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In episode 503 of The Reformed Brotherhood, Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb conclude their deep dive into Luke 10:25–37 — the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Far from a simple morality tale about helping strangers, this episode unpacks the parable's confrontational legal context, its reversal of expectation, and its profound Christological undertones. Tony and Jesse examine why the lawyer's question about self-justification was always destined to be unanswerable on his own terms, how the priest and Levite serve as a damning mirror for religious professionals, and why the Samaritan's lavish, costly mercy points beyond mere ethics to the gospel itself. The episode also explores the Mary and Martha account that immediately follows, arguing it cannot be read in isolation. Closing with Matthew Henry, the hosts land the discussion squarely on gratitude for Christ, the supreme Good Neighbor. Key Takeaways The parable is fundamentally about self-justification, not mercy ministry. The lawyer's question — "Who is my neighbor?" — is a legal maneuver, and Jesus' answer exposes the impossibility of fulfilling the law through self-effort rather than merely defining the scope of neighborly obligation. Jesus reverses the expected identification of "the neighbor." The listener naturally assumes the beaten man is the neighbor to be loved, but the punchline identifies the Samaritan — the one who showed mercy — as the neighbor, redirecting the question from who must I love to what does love actually look like. The Samaritan's mercy is deliberately, impossibly lavish. His actions — binding wounds, providing transport, paying an open-ended debt for a stranger and likely an enemy — exceed anything a reasonable person would do, pointing to a mercy that transcends mere human virtue. The priest and Levite indict religious professionalism. Their failure is not incidental; it demonstrates that meticulous law observance and ceremonial religiosity can actually obstruct the very love the law commands, hollowing out its spirit while preserving its form. The parable functions under all three uses of the law. For the unregenerate, it terrifies and condemns. For the regenerate, it is a third-use call to Spirit-empowered, grateful obedience. As civil law, it commends a society of compassion over indifference. Christ is the typological Good Neighbor. The Samaritan's actions — pouring oil and wine, bearing the cost, promising to return and settle all debts — carry genuine Christological resonance without requiring a full allegorical reading of every detail. The immediately following Mary and Martha account is thematically inseparable. Luke's editorial placement of that narrative directly after the parable creates a deliberate counterpoint: the one thing necessary is not anxious service but sitting at the feet of Jesus. Key Concepts The Lawyer's Question Was Never Going to Work The lawyer who approaches Jesus in Luke 10 is not a neutral inquirer — he is, as Luke tells us, seeking to justify himself. Tony and Jesse explore what this means with precision: the desire to be justified is not inherently wrong, but the mechanism the lawyer employs — the law — is catastrophically insufficient for the task. When Jesus responds with the parable, he does not sidestep the legal framework; he weaponizes it. The Samaritan's mercy is so extravagant, so far beyond ordinary moral expectation, that it functions not as an achievable standard but as a devastating exposure of how far short every human attempt at law-keeping falls. The command "go and do likewise" is not an encouraging send-off — it is, for the self-justifying lawyer, a door slamming shut. The Samaritan's Mercy Is Intentionally Beyond Reach One of the most important contributions this episode makes is resisting the domestication of the Samaritan's actions into a feel-good story about helping those in need. Tony reframes the scenario in contemporary terms: finding a gravely injured stranger from a hostile ethnic group, providing emergency first aid, transporting them to care, and writing a blank check for all future medical expenses — with no personal obligation to do so. No reasonable person would do this, and that is exactly the point. The mercy described is not aspirationally difficult; it is humanly inconceivable at scale. This is what Christ-like love looks like, and it is precisely what the law demands. The gap between the demand and human capacity is the gospel's entry point. The Mary and Martha Account Cannot Be Separated from the Parable Tony raises a hermeneutical observation that deserves more attention than it typically receives: Luke chose to place the Mary and Martha account immediately after the Good Samaritan parable, and that editorial decision is not accidental. Martha — busy with hospitality and service — looks, on the surface, like the practical application of everything the Samaritan modeled. Yet she is gently rebuked, and Mary, who sits at Jesus' feet, is commended for choosing "the one thing necessary." This creates a stunning theological counterweight: the parable exposes the impossibility of self-justifying law-keeping, and the very next story shows that even well-intentioned merciful activity, when it crowds out receiving from Christ, misses the point. The one thing necessary is always Christ himself. Memorable Quotes If you think you're the good