Truth Be Told

Obedience is a tricky word in today's world. Talking about obedience in a marriage relationship? Even harder. Immediately, images of harsh dictators and timid followers come to mind, and we bristle at the idea. This can take a real toll on our relationship with God because - like it or not, He does have commandments and does call us to obedience. He also desires a covenantal, marriage relationship...

This is one of the most common questions I get asked about Bible Study. It's easy to get frustrated when we feel like we see others navigating different tools and resources with ease while we barely know how to read our Bibles for more than 10 minutes without it feeling like serious work! In this episode, we walk through 3 important things to consider before diving in to extrabiblical sources and...

In this episode, we open up by examining the joke phrase "that'll preach." Typically this is said about sermon topics, theological points, or certain exciting deliveries that inspire another speaker, preacher, pastor, or teacher to want to deliver the same type of message when THEY next speak. This shouldn't pose a problem if the information is true. However, sometimes, something "preaches" so wel...

The Shroud of Turin is, probably, the most controversial relic in history. However, this controversy doesn't necessarily speak to its illegitimacy. In fact, the ambiguity surrounding its authenticity might actually speak to a solid potential that it is the genuine article. In this episode we explore all things shroud related. What is it? What's the evidence for or against it being the ACTUAL buria...

In this episode we dive into John 11:35 (the, Jesus wept, verse) and the surrounding section as a case study on how to practice good biblical observation and interpretation rather than mixing these two things up. One of the very first lessons they teach you in Bible college is about the art of biblical interpretation known as Hermeneutics. There are 4 basic steps to practicing good biblical hermen...

In the book of Ezekiel, Israel contends with God's sense of justice asking "why SHOULDN'T the son die for the sins of the Father?" Their idea of fairness, possibly skewed from a position of desiring vengeance on their enemies, expected consequences AND guilt to pass on from father to son. God demands, in this section, that they correct their ideas of justice to align with His objective standard. W...

In the book of Romans, like the rest of his writings, Paul draws on several Old Testament sources to make a point. While he seems familiar enough with books like Psalms, Isaiah, Hosea, or Jeremiah to quote them, his USE of singular verses to support his points sometimes leave us more confused than when we STARTED reading his letters. Of course, Paul isn't the only one who does this! The Gospels, g...

The Roman Catholic Church executed Girolamo Savonarola as a heretic in 1498 for refusing to adhere to a Papal Bull condemning his preaching against the city and rulers of Florence. This heretic, however, left behind incredible wisdom that can aid modern Christians in properly esteeming the text of Scripture and removing some of their fears and hang-ups regarding sharing the Gospel message. In this...

In the book of Exodus (chapter 12) we read the story of the first Passover kept by Israel signifying their being rescued by God from bondage in Egypt. Most are pretty familiar with the story - God is going to send the death angel, the Israelites have to mark their doors with the blood of a lamb to be spared the plague, and, through their believing loyalty, God leads them to freedom. What's absolut...

In the book of Isaiah, there is a Messianic prophecy regarding a lamb led silently to the slaughter that we learn (in Acts 8) was fulfilled perfectly by Jesus in His willingness to go to His death without verbally defending His innocence. Upon this read through in my study, I asked a simple question that opened this prophecy up a bit more for me. I know THAT sheep and Jesus both were silent in the...

Let's get one things straight - God is not a sinner. He is not a transgressor of the Law. However, what this video attempts to show, is that the PURPOSE of the Law of God is an outpouring of His love, not a limitation on it. When we interpret the Law of God as some sort of hindrance on God's love, we're making the same mistake the Pharisees made. In the same way that working on the Sabbath is unla...

In Genesis 13 and 14 we read the story of Abraham. He has left his father's house, put his trust in God, and experienced a fair amount of difficulty (famine, the theft of his wife, plagues, wandering). Finally, God speaks to His chosen servant and explains the promise of land that He is going to bestow upon him. However, God tells Abraham, in very specific terms, to WALK OUT the land and wherever...

