We want you to experience the transforming power of God's word. This podcast is designed to help you cherish God's word. It will follow along with FBC Lowell's church-wide reading plan.
This is our penultimate week of our current reading plan! We discuss Christians' true identity in this world and how that empowers us to live differently than the world. We also look at the contrasts in the letter of 1 John to try to make some sense of them. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
False teachers...would you know one if you saw one? That is one of Paul's main concerns when he wrote to Timothy, and that's what we discuss on this week's episode. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Jesus is a better high priest who offers a better sacrifice and therefore has inaugurated a better covenant. This is the main message of Hebrews 7-12, and we fill in the Old Testament background to make sense of these ideas and how they relate to Christians today. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
This week we introduce the books of Philippians and Hebrews to guide you in your Bible reading. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
What is the connection between Christ and the Christian? Ephesians and Colossians focus in part on answering that questions. Christians are united with Christ, and only in him do we receive all the blessings of salvation. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The book of Acts began with Jesus promising that the gospel would spread from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. We see that promise fulfilled in the final chapters of Acts, even if in an unexpected way, through the long imprisonment of Paul the apostle. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
At the heart of Christianity is the promise of transformation by God's own power. But what does this mean? And how does it happen? Today we examine the idea of spiritual formation through the book of Romans. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
On today's podcast, we introduce the book of Romans. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
What was perhaps the most distinguishing belief of the early church? Resurrection. We discuss why it was and is so central to Christian belief and how it is often overlooked or underemphasized today. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The throughout time has faced difficulties, both from within and without. 1 Corinthians shows us how Paul addressed several of the issues facing the early church in Corinth. Through this letter, God continues to speak to the church today about the issues we also face. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
When the world seems chaotic, interest in the end times always increases. We examine how Paul talks about Jesus's second coming. We then look at how the cross shaped Paul's ministry and how it should also shape our lives and churches. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The core of the Christian gospel is explaining how a person is accepted by God, and this happens through faith in Jesus Christ. But this was a hotly debated issue in the early church, and we see that in both Acts and Galatians. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Jesus commanded his disciples to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. That begins to be fulfilled in Acts 10 with the Holy Spirit being poured out on the Gentiles. We also look at the letter of James and how it teaches us godly wisdom for today. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
In this episode, we will explore the historical, geographical, theological, and applicational significance of Acts 1-9.
Jesus is Lord because God has raised him from the dead! The resurrection of Jesus, and also the resurrection of his followers, is a central but sometimes under appreciated doctrine of Christianity. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website: https://www.fbclowell.org. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
This week we look at what crucifixion actually involved, how it connects with what was prophesied about Jesus, and how most of all it is the ultimate proof of God's incredible love for us.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
It seems that the Holy Spirit is often ignored or sensationalized today, and discussion about the Holy Spirit can often cause division. But this is to ignore the more basic, and more important, teaching from Jesus about his Spirit. As the Spirit of Jesus and the Spirit sent by Jesus, to have the Spirit is to have Jesus with and in us.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Jesus said some confusing, strange, and even offensive things. We look at a few of these teachings as we continue studying the gospels together.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. But he was not the Messiah anyone was expecting because he was a Messiah who would suffer and die. This pattern is one all of Jesus' disciples must follow, a path of self-denial that leads to finding true life.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
What does Jesus expect his followers to do? Must they do the things that he commands? In the famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives his law, in fulfillment of the Mosaic law, which all of his people must follow.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
This week we begin reading the New Testament, and we begin with the gospels. What are the gospels? Why do we have four when there is only one gospel?You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
This week on the reading plan podcast, we will explore the history during the 400 years of silence between Malachi and Matthew. The history and circumstances help us understand some of the prevalent attitudes and thinking of the Jewish people. It will help explain some changes as well. For example, How did Israel go from an idolatrous nation turn into a legalistic people who were kind of separatist?
Nehemiah is the end of the story of Israel, at least it is the end of the Old Testament's witness to Israel's story. Without a king, Israel defines itself as God's people through the Law and the temple. It leaves us wondering what God will do for his wayward people. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
What does the rebuilding of a wall over 2,000 years ago in a distant corner of the Persian empire have to do with us today? It teaches us about the one true God and how we ought to live as his people, even today.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The return from exile is not all that we thought it might be. There is success and missed expectations. We explore this tension in Ezra-Nehemiah. We also give an overview of the book of Esther, a unique book in Scripture.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
In this episode, we will look at the theme of "kingdom" in the book of Daniel and briefly look at what to look for as you read both Daniel and the book of Ezra.
