Real Truth Matters Audio Podcast

Since it has been so long since we've dealt with the topic, this episode reviews what we have learned thus far about how to have fellowship with the living God. For a refresher, please go back to season two and listen to episodes 25-30. 

If revival is the renewal of healthy New Testament Christianity, then one question remains. How do you experience revival? How can you return to a place of vibrancy in your relationship with the Lord Jesus? In this episode, we outline three biblical mandates that, if believed and experienced, will lead you back to spiritual well-being. Please listen, and then share with family and friends.

Revival is a return to normal New Testament Christianity. It is to walk in the Spirit consistently. In this episode, Michael Durham considers the indicators that evidence that a believer or a church needs revival. God wants His children to walk in the experience of their inheritance in Christ. But all of us know that we do not always do so. So, listen and discover what the signs of spiritual regression are. We need to know these indicators before our symptoms become a full-blown disease. 

We try to find a more biblical view of revival in this episode. One of the prevailing reasons revival is not occurring is the unbiblical attitudes about revival. Some have an idea that revival is a great evangelistic campaign, and others believe in humanistic formulas to be the key to having a revival. And others consider revival a purely sovereign work of God alone. These perspectives are hindering genuine revival, which is Christians returning to healthy New Testament Christianity. 

In this episode, we discuss special moves or outpourings of God on His people. Many call these movements of God's Spirit working in powerful ways revivals. The word revival has come to mean different things to different people. It is highly imperative that we rightly define the word so that confusion does not reign. It is also essential that we rightly understand the word to experience it when needed.

How do you know if God is leading you on a specific path? Well, do not despair. The Lord is too kind to leave us to a guessing game. The Bible gives six markers or identifiers that mark the way of the Lord. You could say these six markers are six tests, tests by which we see if something is God's will or not. So don't panic; God commands us to exam Him and all other spirits who would pretend to the Holy Spirit. Thank God that He gave us a book whereby we can test all things and, therefore, able to hold fast to that which is good. 

How do you know if God is leading you on a specific path? Well, do not despair. The Lord is too kind to leave us to a guessing game. The Bible gives six markers or identifiers that mark the way of the Lord. You could say these six markers are six tests, tests by which we see if something is God's will or not. So don't panic; God commands us to examine Him and all other spirits who would pretend to be the Holy Spirit. Thank God that He gave us a book whereby we can test all things and, therefore, hold fast to that which is good. 

Does God still speak personally to us, or was that something for just the Apostles and no longer viable? In this episode, Michael Durham, explains that God still does speak subjectively. However, to hear God speak is not a physical, but spiritual reality, which requires the spirit of a man to be trained and developed in the art of spiritual listening. Perhaps God is speaking, but you haven't learned the voice of God, nor the language of the spiritual. 

Too many times, we do not experience the Word, Jesus Christ when we read His word. How can we change this? How can you start reading the Bible and it connects you with the One who authored it? That is what today's edition of the Real Truth Matters podcast is all about. Please join us and learn that we must not make the fundamental mistake of the Pharisees in Jesus' day and separate God's word from God. 

Sometimes prayer requires more of you than at other times. There is a prayer that requires grit, a determination that will not relent. So often, the Lord tests our endurance by delays in granting the answer that we are seeking. Some have prayed for years for things they desired to see, and some have died without seeing their request answered. But they never gave up asking. Listen as Michael Durham explains this kind of prayer.

In this episode of the RTM podcast, Michael Durham deals with our Lord Jesus' answer to the request for Him to teach His disciples how to pray.  The Lord's answer is the best teaching on prayer you can read. Books on prayer are wonderful, and we ought to be grateful for them and read them. But no book on prayer says as much about how to pray as this simple outline given by Christ. 

God's wounds are necessary if we are to be made whole.

As Real Truth Matters moves to a new location, we have selected to play these previous episodes.  This episode is about God wrestling with Jacob.

In our last episode, we discussed how to have fellowship with God. The first thing essential is to be real and transparent with God. Any kind of duplicity or artificiality will shut down the conscious awareness of fellowship. This episode examines the next means of cultivating fellowship with God. And that is developing a conscious awareness of the presence of God. So please listen and learn how to walk with the Lord.

