lays out the nature of the battle that Christians have been thrust into. We are in a life-and-death battle, but it is a spiritual battle fought with spiritual weapons. Paul lays out the panoply of weaponry Christ has equipped us with as we take our stand against the Devil.

In Luke's Gospel, Jesus goes into the wilderness to face Satan. The 40 days in the wilderness are a trial for Jesus. The Father has just proclaimed in Jesus's baptism that He is His Son. Now Satan is testing Christ to see if He will remain on His Father's mission. In this story, we see echoes of the temptation of Adam and Eve and the trial of Israel in the wilderness.

In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul makes a brilliant argument on how to learn from the failures of Israel and rely upon the power of God to overcome temptation. Israel had rebelled against God and chased pagan idols. In the church, faithful Christians are committed to Jesus and show that commitment by eating the Lord's Supper. God also provides a way out for us when we are tempted.

In this Psalm, David is struggling with personal sin. A calamity of some kind has come upon his nation. The enemies of God are mocking God and his king. David ruminates at night about his sin. Finally, he realizes that he is righteous before God and forgiven. He sleeps the sleep of the forgiven.

In today's episode, we will follow Jesus into the wilderness. He has just been baptized and recognized by His Father's voice from heaven. Now He is driven into the wilderness to undergo one final temptation before He begins His public ministry. Pay special attention to how the evil one tempts Christ and how Jesus overcomes that temptation.

In this week's episode, we learn that enduring trials and hardships make us stronger in our faith. Also, one cannot accuse God of tempting us to sin. God by his very nature cannot tempt us to sin. We are culpable for our sins because we are enticed by our own sinful desires and passions.

In today's episode, we explore John's teaching to the churches in Asia Minor. These churches have been infiltrated by false teachers. We find that false teaching leads to bad behavior. Sound doctrine leads to sound living. John wants to give them specific instructions about how to overcome sin and temptation. We will see a connection to John's teaching on temptation and the temptation...

In today's podcast, we examine the fall into sin. God created a perfect world and Adam and Eve had complete communion and peace with God. Adam is commanded to guard and keep the garden but fails at this task by allowing the serpent to deceive his bride. In this podcast, we will look at the origin of Satan and his method for leading humanity astray.

In todays podcast, we meet David at a very difficult time in his life. His Son Absalom has rebelled against him and some of his most trusted advisors have betrayed him. David finds comfort and strength in the Lord amidst great adversity. The chiastic structure Chris mentions in the podcast is the following: A. vv 1-2 The psalmist distress B. vv 3-4 Trust in God's protection C. vv 5-6 Confidenc...

In this episode, we will follow along with Jesus as the Pharisees try to trap him with questions on divorce and remarriage. Jesus grounds his teaching on marriage in the creational order and reminds us of the sacred nature of the marriage bond.