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Whether it is politicians saying that we can deport illegal immigrants because you are separating children from their parents or the bill needs to pass because it is the biggest spending cut ever, politicians lead primarily with stirring up emotions. The church isn't much different as music and stories are used to create an atmosphere so the people first respond emotionally rather than with reason. It is then easy to get them to agree with the reasoning when they are emotionally invested already. So here's the question: How should emotion be used in leadership?Timecodes00:00 Intro06:05 Emotions can bring blind followers28:06 Christians should be reasonable people44:03 Leaders whose first appeal is emotion should not be followed55:11 Church as an Example01:12:48 How you use emotion in your homeProduction of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
There are more things that you can vow or dedicate to the Lord than people or animals. God now codifies the laws of redemption for houses and land. Just like with redeeming an unclean animal, if you want to redeem a house, you have to pay a fifth higher than market value for it. The priests could sell it and they should get their valuation, but if the person dedicating it buys it back, they are required to pay more. For land, the value is based on the amount of seed that would be typically sowed. Good open prepared fields would take much more seed to plant than where there was a mix of rocks and trees in addition to open land. The land was valued strictly on its ability to produce grain. This makes sense because God has given us dominion over the land, not so we can set it aside and have it be useless. Man has responsibility to make land useful and not subject it to futility. The land is valued based on its productivity until the next Year of Jubilee. If he does not chose to redeem the land, then at the Jubilee it becomes irredeemable. It permanently belongs to the priesthood. If you vow land that was land you bought, then it goes back in the Year of Jubilee, just like it would if you had not consecrated it.
At Reformation Baptist Church we stream the audio of the service for those who regularly attend who are unable to attend due to sickness or travel. We encourage everyone else to attend a church in your area.
In 1977 when James Dobson started Focus on the Family, American families were in a great deal of turmoil. Dobson, a Christian psychologist who grew up in the Holiness movement started Focus on the Family to try to help resolve some of the confusion and to strengthen the home. And while he was successful in many ways, the American church began to look to him as more than just a psychologist with much better advice than the world and looked to him as an Evangelical leader. This shift was in many ways not beneficial for either Dobson or the church. In this episode, we want to look at Dr. James Dobson's life and overall influence on the American family and the church. One of the main issues we want to focus on is what happens when the church follows someone whose primary focus is on something other than proclaiming and teaching the Word of God. To do that, it's crucial to understand that every Christian is not called to lead the church. Every Christian who ministers is not required to focus on teaching the church how to understand the Word of God and equipping the saints for the work of the ministry. But the men who lead the church must have as their primary focus how to cause God's word to shine forth and to transform the hearts and minds of those they are ministering to. And it is as much the duty of the church to follow the right men as it is the duty of the leaders to have the right focus. This is one of the main reasons that Dr. Dobson's ministry is a bit of a mixed bag. He fought fiercely against the most visible cultural attacks and pressures that were assaulting American homes such as abortion and the sexual revolution, and he championed a return to Biblic
After ending the last chapter with, what in many ways, is a summary statement, God then spoke to Moses specifically about vows. Vows done with sincerity are an acknowledgement of the sovereignty of God. Obedience to His commands was the sign of whether you were right with God, not whether you made vows. The laws about vows are given after the other laws, because you cannot buy favor with God. It is acceptable when you are in a difficult situation to make a bargain with God. These verses start to describe how the vow is paid, but the important thing to remember is, if you make a vow to God, pay it.
Rebaptism has been a discussion since before the Reformation where the Anabaptists openly rejected the Roman Catholic baptism and said that because they worshipped a false god, a Catholic who professed faith had to be baptized "again" - though the Anabaptists would say they were being baptized for the first time. Since then, especially with easy-believism - raise your hand, pray a prayer and you're saved - many people who made such "professions of faith" earlier in their life have realized that they had no idea who God was when they were baptized as they were complete slaves to sin and continued to walk in that path. The Bible is very clear that there is one baptism, so should people in such a situation be baptized?In this episode, we want to look at what is commonly referred to as "rebaptism." While the Anabaptists were a heretical group with no real direct connection to modern Reformed Baptists, it doesn't mean that their position on a particular topic was wrong. One of the things that gets overlooked with baptism is that while Baptism is more than just an outward sign of an individual's inward faith, God still says that faith is required to please Him and that without faith, pleasing Him is impossible. When you consider a Catholic baptism, where is there any faith present? The same can be said for many evangelical services. The other thing that comes up quite frequently is the idea that baptism requires some sort of ability to determine if the person is "really saved", with many jokes being made about "regeneration goggles". We agree completely that it is impossible to tell if someone is truly regenerate. But what is so often overlooked is that Scripture do
This passage continues the promise of the outpouring of the wrath of God, if the Israelites will not obey Him. Even after He has taken most of them captive, they will still shake with fear when no one is pursuing them. They will hear a leaf fall and terror will strike their hearts. They will run away stumbling over one another in their haste to flee and they will flee to countries where they will be consumed. They will continue in their fathers' sins and God will continue to judge them even after they have been forced out of the Promised Land. But if they confess their sin, then God will bring them back to the land that He gave them. If they humble themselves, He will remember His covenant with their fathers and He will bring them back to the land after it has enjoyed its Sabbaths. God will not utterly abhor them. Never think that God will ignore sin.