In this episode, Michael Durham explains what is essential to have ongoing fellowship with God. If you have ever asked yourself why God seems to be distant, then this and the following episodes are crucial for you to hear. 

It seems fitting to think that if we are to have fellowship with God, we need to know what it is so we can see if we are experiencing it or not. In this episode, Michael Durham defines fellowship with the Almighty from several key New Testament passages. Fellowship with God can occur on two different levels. One level is not experiential, and the other is. Do you long to draw closer to Christ? Then this is one episode you do not want to miss. 

We all know that the death of Christ is essential to being right with God. However, it is also the basis of our ongoing fellowship with the Lord. Christ's death plays a considerable role in our communion with the triune God. Listen as Michael Durham explains.

We are looking at how to walk and maintain fellowship with God. In last week's episode, we opened up 1 John 1 and heard the Apostle John say that we can have the same kind of fellowship with God as he and the other apostles enjoyed. The accessibility of God is an overlooked topic. Fellowship with God is not held out and is only open to God's elite. No, it is available to you at any time you desire. The way John states it, it should be a continual experience. Fellowship with God need never be interrupted. But there are biblical conditions for enjoying the Lord and fellowshipping with Him. Listen as Michael Durham explains.

Is it possible for a person to consistently walk with God? Can they maintain a relationship with God and never lose fellowship with Him? Most answer no because such seems impossible, but it isn't as difficult as it sounds. Christ has removed the impossibility, and He extends to all His followers true friendship and genuine camaraderie. This episode is the first in a series of shows that teach from 1 John how any Christian can have heavenly fellowship with God. 

In this episode, George Müller gives an interview, sort of, where he explains his faith and how any believer can grow in faith. Actually, Michael Durham reads a portion from Müller's biography that shares excellent remarks concerning faith. So share this episode with others and listen for yourself. 

We have learned that there are two kinds of faith, the grace of faith and the gift of faith. However, today, we are going to hear that for the grace of faith, there are three degrees or levels of it. No one starts with a complete faith that rests fully in the Lord. Faith must be tested and stressed for it to grow. The disciples were in the school of faith, and it was their Instructor's task to help their faith to rise from the lowest grade to the highest grade of faith. And that is the Lord's work in us as well. 

How do you know that you trust God? Is there any way to gauge faith, to be sure that you trust Him? There are many biblical examples of people who thought they had faith in God when in the end, it proved that they didn't. Peter is an example of this. With all of his heart, he believed that he really had faith in Christ and would follow the Lord even to death. But, as most of us know, Peter didn't trust as much as he thought he did. He folded and denied knowing Jesus, not once but three times. So, how do you know you trust God? Listen as Michael Durham explains how you can know your faith is in the Lord.

In last week's podcast, we began a discussion of the fight of faith. The fight of faith is the battle to believe what God has revealed objectively and subjectively. Using Abraham's Genesis 17 encounter with God, the first two stages of the fight of faith were explained. In this episode, Michael Durham continues by showing through the significant test of Abraham's faith the last two stages of the fight of faith and teaches how we can wage this battle of faith. No matter the present challenges to your faith, you can overcome them. And in the end, know and experience the Lord more deeply. 

Does faith make life easy, comfortable, and prosperous? If you have faith, does that mean you will be able to defeat all antagonists and put down all difficulties quickly? And if you should struggle to believe God does that mean you are unbelieving? The answer to these questions is the same. The answer is, no, not at all. There are times when our faith seems to ride high and lift us above all that would bring us down. However, there are other times when faith does not do that, and you will have to learn how to fight to believe. You will, of necessity, fight the fight of faith. In this episode, Michael Durham uses a significant test of Abraham's faith to demonstrate the fight of faith and to teach how we can wage this battle of faith. Please join us and learn how the Bible intersects with real life as we begin part one of the Fight of Faith. 

How does faith increase if it does increase? Every Christian is genuinely concerned that their faith is vital and vibrant. If it is impossible to please God without faith, then it is a serious concern that our faith is healthy. However, faith is a living thing, and therefore it is not like a product that can be manufactured and spit out of an assembly line. We are not faith factories. In this episode, how faith is strengthened is examined and explained. If you have any interest in cultivating your faith, please listen. 