Samaritan, if you think you're the one that's gonna come and rescue people — you're much more likely to see this as a sort of law beat-down. Where those of us who are regenerated and in Christ, this is third-use law. This is us seeing what it means to be holy, and going and doing likewise, trying in our power, recognizing that we can't, and trusting the Lord to accept our feeble attempts. - Tony Arsenal This text is not really to be preached or applied as some kind of bare moral exhortation. It's not 'try harder to be like the Samaritan.' That's totally disconnected from the gospel. It should be preached in a manner that exposes the impossibility of self-justification... and then of course it does point us to Christ as the one whose perfect, costly, self-giving mercy alone satisfies the law's demand on our behalf. - Jesse Schwamb If this parable and our conversation about it does nothing except stirring you to gratitude for the fact that our supreme good neighbor threw us on his donkey and carried us to the public house, and bound up our wounds, and paid for our debt — if it does nothing but drive you to gratitude and thankfulness and wonder, then we've succeeded in our task and we've left you with the Gospel. - Tony Arsenal Full Transcript Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to episode 503 of the Reformed Brotherhood. I'm Jesse.  Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony, and this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey, brother.  Jesse Schwamb: Hey, brother. Well, at this point, there's one thing that we know for certain, and that is if you're gonna come at the law giver, the one who's composed and written the law, with a legal question to try to entrap the one who has given you the law, you better not miss. And it turns out, in Luke 10 where we've been hanging out, the lawyer who poses Jesus with the question of, "Who is my neighbor?" is a big swing and a miss. Yeah. And we're finally gonna get to all the characters that are part of this amazing parable in this conversation. But of course, there's something we gotta do first. Affirmations And Denials Jesse Schwamb: It, it's everybody's, what I'm led to believe everybody's favorite segment of this entire show. I mean, the crowds out there say, "Why even have a full podcast? Just do affirmations and denials for the entire time." And we, we hear you, because we're borrowing from that beautiful confessional format of the dead reformers to settle all the much not confessional [00:02:00] disputes. So in the great tradition of the Westminster Divines, who of course cannot just simply say, "We like grace," without also clarifying 17 things that grace is not- ... we're now again going to bring you our own binding, authoritative, and entirely unneeded but very official statement of affirmations and denials. It's affirming the things we love and denying things we don't. So Tony, as is our own custom, are you affirming with something or are you denying against something on this episode?  Tony Arsenal: Um, I'm denying something. Uh, it's a sort of a weird situation that has cropped up, uh, online. And I, I try not to use this segment too often to sort of wade into, um, I don't know, the, like, latest social controversy in the Reformed world. But every once in a while I come across something that I feel like you just need to sort of talk about. And, um, many of our listeners are probably already [00:03:00] aware of the situation that I'm gonna talk about, and it's very well-publicized and, and very public. Um, but I'm denying the sort of weirdness that has happened with the G3 Conference. Um, I'm not sure how familiar with G3 you are, Jesse, but for the, the listener who may not be, G3 is a conference, um, primarily run by Baptists, and is, in my understanding, is primarily attended by sort of Reformed-ish Baptists. And I don't, I don't say Reformed-ish to be pejorative necessarily. Um, but it, it's sort of like predominantly, um Non-confessional but not anti-confessional Calvinistic Baptists, sort of think more like covenant framework MacArthur-style Baptists maybe is, is a way to look at it. Um, and a few years ago, one of their main figures, I don't remember exactly what position he held, but it was a relatively high position in, in [00:04:00] the conference. Uh, his name was Josh Boyce. He, uh, w- was caught/confessed to maintaining, like, multiple anonymous or pseudonymous, uh, Twitter accounts and publishing several s- like pseudonym-based Substacks, um, that he used to basically attack the character of not only anyone online that seemed to cross him, but, like, people that he shared an office with. Like, anyone and everyone was targeted by him. And at the time it was a big hullabaloo. He, uh, he resigned. As far as I can tell, he's faded into obscurity and has not sought to come back, although that's always, you know, yet to be seen. But at the time there was very firm statements by the r- remaining sort of board members, leadership of G3, at how inappropriate this was, and how acting anonymously requi- you know, sort of evacuates accountability and, [00:05:00]and all these different things. And it's come out recently, um, just over the last week, that four of the members of the G3 board, um, who are all elders at the same church, had assembled a sort of anonymous dossier of accusations against, um, a- another pastor, uh, that he had been sort of serially plagiarizing sermons. Um, and