In Hebrews, Jesus Christ is described as being different than all the sacrifices that preceded Him. All of them failed to take away sin. They could turn aside the wrath of God for a season, but they would never make the person who was offering it righteous. Then Christ came, and He was different. He actually took away sin. He actually took men who were slaves to sin and set them free. He ended sin's power in their life and brought them to liberty.In this episode, we want to look at what it means to be free in Christ. So many people claim that Christian liberty means that we can do what we want to do, but this is not how God's Word describes it. Christian liberty is freedom to do what is right. It is the man who goes from being completely unable to choose righteousness to being able to glorify God in everything he does. One of the ideas that we want to discuss throughout the episode is how vast and broad the freedom that God gives to those who are His servants. Slavery to sin all leads to the same, solitary place, eternal death. But righteousness leads ever higher and deeper into the boundless glory of service to God.Timecodes00:00:00 Intro00:03:54 Definition of Christian Liberty00:12:07 Saved to walk in faith00:16:06 Delivery from present evil age00:18:46 Break bondage to the world00:22:08 Not in bondage to Satan00:24:38 Not in bondage to sin00:31:10 Sin is progressively defeated00:34:28 Free from the need for vengance00:38:33 Freedom in trials00:41:27 Free from fear of death00:46:45 Death becomes a blessing00:49:30 Free access to God01:00:35 New covenant gives more freedom to
As God continues to warn them of what He will do (and now we know it is what He has done), there is a continued escalation because they will not repent and walk in obedience. If after all of the chastisement, they will continue to oppose Him, then He will set Himself in fury against them. If they want to walk contrary to Him, He will be contrary to them which means they will become so blinded by their sin that they will even consume the flesh of their sons and their daughters. God will destroy their high places, even if it is the temple. He will make them as lifeless as their idols are. He will make them so desolate, that their enemies will be astonished at it. All of this took when they went into the Babylonian captivity. He scattered them to the nations and had them hunted everywhere and God gave the land its sabbaths. They didn't want rest from God, so He took away their rest but He still preserved it for the land that did not rebel against Him. The whole world will receive rest, but those who refuse to submit to God's law will be cast where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.
While Jimmy Swaggart died in 2025 at the beginning of July, many people only know him because of his public scandals of being caught with prostitutes in 1988 and then again in 1991. But before those revelations that heralded the decline of his influence, he was an internationally known preacher on TV and radio, making around $150 million dollars per year, who had built his ministry over nearly 40 years. In this episode, we want to look at Jimmy Swaggart's message and the techniques he used in his ministry and ask some questions about his success. It's so easy to dismiss false teachers and to think that we cannot be tricked by them. But in doing research for this episode, Charles went back and listened to some of Swaggart's old sermons and was surprised to realize how much he sounded like an old-fashioned fire-and-brimstone preacher that would have preached in many churches he grew up in. Swaggart consistently refined his preaching techniques to the point that when he began his ministry, he sounded much like Billy Graham, and toward the end, he sounded much like Joel Osteen.False prophets will always be a threat to the flock, but we can protect ourselves and others by being aware of how they lead men astray and by keeping our eyes fixed upon Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Please join us as we discuss this important topic.Timecodes00:00:00 Entertainer00:17:10 The Trinity00:20:24 Speaking in Tongues00:22:32 Red letter Bible00:25:30 Cross Idolatry00:26:43 Strange Ideas00:38:42 Pride00:42:56 Swaggart's Fall00:51:43 Why People Followed Him00:57:48 Changing Appeal01:03:1
After God promised blessings to Israel if they will walk in accordance with His statutes, He now issues warnings of what He will do if they will not hear. The issue that He will judge is not even the disobedience directly. It is instead of thinking that His commandments are good, they will despise His commandments. It is the hatred of God commanding them which is what causes the disobedience and the judgment. He will appoint terror for them and fill them with fear. They will be consumed by mourning. They will not have food, because their enemies will pillage it. If after all that, they still will not listen, then He promised to punish them seven times harder. He will break the pride of their power. He will make everything they set their hand to a waste and vanity. If they still will not obey, He will bring on them seven times more plagues. He will send beasts among them and have their enemies execute them with the sword. He will cut off their food, so that everything will need to be rationed. God is not passively sitting by. When they refused to obey, He treats them like His child and increases the punishment. God will never lose that battle, but (like Satan) they are confident that they can win anyway. We should never deceive ourselves. If we fight God, we lose.