How does faith increase if it does increase? Every Christian is genuinely concerned that their faith is vital and vibrant. If it is impossible to please God without faith, then it is a serious concern that our faith is healthy. However, faith is a living thing, and therefore it is not like a product that can be manufactured and spit out of an assembly line. We are not faith factories. In this episode, how faith is strengthened is examined and explained. If you have any interest in cultivating your faith, please listen. 

There are two kinds of biblical faith stated in the Scriptures.  The two kinds of faith are the grace of faith and the gift of faith. In this episode, Michael Durham explores each of these kinds of faith from the Bible. The grace of faith is stated in Romans 12, and the gift of faith is found in 1 Corinthians 12. 

Today, there are many faith teachers with differing opinions about faith. There are almost as many ideas about faith as there are teachers. Radical ideas concerning faith are rampant. Therefore, never has an hour existed where an exact definition of faith is more needed than now. This episode is the final of three, explaining faith and coming to a working definition of faith. These episodes are very important. Please listen, and then share them with others.

Today, there are many faith teachers with differing opinions about faith. There are almost as many ideas about faith as there are teachers. Radical ideas concerning faith are rampant. Therefore, never has an hour existed where an exact definition of faith is more needed than now. This episode is the second of three, explaining what faith is to come to a working definition of faith. These episodes are very important. Please listen, and then share them with others.

Today, there are many faith teachers, and they are varied in their opinions. There are almost as many ideas about faith as there are teachers. Radical ideas concerning faith are rampant. Therefore, never has an hour existed where an exact definition of faith is more needed than now. This episode is the first of three, explaining what faith is to come to a working definition of faith. This and the next two episodes are very important. Please listen, and then share them with others.

What are the evidences of genuine faith? We may not be able to discern the very moment of new life in the sinner, but we can surely be wise concerning faith's evidences. There are at least three evidences of God-approving faith. In this episode, we will examine all three signs of faith in the Christian. 

There are many different ideas about faith, and many are so misleading. That is why we have dedicated this episode to share with you what are the ingredients or components of faith. There are four elements that come together and make faith genuine. Without all these four ingredients, faith is not biblical. So please listen and learn what makes faith, faith. 

Today, we begin a new series of episodes on faith. There isn't any more important topic that you can discuss than faith. The entirety of Christianity requires faith, for it is written, “the just shall live by faith.” So, with so much riding on correctly understanding faith, what it is, and how it operates in us, it is good to devote several episodes to the subject. The first order of business is to debunk all inaccurate definitions of faith, to show the falseness of what is wrongly called faith. 

If revival is the renewal of healthy New Testament Christianity, then one question remains. How do you experience revival? How can you return to a place of vibrancy in your relationship with the Lord Jesus? In this episode, we outline three biblical mandates that, if believed and experienced, will lead you back to spiritual well-being. Please listen, and then share with family and friends.

Revival is a return to normal New Testament Christianity. It is to walk in the Spirit consistently. In this episode, Michael Durham considers the indicators that evidence that a believer or a church needs revival. God wants His children to walk in the experience of their inheritance in Christ. But all of us know that we do not always do so. So, listen and discover what the signs of spiritual regression are. We need to know these indicators before our symptoms become a full-blown disease. 

We try to find a more biblical view of revival in this episode. One of the prevailing reasons revival is not occurring is the unbiblical attitudes about revival. Some have an idea that revival is a great evangelistic campaign, and others believe in humanistic formulas to be the key to having a revival. And others consider revival a purely sovereign work of God alone. These perspectives are hindering genuine revival, which is Christians returning to healthy New Testament Christianity. 

In this episode, we discuss special moves or outpourings of God on His people. Many call these movements of God's Spirit working in powerful ways revivals. The word revival has come to mean different things to different people. It is highly imperative that we rightly define the word so that confusion does not reign. It is also essential that we rightly understand the word to experience it when needed.