Jeremiah's prophecy concerning the new covenant is perhaps one of the most important in all of Scripture. We look at Jeremiah's prophecy in its historical and literary context and then briefly trace its fulfillment in Jesus and his followers as explained in the New Testament. You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Turn! This was the message of the prophets, which Israel and Judah ultimately failed to heed and so were in the end conquered by their enemies. Repentance, that is turning from sin and to God, is at the core of what it means to be a Christian.You can find this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet on our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
We discuss Christmas and Good Friday. Or at least, we discuss texts that are often read at Christmas and Good Friday from the book of Isaiah. But hopefully by looking at them in their original context, within Isaiah's own time, we see that these are deeper and more complex than we at first realized. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The prophets took God seriously, and they help us to do the same. They took God at his word, proclaiming the judgment of God for break the covenant but holding out hope for God's merciful restoration. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
We can see the spiritual state of Israel through the failures and successes of its kings. Ultimately, the kings fail to worship God and show him ultimate allegiance, and this reflects what was going on in the heart of nearly all of Israel. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
What should we seek above all else? According to the book of Proverbs, it is wisdom. It is more valuable than anything else, and it will lead to blessing and success in God's world. What is wisdom? Where and how can we find it? We talk about that and more in this episode.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
After discussing Psalm 119, we discuss the importance that God's word should have in our lives and why it is so integral to following Jesus. We then discuss how this relates to our church's vision for Christ-centered, kingdom-focused homes on every block in the Lowell Community as well as our Discipleship Pathway.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The Psalms are perhaps the most beloved part of Scripture. They give voice to virtually every human experience, and they teach us how to approach God in every circumstance of life. They lead us into deeper communion with the one true God.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit our website. Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
After the tragic demise of King Saul, David finally becomes king, first over Judah then eventually over all Israel. Yet even David, for all of his successes, cannot be the perfect king that Israel needs. Only God can provide that righteous reign, and we are given a foretaste of that in the Davidic Covenant.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Saul is the first king of Israel, and his story is a tragic one; he rises suddenly to power, disobeys God, and spends the rest of his life afraid and paranoid of the king who will take his throne. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Israel demands a king rule over them, and in so doing reject God as king over them. We examine whether kingship is a good or bad thing for Israel and how this theme enters the biblical narrative in Samuel and continues throughout the Old Testament into the New. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
In the tumultuous time of the Judges, the story of Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz shines like light in darkness and illustrates the importance of everyday love and faithfulness. It is through their actions that God paves the way for the rise of King David and thus ultimately to the Messiah Jesus himself.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Joshua leads the people into the land and calls them to trust and obey the Lord so that he will give the land to them. But the people of Israel generation after generation turn away from the Lord and worship other gods. This leads to a spiritual and moral downward spiral in the life of Israel. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The people of Israel finally make it into the land that God promised to them. So it is a fitting time to talk about what the land of Israel is like and how it helps us understand the Bible better. We also discuss the difficult instructions given to the Israelites to kill every man, woman, and child in their conquest of the land. To access the map of Israel mentioned in todays episode, follow this link.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
The 10 Commandments are the essence of the law and God's covenant with the people of Israel. They are not simply a list of moral commands but teach us what it means to live in covenant relationship with God.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Life in Israel had a regular weekly and annual rhythm of repentance, rest, and celebration. Israel also grumbled and complained and rebelled against God. These themes and more from Leviticus and Numbers counsel Christians today about what our life with God should be like and yet how it often falls short.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
While Moses is receiving the law on Mount Sinai, the Israelites throw a party to worship the "god" who brought them up out of Egypt. How can a holy God dwell in the midst of a rebellious people? He will dwell in the tabernacle and cleanse their sin, and in so doing he reveals his character.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
After God delivers them from slavery in Egypt, he reveals himself to Israel at Mount Sinai. There God gives his people the law and the instructions for constructing the tabernacle. The tabernacle will become the place where God can dwell among his people.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Pastor Jon and Pastor Andrew discuss the plagues that God sends on Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea. In this section of Scripture, we learn about God's power and his grace, the beauty of his salvation, and how all he does is for his glory and renown.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Rather than following the biblical narrative, today we take a more theological look at a doctrine that is critical to the end of the Joseph story: the doctrine of providence. Providence is God's ruling and overruling to sustain his creation and bring about his will through all things.For references about God's providence more generally, see Ephesians 1:11, Hebrews 1:3, Acts 17:28, and Matthew 6:24-32. For God's use of Assyria, see Isaiah 10:5-7, 15-16; of Babylon, Habakkuk; of Cyrus, Isaiah 44:28. For God's action through the evil of men in the crucifixion, see Acts 2:22-24 and 4:27-28.You can access the full quote from John Calvin here (scroll down to section 10): https://ccel.org/ccel/calvin/institutes/institutes.iii.xviii.htmlFor this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
We look at how God continues to sovereignly fulfill his promise of blessing to Abraham and to the nations. He surprisingly does this both through Joseph and his hardships as well as through Judah. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
In today's podcast, we look at the life of Jacob and how God works despite him and in him to accomplish his purposes. His life characterizes how his descendants will struggle with God and yet still come to know God. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
In today's episode, we examine the story of Rebekah and how she becomes Isaac's wife. This story has some great examples of Hebrew literary techniques, which we find throughout the rest of Old Testament narrative. We also look at the "binding of Isaac" and what that teaches us about God and what he calls us to as disciples. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Today we begin by overviewing the book of Job and the question of theodicy, How can there be evil if there is a good and all-powerful God. Then we examine the blessing and promise to Abram and his descendants and the tension that results in Genesis and throughout Scripture between a God who will keep his promises but does so in and through imperfect people. For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com
Today we begin with the opening chapters of Genesis, which set the stage for God's story. We explore the themes of creation, disobedience and sin, recreation, which all occur in these opening chapters. We end by discussing how the concepts of the image of God and humanity's vocation can be applied today.For this month's reading plan and reading plan booklet, please visit: https://www.fbclowell.org/Ministries/Adult-Ministry/2018-2019-FBC-Reading-Plan Music: Fresh Lift by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com