People turn to many different Scripture passages to build their eschatology, but which Old Testament passage did the Holy Spirit inspire the Apostles to use over and over again? In this episode, we examine Psalm 110, one of, if not the most quoted and referenced scripture passages in the New Testament. It is a remarkable Psalm in that, among its poetic elements, it plainly and straightforwardly describes the order of future events relating to the establishment of Christ's kingdom and his return. It is a beautiful Psalm in how it glorifies God as God and in the way it shows the plan of God to establish righteousness and to bring peace. Often, when people attempt to understand eschatology, they look at the various historical views held by leaders in the early church or by prominent Christians at different points in history and then try to compose the correct view. But here is why that is a flawed approach: Scripture should be the primary influence that shapes our thinking. Scripture transforms our minds. It changes the way we think and when our thoughts flow through scripture, we are more likely to think correctly and to come to the correct conclusion. It is very believable that when the early church thought about eschatology through the lens of Psalm 110 (as well as other scripture) that they would come to different conclusions than we would come to today. It was hard for them to imagine 2000 years of history. They may have assumed that Christ would put his enemies under his feet quickly. After all, they may have seen Rome as the primary enemy that needed to be defeated. So this is why a proper view of scripture is important. It does not matter quite so m
Similarly to what God does at the end of Deuteronomy, God makes promises to them. If they forsake their false gods and worship the true God by keeping His Sabbaths and reverencing His sanctuary, He will bless them. If they will simply obey Him, then He will pour out blessings upon them. They will receive rain when needed. Their crops will last until the next harvest. They will dwell in safety. All of the things to have an easy life. No one will make them afraid, instead fear of them will fall upon others so five will put a hundred to flight. He will cause them to be fruitful and they will be His people. The sign of being the people of God has always been obeying the commandments of God.
In the wake of John MacArthur's death, how do we avoid falling into the trap of hero worship or idolatry? How can we examine his life so we keep the good things he taught and avoid carrying forward his mistakes? Few American pastors have had a longer or more impactful ministry than John MacArthur. From his focus on sequential expository preaching to his emphasis of Lordship salvation, to his late-in-life transition from Arminian to Reformed soteriology, John MacArthur helped reform the American church in significant ways. But like any man, Pastor MacArthur was not perfect and made decisions and had practices that we should not emulate. In this episode, we discuss John MacArthur's life and attempt to unpack the aspects that should be emulated and those that should be discarded. We believe that this is a God-honoring practice that helps keep us from idolatry and worship of man. Please join us as we discuss this important topic.Listen to the audio version here: Timecodes00:00:00 Intro00:03:14 Expository Preaching00:10:22 Lordship Salvation00:26:39 Charismania00:32:54 Bible Commentaries00:36:52 Sabbath00:50:50 Dispensational Eschatology00:54:48 Cessationalism01:04:34 COVID01:07:05 Celebrity Pastor01:13:25 Money01:15:05 ConclusionProduction of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
As we come to the end of the letter to the Hebrews, we come to the benediction that is used by churches all over the world to end their services. A prayer that God who raised up Jesus from the dead make you completely do His will. The prayer is that the readers will do what is pleasing in the sight of God. When we think of the book of Hebrews with all emphasis that the things that were shadows have become substance. The shadow of atonement became real atonement through Christ. The way to the Father was exposed in the Son. The Sabbath that was from before the fall was pointing to the true rest in Christ. Now comes the conclusion of the matter, God did it all so we could be pleasing in His sight so Jesus Christ will be glorified forever and ever. Too often, churches want to make salvation about man, but intent of it was always the glory of God. We just receive the benefit of the means that God chose to glorify Himself.
What does it mean to edify one another? We know that the word means to "build up", but how should we think about that task as brothers and sisters in Christ? In this episode, as we continue to look at the duties of Christians, we come to edifying one another and supporting the ministry of the church, both of which are central to being Christians, both of which are often greatly misunderstood. Please join us as we discuss this oft-neglected topic.Link to first video in series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1u5lvDuSDlIListen to the audio version here: Timecodes00:00 Intro02:20 Paragraph 459:00 Paragraph 5Production of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
Continuing on from the thought that we have no continuing city on this earth and our hope is in the one to come, we should be continually offering the sacrifice of praise. If our hope is in eternal life and everything in this world is preparing us for eternal life, then in everything we should be be giving thanks. We also should not be holding the things of earth to tightly. Not just personal possessions, but things like relationships. We should expect them to change, because this is not our home. It also means that we can submit to authorities because God is the one who set them in place. Specifically, the passage is about submitting to elders in the church. Not a blind obedience, but a willingness to be persuaded by the truth of the Scriptures. The writer ends with an appeal to pray for them, that they might have a good conscience that they do the right thing even in the midst of difficult circumstances, trusting that will bring and end to those circumstances sooner.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever should have serious consequences in our lives. It means that we should not be tossed about in doctrine. He doesn't change, so we should determine what we believe and hold to it. Not being unwilling to grow through the Word of God, but by expecting our doctrine to become more firm and deeper as we mature in Christ. We must have gratitude toward God rather than thinking that any sacrifice we make could ever cause us to be reconciled to God. Those who think by their work they can come to God, they cannot participate in the sacrifice of Christ. Our response then needs to be to go with Christ outside the camp where He was crucified and never to think that through the praise of men that we are coming to Christ. We have to bear His reproach by having our hope in the city to come and not in this world.