What is that something that many of us know is missing, but we don't know how to express it? Since we have not experienced it, we don't know what it is; we only know something is needed. Many faithful Christians would admit that something is absent from the local worship service, especially during the hour of preaching. That doesn't mean that the pastor or the one delivering the sermon is not presenting the truth. It means that even as he is, there is a dynamic missing that we read of in the New Testament. Please listen, and share this very important episode with family and friends.

We have made the case that one of the reasons preaching is missing in many biblical churches is because teaching is mistaken for preaching. In this episode, Michael Durham shares several necessary characteristics of preaching that distinguish it from teaching. If you want to know what biblical preaching is, this episode will provide you with a clear answer. 

What makes preaching biblical? Why is preaching suffering unpopularity in our churches? And what is needed if preaching is to have an effect? These are some of the questions we are seeking to answer. The problem of preaching is not that preaching has been rejected in biblical churches. The problem is what's considered preaching is not. Preaching has declined because of teaching. Teaching has supplanted preaching.

Preaching has come under severe attack from without the church and, sadly, within the church. It seems every generation must contend, not just for the faith once delivered to the saints, but also for the integrity and purity of preaching. Preaching is the main work of the church, and if the enemy can dilute the proclamation of God's word, he can kill the church's fruitfulness. In this episode, Michael Durham explores why preaching has undergone assassination attempts and why it is not central in our churches.

In our last episode, we aired a sermon Michael Durham preached the previous year that created some controversy. The contention was not doctrinal but about the application. The question disputed was about suitability. Was the sermon appropriate, and should a preacher say such things? In this episode, we will air the final half of the sermon. In the following episodes, the podcast will examine true preaching and its importance and the demise of preaching in our generation. 

Welcome to Season Two! The Real Truth Matters Podcast starts season two with a sermon Michael Durham preached last year that created some controversy. The contention was not doctrinal but about the application. The question disputed was about suitability. Was the sermon appropriate and should a preacher say such things? In this and the next episode, we will air the sermon so you can hear it for yourself. In the following episodes, the podcast will examine true preaching and its importance, as well as the demise of preaching in our generation. 

In this last episode of season one, Michael Durham deals with David's practicing the presence of God. How do you cultivate an ongoing awareness of the presence of God? Are there things you must do for this to take place? And if so, what are those things that we must do so that we walk conscious of God? Please take time to listen to this most important episode. We will resume the Real Truth Matters Podcast with season two in January of 2022.

Unless you are a new Christian, you have learned that God's ways are so radically different than our ways. We all want God to show up when we are in trouble. We pray, cry, and make promises so that the Lord will intervene. But sometimes God shows up and He is the trouble. He afflicts and causes pain. He hurts rather than heals; He wounds instead of restores. As we continue looking at the life of Jacob when he wrestled with God, we are going to see that we, like Jacob, need the wound of God so that we can truly enjoy communion and intimacy with Him. 

Should we learn how to wrestle in prayer until we prevail with God? Of course, but the incident in the life of Jacob when he and God wrestle the entire night is not about prayer. It is often used as an illustration of persevering prayer, but that is not the point of the story. Jacob doesn't start the wrestling match, God did. God was about something else in Jacob's life to bring Jacob into a place of real communion with God. 

Prayer is one of the most challenging things in the Christian life. But without it, there is little communion with our God. In this episode, Michael Durham shares how you can turn the Bible into a book of prayer and thereby revolutionize your prayer life. He discusses how he discovered this and gives a brief example of using the Bible as a guide to prayer. 

Too many times, we do not experience the Word, Jesus Christ, when we read His word. How can we change this? How can you start reading the Bible and connect with the One who authored it? That is what today's edition of the Real Truth Matters podcast is all about. Please join us and learn that we must not make the fundamental mistake of the Pharisees in Jesus' day and separate God's word from God. 

The Bible is God's heart expressed to us, and that is where the Bible plays another huge role in our lives. Not only does it provide us the only revelation of God, who He is, and what He is like, but it also gives us doctrinal instruction that teaches us how to relate to the Lord and have fellowship with Him. It also serves as the voice of God to us. He speaks through it.In this episode, Michael Durham explains how to read the Bible to hear God speak personally to you. This is one of the most important discussions you will listen to on this subject.