Wednesday in the Word

This episode looks at 2 Thessalonians 3:1–18, where Paul closes his letters to the Thessalonians by tying prayer, perseverance, work, and hope together. He asks for prayer that the gospel would spread, reminds believers that the Lord is faithful to guard them, and then addresses the problem of idleness.  In this week’s episode, we explore: Why Paul begins his conclusion by asking for prayer, and w...

This episode turns to 2 Thessalonians 2:1–17 and the unsettling question: Has the “day of the Lord” already come—and how would we know? Paul reassures a confused young church that Christ has not returned in secret, explains what must happen first, and reminds them that the goal is not to map every detail of the end times, but to hold fast to the truth of the gospel and trust God with the future. ...

This episode turns to 2 Thessalonians 1:1–12 and the hard but hopeful question of how to handle suffering for the sake of the gospel. Paul praises a persecuted church for their growing faith and love, then lifts their eyes to the bigger story God is telling, where their endurance will be vindicated, evil will be judged, and God’s justice and mercy will be seen clearly at the return of Christ.  In...

This episode looks at 1 Thessalonians 5:12–28 and how Paul teaches a young, diverse church to live together in peace. Rather than closing his letter with random bits of advice, Paul weaves together a picture of community life shaped by respect for leaders, patient care for one another, discerning openness to God’s word, and steady confidence in God’s faithfulness.  In this week’s episode, we explo...

This episode turns to 1 Thessalonians 4:13–5:11 and the hope bound up with the return of Christ. We look at how Paul comforts believers who are grieving, clarifies what will happen to those who have died in Christ, and explains why the “day of the Lord” should lead us not to speculation or fear, but to steady faith, watchfulness, and encouragement.  In this week’s episode, we explore: Why Paul doe...

This episode turns to 1 Thessalonians 4:9–12 to ask what brotherly love looks like in everyday life and why Paul moves from sexual integrity to something as ordinary as getting a job. He commends the Thessalonians for their generous love, then urges them to “aspire to live quietly,” mind their own affairs, and work with their hands so that their faith shows up in responsibility, discernment, and t...

The resurrection of Jesus is not just a meaningful symbol or comforting idea. It is a real event in history, and everything Christians believe about forgiveness, salvation, and hope depends on it being true.  In this Easter episode, Krisan Marotta walks through why the bodily resurrection of Jesus is central to the gospel and why Paul insists that, without it, faith itself would collapse.  In this...

This episode turns to 1 Thessalonians 4:1–8 to ask what it really means to follow Jesus with our sexuality in a confused and permissive world. Paul insists that God’s will is our sanctification and then applies that calling directly to sexual integrity, warning against “sexual immorality” and urging believers to honor God with their bodies and their relationships.  In this week’s episode, we explo...

In 1 Thessalonians 2:17–3:13, Paul’s deep love for the Thessalonian believers comes into focus. Cut off from them by persecution, Paul grieves their separation, sends Timothy to check on their faith, and then rejoices when he hears they are standing firm because for Paul, people who persevere in the gospel are his true legacy, his “glory and joy” before Christ.  In this week’s episode, we explore:...

In this episode, Krisan Marotta walks through 1 Thessalonians 2:1–16, where Paul defends the way he first lived and taught among the Thessalonians. Rather than a manipulative salesman or spiritual celebrity, Paul presents himself as a servant entrusted with God’s message—someone who refused flattery, greed, and glory-seeking, and instead poured himself out like a nursing mother and a faithful fath...

In this episode, Krisan Marotta walks through 1 Thessalonians 1:1–10, showing how Paul sees this young church as a living picture of what genuine faith looks like. Their “work of faith, labor of love, and steadfastness of hope” are not abstract virtues, but visible evidence that God has chosen them, changed them, and is using them as a model for other believers.  In this week’s episode, we explore...

In this episode, we step into the world of 1 Thessalonians by looking closely at its opening verse and the story behind it. Krisan Marotta introduces Paul, Silvanus (Silas), and Timothy, traces how the gospel first came to Thessalonica, and explains why this young church needed encouragement to endure opposition and remain faithful to Christ.  In this week’s episode, we explore: How New Testament...