Often until things become very extreme, people do not recognize the absurdity of things. People who have any credible profession to be Christians are usually quick to say that a man cannot be born in a woman's body or that two men cannot marry, but often they ignore the precursors that brought our culture to the point where that would be considered moral. One of the things that the church does to make those things appear normal is to have women speak in church or be pastors, because once you have eliminated the idea that there is any difference in roles, how can you say two men cannot marry or that there is any real differences between men and women. If God did not make them different and it is just a social construct, then why cant someone change their gender. Another major component to the societal self-deception that men and women are the same is women in combat. For a long time, governments have used the military to transform the culture and that happened in the United States. They said that they are the same, but they had significantly lower fitness standards for women than for men. Pete Hegseth says that he has eliminated that, but are there things other than strength that theologically and practically make it unwise to have women in combat?Listen to the audio version here: Timecodes00:00:00 Effectiveness00:05:08 Role of Women00:09:16 Women in Non-Combat00:18:55 Biblical Authority00:23:05 Military Reality00:28:11 Who Scripture Says Should Fight00:36:51 Uncleanness in the Camp00:43:50 Women and Fear00:51:56 Purpose of War00:57:43 Women's Spirit01:04:28 Physical Differences01:12:
What does it mean to be a Christian? Not what you believe or how you become one. But what happens after that? What does the Christian life look like? What are the duties that we have to one another? How do we live and labor as a part of the body of Christ? In this episode, using our church's covenant as a framework, we walk through the many different duties that make up the Christian life. Love for God, love for our spiritual brothers and sisters, love for our families, love for our neighbors, love for the world. It's so easy to overlook many of these and yet we believe that each is a part of the Christian life. Please join us as we discuss this important topic. Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/06/was-the-revolutionary-war-rebellion-or-righteousness-ep-223-audio/Timecodes00:00:00 Paragraph 100:38:01 Paragraph 201:11:45 Paragraph 3Production of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
At Reformation Baptist Church we stream the audio of the service for those who regularly attend who are unable to attend due to sickness or travel. We encourage everyone else to attend a church in your area.
As with Paul's epistles, after laying out the theology in chapters 1-12, the writer now begins to give practical applications. Because believers have a kingdom that cannot be shaken and God is a consuming fire, it should really effect our behavior starting with brotherly love. If we recognize that this world is not our home, then our treatment of those who have eternal life will be different because we will use the things of this earth to care for one another and not just focus on ourselves. The most basic manifestation of this will be hospitality. As one body, we should all remember and support people who suffer for their faith. If we have an heavenly focus, we will have control of our lust. We will turn from covetousness and we will submit to authorities that God has appointed. Truly understanding the kingdom of God, will change our behavior toward this world.
Was the American War of Independence an unrighteous act of rebellion against God-appointed authority or a legitimate effort at seeking peace that generally followed Biblical principles? What conclusion should we come to if we look at the American Revolution through the lens of a passage like Romans 13? In this episode, we try to do exactly that. Romans 13 is often used as the go-to passage for understanding submitting to authority, but often it is discussed very shallowly if not completely incorrectly. Early on in the discussion, we note that this passage does not say to submit yourself to the higher power (singular), but to the higher powers. And in every circumstance, there is always more than one authority that God has appointed. This is undeniably true of the American Revolution. In many ways, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and the entire American Revolution serve as an ideal case study for this type of discussion. One reason for this is because, at least for those of us in the US, it is our own history and is not so far in the past that the details have been lost to time. Another reason is that fallen man has a natural desire to be rebellious, and even in Christian circles, American independence is often associated with rebellion and this association is often used to justify rebellion. But it's also worth pointing out that no effort of man is without sin. Some people go so far as to whitewash the actions of the founders, casting them in a light that makes them appear to be without fault. This is also not true. As much as the devil is in the details, righteousness is also often found in the details. Please join as we discuss this important topic
After declaring that Israelites could redeem one another from slavery, but the foreigner would be in permanent slavery, God declares that the same rules do not apply if a foreigner buys an Israelite. If, because of poverty, a rich foreigner buys a poor Israelite, they can be redeemed by a kinsman redeemer at any time. The price of their redemption would decrease depending on the number of years to the Jubilee. Unlike the foreigner, they are released at the year of Jubilee to return to their family. The Israelite also had the responsibility to make sure the foreign master is not being cruel to the Israelite as far as they can tell. All of this is a picture of that true believers might be slaves on this earth, but we are truly free in Christ and will always be free in Him when He returns.
Our text this week is Leviticus 25:35-46. After talking about the kinsman redeemer and his ability to redeem the land as a picture of Christ, God moves on to the duty that we have toward one another. That we must care for our brothers more than we care for earthly things. We have a duty to show hospitality towards him as we also do to guests and strangers that dwell near us. You cannot take advantage of them by charging them interest for loans. We have a duty to not use our capital to take advantage of our brother because we have been freed from spiritual Egypt. God then talks about slavery. If your brother sells himself to you, typically this would be because he had debts that he could not pay, then you shall not abuse him in his slavery. He does go out at the time of Jubilee as a picture of the liberty that is in Christ doesn't mean that you will have liberty in this world. At the time of Jubilee, he returns with his children to his family. You can also purchase slaves from the nations around you and as a picture of unbelievers, neither they nor their children go out in the Jubilee. They are permanent slaves. They are the inheritance of the Israelites. They never receive the picture of the liberty in Christ.