So often, this verse is one that is taken out of context because of the comforting words, lovely poetry, and pleasant picture it seems to paint for our lives as God sees them. Taking verses out of context, however, is a dangerous game. When you misapply scripture to yourself or force meanings upon the text, you inevitably have to ask yourself - where does it stop? Where does it STOP applying to me...

Throughout the Biblical narrative, there are overlapping patterns that so many largely ignore. However, if we track these patterns, we begin to see important messages and themes building in intensity that give us a much grander view of God's sovereignty over the construction of His Scriptures, and lifechanging lessons that weave our lives inextricably to the text of the Bible.  In this episode, we...

**PLEASE READ DESCRIPTION** This episode starts off a series that I plan to slowly work through dedicated to analyzing the potential for division in the church that runs along age lines. While I don't see any wild amount of disunity between the different age groups currently, there are differences in experience, thought, understanding, and preferred methodology that could quickly turn into divisio...

In the midst of a larger narrative in Luke 19, we're told a brief story featuring a small-statured, tax collector named Zacchaeus of Jericho. On its own, this account makes a cute, kid-friendly story about Jesus's willingness and desire to care for the outcast. In a deeper look, however, which we go through in this study, Zacchaeus becomes a microcosm of the entire Gospel message. Luke is an intel...

God is vast and powerful and beyond human comprehension on so many levels, but He does desire to be known. In fact, He has gone through some incredible lengths to teach us about Himself and His work. One way we can learn so much about God is by considering His creation. What better way to learn about the Creator than to look at what He has made? Scripture shows us we can learn about God as a sheph...

"YHWH Is Our Righteousness" is one of the compound names of God that describes Him as, not only righteous but, righteousness on our behalf. How are we supposed to understand that Someone can be righteousness for us when that doesn't seem to work in our human relationships? When many see the fulfillment of this in the person of Jesus Christ, they assume it means we have no obligation to behave righ...

Last week's episode outlined 4 practical steps to cultivate a natural curiosity of Scripture: 1. Generally know the stories, truths, and virtues of Scripture 2. Train yourself to find Biblical patterns 3. Find those patterns that reflect universal truths, themes, and types EVERYWHERE (including outside of the Bible) 4. Reverse the order (find the themes, truths, and types you love and connect with...

So many Christians struggle to maintain proper motivation for prayer and bible study. Sometimes, the thought of studying the Bible can even feel downright boring and this can lead to a tremendous amount of debilitating guilt.  Wouldn't it be amazing if we were more genuinely curious about the Scriptures so that it didn't feel like a chore to look into them more frequently? Wouldn't it be great if...

When we consider what a mediator does in a modern context, we might immediately have some modern conflicts come to mind. It's only natural for these modern conflicts to shape our view of the role itself. When we consider Jesus as our Mediator before the Father, do we allow some of the horrible conflicts that modern Mediators deal in to shape our understanding of what He is doing for us? If so, we...

In Exodus 4, the staff of Moses is, in one way, transformed into something wholly unique and different from what it had ever been before. This change doesn't come with grandiose celebration or any sort of fanfare. In fact, most readers would probably gloss right over the change that takes place without paying it much attention. However, when the staff of Moses becomes the staff of God, amazing sym...

I thoroughly enjoyed talking with my good friend Clint Porter about doubt (and faith and certainty and trust and knowledge and church cultures and the Dunning-Kruger effect and and and and and..). Every Christian has moments of doubting and we can start to feel guilty for that, but it's highly likely that we're thinking of those moments all wrong. In this episode we'll shed light on questions like...

Compared to Old Testament and First Century Israel, celebration of God's Holy Days have diminished significantly. Even those who keep the Holy Days often have a hard time genuinely celebrating them. With this decrease in outward festivity and joy has come a complete dissolving of some of the lesser biblical observances and traditions that occurred during the Holy Days themselves in antiquity. One...

The things that run rampant in the culture of the world inevitably filter into the Church though, hopefully, to a lesser degree. One of these unfortunate things is the seeming desire to make division out of differences. Even in local church congregations where people, generally, have a lot in common, we find ways to divide ourselves contrary to Christ's prayer for us at the end of His physical lif...