In this final section, we offer some advice on how to evaluate your current relationships and what to talk through before you say "I do." Most people fail at Bible study because no one ever taught them how. Bible Study Boot Camp fixes that: one short email a day for a week, plus a worksheet you can use on any passage for the rest of your life. Sign up for Bible Study Boot Camp

If the cultural view of sexuality, what is the biblical view? Is it just a list of dos, don'ts, and not yets? The question I want to address in this section is: What are you waiting for and why is it worth it? We find those answers in the Song of Solomon. Most people fail at Bible study because no one ever taught them how. Bible Study Boot Camp fixes that: one short email a day for a week, pl...

We compare and contrasts the different kinds of relationships: biblical marriage, secular marriage, friendship, dating, friends with benefits, and an ideal Christian courtship. Most people fail at Bible study because no one ever taught them how. Bible Study Boot Camp fixes that: one short email a day for a week, plus a worksheet you can use on any passage for the rest of your life. Sign up for Bib...

When it comes to dating, sex and romance, a majority of college students report being "profoundly upset" about their own behavior. Our goal in this seminar is to show you a better way. Most people fail at Bible study because no one ever taught them how. Bible Study Boot Camp fixes that: one short email a day for a week, plus a worksheet you can use on any passage for the rest of your lif...

Why do a podcast on what the Bible means and how we know when we’re practically drowning in online sermons? Because Bible study is a lost art. Most people fail at Bible study because no one ever taught them how. Bible Study Boot Camp fixes that: one short email a day for a week, plus a worksheet you can use on any passage for the rest of your life. Sign up for Bible Study Boot Camp

This episode reflects on Matthew 1:21 and the angel’s announcement to Joseph: Jesus came to save his people from their sins.  Rather than treating Christmas as a sentimental tradition, this message centers it on the Bible’s clearest claim about why Jesus was born: because humanity’s deepest need is forgiveness, rescue, and redemption.  In this week’s episode, we explore:  Why the name Jesus points...

Jesus’ clash with the Pharisees in Matthew 12:22–50 raises some of the most sobering questions in the Gospels: What does it mean to blaspheme the Holy Spirit? Why isn’t more evidence always the answer to unbelief? And how do our words reveal the true state of our hearts? In this episode, we follow the story of a dramatic healing, a shocking accusation, and Jesus’ warnings and promises as he calls...

Jesus knows the Pharisees are plotting to destroy him—so he quietly withdraws. In this episode on Matthew 12:15–21, we look at why Jesus refuses to build a popular movement around himself, how Matthew connects that choice to Isaiah’s Servant, and what it means that the one who will bring justice to the nations does so with astonishing gentleness toward bruised reeds and smoldering wicks. In this w...

Jesus’ Sabbath clashes with the Pharisees are not just about picky rules; they expose what God truly values and who Jesus claims to be. In this episode on Matthew 12:1–14, we follow two Sabbath stories—hungry disciples in a grainfield and a man with a withered hand in the synagogue—to see how Jesus reorients Sabbath around himself, mercy, and the work of God’s kingdom. In this week’s episode, we e...

Jesus ends this section of Matthew not with rebuke, but with a stunning invitation: real wisdom and real rest are given not to the self-assured “wise,” but to those who know they are weary and in need. In this episode on Matthew 11:25–30, we explore how Jesus thanks the Father for revealing truth to “little children,” claims unique authority to make God known, and calls the burdened to take his yo...

Jesus issues some of his strongest words not to obvious “sinners,” but to the very towns that saw his miracles and still refused to repent. In this episode on Matthew 11:16–24, we trace how Jesus exposes the stubbornness of “this generation,” compares religious Israel to infamous pagan cities, and shows why rejecting him is more serious than any outward scandal we might imagine. In this week’s epi...

Jesus turns to the crowd and answers the question John’s doubts might have raised: who exactly is John the Baptist, and how should we think about his role now that Jesus has come? In this episode on Matthew 11:7–15, we look at Jesus’ own evaluation of John, why he calls John both the greatest among those “born of women” and yet less than “the least in the kingdom,” and how John stands right on the...

John the Baptist, of all people, begins to wonder if Jesus is really the Messiah and Jesus’ answer may surprise us. In this episode on Matthew 11:1–6, we look at John’s question from prison, the expectations he carried from the Old Testament, and how Jesus responds by pointing not to a simple “yes,” but to his works, his teaching, and a very different kind of kingdom timetable. In this week’s epis...