One of the most common objections we get from dispensationalists is that we do not know how to "rightly divide the Word of Truth", which is taken from II Timothy 2:15. Based on the dispensational view popularized by Scofield, Larkin, Ryrie, and others, this verse is a foundational hermeneutical passage instructing the church that God's word must be broken into divisions so that it can be properly understood. But not only is the dispensational view of this verse incorrect, it also goes against the hermeneutical and doctrinal thrust of all of Scripture, which instead of teaching division, teaches that Christ's purpose was to bring unity.In this episode, we examine II Timothy 2:15 in light of a broader view of God's Word. We look at many passages where scripture teaches that Christ came to reconcile man to God, to unify the Jews and the Gentiles, and to restore God's creation. We look at the dispensational insistence that the church and Israel must be forever separated from one another, and explain why Scripture teaches this is not true. God did divorce the physical nation of Israel, and to the extent that it continues in the world, it is an example of what happens to those who reject Him. But the Israel that is made up of those Old and New Testament saints that are the children of Abraham by faith, is reckoned in the Son of David, the risen Christ, the True Israel, and regardless of their earthly heritage, all those who believer are made one in Christ and are partakers of the promises. Please join us as we discuss this often mishandled verse of scripture.Listen to the audio version here: Thumbnail image by Rod Ramsey under CC-BY 2.0Timecodes
After constraining oppression, God now declares the right of redemption. Because they are sojourners in the land, they cannot buy or sell the land permanently. When they sell the land, it can also be redeem by someone near of kin to them. This is the same word that is used with avenger of blood or the kinsman redeemer. It is a picture of Christ. Christ had to become incarnate to become a kinsman in order to redeem the world itself that was sold into sin through the work of Adam. God creates a different picture related to the land compared to cities in the land. In cities, houses can be bought and sold. It can be redeemed within a year, but after that, it is perpetually the purchasers and his heirs unless you are a Levite. The Levite can purchase their houses back whenever they want to. While houses in other walled cities remain their purchasers even through the Jubilee year, that is not the case for Levites. They receive their houses back in the Jubilee. In the laws about the houses, the picture is of heavenly Jerusalem, where, as a picture of the elect, the Levites always have a place and they will receive their place in the new heavens and the new earth.
What makes a rich country rich or a poor country rich? What causes them to stay that way? Often, when people think of countries that are wealthy versus those that are poor, they discuss factors like natural resources, but that isn't really the case. If you look at North America vs. South America, there were more resources in South America, but yet North America is far wealthier than South America. Doctrine really matters and the North America continent was far more Protestant than the South American continent and it has real and substantial long term effects. So how does that work itself out in the world and what are the ways that righteousness exalts a nation?Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/05/pedobaptism-debate-response-ep-218-audio/Timecodes00:00:00 Righteousness Exaults a Nation00:09:01 Justice00:12:39 Access to the Bible00:20:06 Safety00:22:51 Laws Enforced00:30:22 Fruitfulness00:45:39 Victory00:53:30 Fearsome00:59:04 Expansion01:04:29 Debt01:06:14 ClimateProduction of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
In the midst of the these pictures of restoring the world to righteousness, God stresses the need to not oppress people now. The specific example that God uses is in buying and selling land, but the overriding theme is to not oppress one another. When you buy and sell land, it should be based on the number of crops between the time of the sale and the Jubilee year. It is not lawful to take advantage of people's ignorance, instead we are to trust that God is our provider. If your focus is on the new heavens and the new earth, then you will not oppress people now because of fear of God and the judgment to come.
People used to have their children walk long distances to school and would assume that they would be safe. Now there are cases where that has been treated as child abuse. Children are afraid to ride a bike without a helmet, but with less bike riding, there are more bike head injuries. We are a society that is filled with fearIn this episode, we want to look at risk from a Reformed perspective. We start with the fear of death, which scripture teaches is central to the lives of the unsaved. As it says in Hebrews 2:14-15 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. From fear of death, we look at the damage that has been done to the family: to men's abdication of responsibility and leadership and to the rise of feminism and women-led households and communities. We have talked in other episode about how men and women prioritize safety differently, but in this episode we look at how this difference plays out when the home and therefore society becomes fundamentally disordered.Lastly we also talk about the ways that changes in technology, the news industry, and government also impact our view of risk and fear. These issues matter greatly and affect how we live our lives, how we train our children, and even how we promote and preach the gospel. Please join is as we discuss the subject of risk.Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/06/america-the-fearful-raising-brave-children-in-a-generati
In addition to the Sabbath year, God appointed a Jubilee year every fiftieth year. While the Sabbath year was on the revised calendar that started in the spring, the Jubilee was back on the original calendar that started in the fall. Both are a picture of the redemption of the earth, but the focus of the Sabbath year is the eternal rest. The picture of the Jubilee is the restoration of all things. The world will be put back into God's order. Everyone will be restored to their own families. Everyone will be free. The Sabbath year is declaring the eternal rest. The Jubilee is declaring the blessings of eternal life
Mother Teresa is considered one of the great humanitarians of the 20th century and is revered as a saint by the Roman Catholic church. But she did not really help many of the people that she talked about helping. The help she gave was very different from the way it was described by her and others and she often taught doctrine contrary to Roman Catholic teaching. But in the end, according to the Roman Catholic church, she is a shining example of what it means to be Catholic. And they have no problem with her unorthodox doctrine, her false help and false promotion, or taking the millions that she funneled into the coffers of the Roman Catholic church.If you listen to our podcast often, this should come as no surprise to you. Roman Catholicism is a false religion that leads many to hell. According to the Westminster and Second London Baptist Confession, the Pope is that Antichrist. It should come as no surprise that the "saints" of this false church are false as well. And this is very relevant to us today, as many conservative Christians follow and listen to Catholics like Matt Walsh and Candace Owens or JD Vance. We should remember that Roman Catholicism ultimately leads to death and darkness and separation from God. Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/05/the-hypocrisy-and-heresy-of-mother-teresa-ep-219-audio/Thumbnail image by JohnMathewSmith under CC-BY-SA 2.0Timecodes00:00:00 Danger of Charities00:06:58 What She Got Right00:09:28 Her Ministries00:19:24 Twisted Theology of Suffering00:26:03 Need for Conversion00:33:53 Roman Heresy00:37:48 Private Letters00:43:21
God is now going to tell them how they need to treat the land when they receive the Promised Land. That they need to give it rest. Man, since the fall, being self-centered wants to think that God only cares about us, but He said that creation was good before man was every created. He cares about the land and gives them specific instruction of how they are to treat it. This does match practical experience in farming, so the world can recognize the need to give land rest. While this is ceremonial law, since it is requirements for when they receive the land but we should also remember our responsibility to be good masters of the land that God has given us. Christ did not just come to save men. He came to save all of Creation.
God is now going to tell them how they need to treat the land when they receive the Promised Land. That they need to give it rest. Man, since the fall, being self-centered wants to think that God only cares about us, but He said that creation was good before man was every created. He cares about the land and gives them specific instruction of how they are to treat it. This does match practical experience in farming, so the world can recognize the need to give land rest. While this is ceremonial law, since it is requirements for when they receive the land but we should also remember our responsibility to be good masters of the land that God has given us. Christ did not just come to save men. He came to save all of Creation.
At Reformation Baptist Church we stream the audio of the service for those who regularly attend who are unable to attend due to sickness or travel. We encourage everyone else to attend a church in your area.
After God gave these pictures that relate to the importance of making God and His Word known, the text switches to a narrative. A man who had a Israelite mother, but a Gentile father, blasphemed and cursed the name of God during a fight. The Israelites recognized that he was in serious sin, so they put him in custody while they waited to hear from God what they should do. Notice how much greater and proper their fear of God was that they would at least know that he needs to be punished. Many professed Christian churches wouldn't think of church discipline for someone who blasphemed the name of God in a fight. At the same time, they knew if you cursed father or mother it was worthy of death, so how much more is it worthy of death if you do it to God. God is instructing them in the proper use of the law, how to take the laws that they were given and apply them to other situations, so God told them to take him outside the camp and stone him. The tendency of the unbelievers is always to say that God is not serious about the level of punishment that He will inflict, so we don't want laws that are as severe as God's laws. God is a jealous and just God, so He can judge with eternal torture. We need to understand how serious sin is and the significance of the forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
A little over a month ago, Dan Horn had a debate with Pastor Rich Lusk about Paedobaptism and the place of children in the church. After the debate was posted on YouTube (see link below), there were a number of comments that seemed worth responding to. A couple of the comments are from credobaptists, but most are from paedobaptists whose viewpoints seem to diverge from orthodox Presbyterian views and lean more toward Federal Vision.Dan Horn vs. Rich Lusk on Children in the Church:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4rcocRXATE Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/05/pedobaptism-debate-response-ep-218-audio/Timecodes00:00:00 The Debate00:00:45 The Position is Cold?00:11:44 Israel Drank of Christ?00:25:55 Children Praying?00:33:11 Christ's Baptism?00:40:57 Born Again?01:00:27 Baptism and Priesthood?01:16:31 Covenant Community?Production of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
How can we think about pain and suffering from a Reformed perspective. While suffering exists because of sin, both sin and suffering are part of God's means to glorify Himself through his Son. Because of this, those who seek to glorify God with their lives must approach suffering not only as God's decree, but as one of the ways that He glorifies Himself.In this episode, we discuss why suffering exists, how God uses suffering to constrain sin, how maturity and suffering are tied together, and how suffering for our sin differs from suffering for the sake of righteousness. Please join us as we discuss this important topic. Production of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
Replacement theology is a derogatory term often used by dispensationalists to accuse those who believe in Covenant theology. Specifically, they claim that covenant theology teaches that the church replaced Israel. And while Christ does say to national Israel that the kingdom of God will be taken from them and given to another who will produce it's fruit, the way that is fulfilled is through the people established in Christ himself, the true Israel. One of the other issues with Dispensational eschatology is that it teaches that the church is a "parenthesis" in Israel's history and that every spiritual promise given by God will be fulfilled in physical Israel, which is clearly not true. So here's the question: What is right about replacement theology and what is wrong about it?In this episode, we look at the promises made to physical Israel which were fulfilled and acknowledged in Scripture. We also look at the promises that were clearly made to be fulfilled through Christ and his body, not in a "parenthesis", and not by the church completely replacing Israel either, but by the substance, which is Christ, taking his place as the root and head of true Israel and bringing all that the Father has given him to the blessed promises of his glorious salvation and redemption.Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/04/is-replacement-theology-biblical-or-a-dispensational-boogeyman-ep-216-audio/Thumbnail image by Daniel Borman on Flickr under CC-BY 2.0Timecodes00:00 Replacement Theology09:57 Shadows to Substance15:20 Divorce of Israel28:49 Not All of Israel52:39 All Israel Will Be Saved?
Leviticus 23:23-32. After the Feast of Weeks, the next feast in the Israelite calendar is the Feast of Trumpets. It is the first day of the seventh month which means it would take place immediately after the original start of the year, It the first feast that represents what happens after Christ returns or as 1 Corinthians describes it as the last trumpet. The next holiday, the Day of Atonement, was when the High Priest went into the presence of God. If you consider it as the High Priest carrying spiritual Israel into the presence of God, when you consider the timeline and when you consider that it is a day of affliction, it is pointing to the the day when Christ will open all of the books and all our deeds with be judged, both those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life and those who are not. All the dead will stand before God in preparation of the next thing in the redemption timeline which is tabernacling with God forever.
One of the biggest disagreements between Baptists and Presbyterians is related to baptism, it's administration and what it means within the church. And these differences in practice are tied directly to differences in how God's Covenant and the covenants that He has made with men are understood. One primary difference that we want to concentrate on is that the Baptist view has more of an upward focus, looking at how each of God's covenants with man reveals or discovers the Eternal Covenant of Grace whereas the Presbyterian view is more downward focused with their description being that the Covenant of Grace has different administrations in the time of the law and the time of the gospel. Because of these different focuses, Baptists and Presbyterians see the effect of continuity and discontinuity very differently, with Baptists looking for those details to be expressed in physical vs spiritual typologies expressed as the earthly covenants with man reveal the heavenly Covenant of Grace (for example: circumcision of the flesh being fulfilled through circumcision of the heart, physical offspring pointing to spiritual offspring, physical households pointing to spiritual households, etc). Alternately, Presbyterians look for continuity and discontinuity within the earthly covenants. (physical households continuing, circumcision becoming baptism, etc).Most of the differences in this episode are found in Chapter 7 of both the Westminter and the Second London Baptist confessions of faith. In the Westminster, this chapter is titled, "Of God's Covenant with Man" and in the SLBC it is titled, "Of God's Covenant"Note: While we are focusing on real dif
God now codifies what is to happen at the Feast of Weeks. First of all, it is to be fifty days after the waving of the sheaf offering, which means that the day of the Sabbath was to change year by year. This is important when we think of the resurrection which the sheaf represents, because it was fifty days after the resurrection of Christ that the Holy Spirit was poured out. The Feast of Weeks is done in remembrance of the giving of the law on tablets of stone at Mt. Sinai and was given to point forward to the giving of the law in the hearts of believers at Pentecost through the Holy Spirit. At Pentecost, they were to wave two large loaves of leavened bread because unlike the Feast of Unleavened Bread which represented the gospel not spreading from Israel, the Feast of Weeks is a picture of the Word of God going through the whole world. Also, more animals needed to be sacrificed for Pentecost and not just burnt offerings, but sin and peace offerings as well. With Israel being the people of God, there was no eternal forgiveness in the making of them as a people unlike in the New Covenant where sin was actually taken away. It is about where there is true peace with God. Israel was never at peace with God, but the visible church does have peace with God even as it is a mixed multitude. Then lastly, God ends by putting aside all of the symbolic offerings and speaks plainly. You must leave the corners of the fields for the poor and stranger. They would not have understood the symbolism of the offerings, but they had a duty to understand that. They had a duty to care for their neighbor.
When you consider the fact that God calls those He has called out front the world, a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and His own special people, it should be obvious that He intended the church to be the ideal form of community. What group could have more in common and closeness than one made alive by His Spirit and called for His purposes into His family and household?But when we look at the world, we can see a different picture. While the church has a greater sense of community than the world, it does not seem to be a light to the nations in this regard. In fact, over the last sixty years, the American sense of community has been breaking down. And while some people want to accuse technology of causing this breakdown, in most cases, technology only facilitates the things we already desired. One of the things that has happened in the church is that we have shifted our focus from God saving the church as one body to be his bride, and instead have almost exclusively focused on God saving each of us as individuals. And because a strong sense of community requires one to focus, not on himself but on the group and what they hold in common, this singular focus wars against the sense of community that God desires for the church. In this episode, we want to look at the ways that God has designed the church to be the model community for the world, and how the practices He instituted and called the church to should strengthen rather than weaken this sense of community. Please join us as we discuss this very necessary topic.Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/04/gods-blueprint-for-community-how-th
After reminding the children of Israel about keeping the Sabbath and the Passover, God now describes how the first fruits are to be offered. These would be barley for the Feast of Unleavened Bread and wheat for the Feast of Weeks. They would be required to bring a sheaf of their grain to offer before the Lord as a wave offering. The priests had to offer an additional lamb of the first year as a burnt offering in addition to the regular daily offering along with the grain offering and a drink offering. When we think of grain in the offerings, we should think of it as a type of the Word of God. The lamb of God must be slain so that we can received the Word of God. It is through Christ's sacrifice, that God opens our eyes so that we can meaningfully receive His Word. This was to be very distinctive for the people because they were not allowed to partake of any of the crop of the new year, until the wave offering had happened. When we think of times of famine, this would require self control when your crop comes in and you are not to eat it until the first fruits are waved before God as a testimony that both the physical food and the spiritual food that we receive is from the mercy of God.
Sharing the gospel is central to the Great Commission. But doing so on a day-to-day basis is more complicated than we often want to admit. It's definitely more complex than just memorizing the Romans Road or learning a three-step approach for door-to-door witnessing. So in this episode, we want to ask two different questions about sharing the gospel: first, we want to ask why don't we do it, and second, how should we change the way we think about sharing the gospel?Listen to the audio version here: https://theconqueringtruth.com/2025/04/what-stops-christians-from-sharing-the-gospel-ep-213-audio/Timecodes00:00:00 Failure to Evangelize00:08:36 False Fears00:11:33 Belief in Hell00:14:53 Disobedience00:19:59 Gifting vs Practice00:26:48 Different Venues00:35:36 Hospitality00:40:04 Ready to Give an Answer00:49:28 Listening00:58:17 Answer a Fool01:21:59 Using God's WordProduction of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
After five chapters of declaring that they must be a holy people, now God also talks about how they must rejoice together. All of the commandments about holiness were not evil and to harm, rather they were given so that they would be a blessed people. God's laws are good when they are used lawfully. They were designed to bless, so they should result in rejoicing before God. He called them to many feasts. The weekly feast of the Sabbath to remember that God has given them rest and then the annual feasts for the nation. The first annual feast is about rejoicing before God because God not only delivered them from Egypt, but He was taking them to a pleasant land, to a place of blessings. Just as God loves a cheerful giver, when we understand them properly, all of God's commandments will bring us to a place of joy.
Many Christians would describe justice and mercy as being at odds with one another, but most confessions of the faith, such as the SLBC and the Westminster Confession, say that God is most just and He is most merciful. But if they are in opposition to one another, how can God be both merciful and just?Thumbnail image by Manu_H on Flickr under CC-BY 2.0Timecodes00:00:00 Intro00:02:57 Sproul00:10:50 Definition of Justice00:15:52 Definition of Mercy00:24:51 Overlooking Sin00:37:02 Vengeance vs Justice00:46:08 Justice in Man's Law00:49:14 Importance of Justice01:00:51 Mercy in the LawProduction of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
Many churches teach that Matthew 18 is the generally applicable text about church discipline and it should be followed in all circumstances. But Matthew 18 is primarily about forgiveness between brothers and when you look at other cases of discipline, such as when a man has his father's wife, there is no hint that Matthew 18 should be followed. So when is Matthew 18 appropriate? And why is this passage so often misunderstood? In this episode, we start out by laying out the differences between personal offenses and offenses against God. Matthew 18 is about dealing with personal offenses and because the person who believes he has been wronged has no greater authority than the brother he is confronting the process is structured to minimize slandering and false accusations. We also discuss how this is not just for brothers who go to the same church, how that works and what it looks like. After laying this groundwork, we then walk through the passage verse by verse discussing how each step is rooted in God's desire for justice and forgiveness.Matthew 18 is an incredibly important passage for us to understand. When we do not understand what it is intended to accomplish or how we should go about the process, we cause the church to be filled with a lack of forgiveness and injustice. Production of Reformation Baptist Church of Youngsville, NCPermanent Hosts - Dan Horn, Charles Churchill and Joshua HornTechnical Director - Timothy KaiserTheme Music - Gabriel Hudelson
God continues to give instructions through Moses to Aaron and his sons, and to all the people of Israel, regarding the requirements for animals offered in freewill offerings, peace offerings, or offerings for vows. God points out that these types of offerings can be made not only by the children of Israel but also by strangers dwelling among them, and he requires the same standard for his offerings regardless of who is making the offering. God is holy, and he expects what is offered to him to be free of defect.