when nothing really happened when they sent their anonymous dossier, they started distributing this to other, other, like, platforms and other church and m- parachurch ministries, kind of encouraging people to do their own investigation. Um, one such, uh, outlet was ... It's a, it's a, I don't know, sort of a news discernment blogger kind of a thing, um, has done some pretty decent reporting work I think in, in the recent past, although it has sort of a s- storied beginning, um, called Protestia They did just [00:06:00] that. They did an investigation, and in the course of their investigation, they identified who these anonymous, uh, the anonymous reporters were, and it was the same, the very same people who a few years ago, uh, pontificated, uh, at, at length about the importance of accountability and how anonymity has, uh, taken that away. Uh, people that accepted Josh Boyce's resi- resignation for acting anonymously have now done the same thing. They have since, uh, resigned from their church eldership, um, which is gonna be awkward because they haven't resigned from the board of G3, which, uh, the offices of G3 are in the same building as the church that they've now resigned at. Uh, and I guess where, where my denial comes in and the reason that I feel like it, it might be worthwhile for us just to Even reflect on it a little bit is there is an element in the Reformed world that seeks a platform and seeks an audience and seeks notoriety, and I, I was musing [00:07:00] today a little bit on my own Twitter that th- there was a time in my life where that was very much what I wanted. I wanted to be a, a very public, well-known theological voice, and, um, a- and I just have sort of like drifted away from that. And the, the reason I think it's worth mentioning on our show is that we do have an audience. We have a, a modest audience. It's not huge. It's not nothing. Um, but th- there is a real temptation to seek fame and notoriety that is absolutely destructive and really antithetical to, uh, to Christian principles of what it means to serve those around you, to serve with humility, to r- you know, redound any glory that might come to you for your actions to, to the fact that it is Christ who empowers all things and brings all good blessings. So I don't know that I have much more commentary on it. It's just a weird... It's a very weird situation, but it, it seems like it very much has come from a [00:08:00] place of feeling as though minor slights by people you associate with warrant sort of a, a nuclear option like this because, uh... and I don't wanna read too much into motives, but, but it seems like because your reputation and your notoriety is so great that any offense to it needs to be responded to in kind, and that's just not, that's just not the Christian way. So again, I don't know that I have any more commentary or thoughts on it. It just was a weird situation that I'm, I'm like, "Why do we gotta do this to each other, folks?" Like, why are we, why are we biting at each other all the time? Why are we doing these things except from a place of sinful pride? So I'm denying that. I'm denying sinful pride. I'm denying my own tendencies to seek glory in a spotlight. Um, I'm very thankful that God did not, uh, see fit to grant me that desire 'cause it probably would've been even more destructive for me than it has been for these guys. So I'm very happy to live in obscurity, [00:09:00] to serve the local church, to share our voices in this very modest, tiny platform that we have, and perhaps the Lord will see fit to change that one direction or the other, and I'll, I'll be happy to serve at His, uh, at His will. But I'm glad for now that, uh, the, the temptation of international fame has not been something that I even have the opportunity to lay hold of. Um, I'm very thankful for that, that, uh, grace from the Lord.  Jesse Schwamb: I had that light, sarcastic, some might say somewhat humorous opening and affirmations and denials, and you, you just brought the heaviness, which is okay. Sometimes that's, sometimes that's what happens.  Lament Devotional Spotlight Jesse Schwamb: And- Yeah ... I- fortunately, I have an affirmation, but it's, uh, of, like, a weird, heavy kind now that I think about it. So, um, I'm trying to, I'm trying to get everybody on the cusp of good books that I think are coming out. And so here's another one where it's not even gonna be released until September 30th, and so you have plenty of time to go out and find this thing. So P&R Publishing, many may be [00:10:00] familiar, does this whole series, topical series, which are called 31-Day Devotionals for Life, and there's a new one being released by Christine Chappell. It's called Lament: Crying Out in Faith. So I'm affirming with this piece because I've had the joy of been working through some of this stuff, and I think this is some of the best treatment I've ever read, been able to practice, been coached into for lamenting. We've talked before at length about how Christians, especially in the West, often because we just have great lives, we aren't familiar with lament. We don't practice it well. We hardly sing any songs of lament. We're unfamiliar with it. It's like a foreign land to us. And then sometimes when we're, we get convicted we should lament, we kind of interpret that as, "Well, yeah, I, I know I can blow up at God. I can get angry with him and, and that's okay." David does it too, and it's okay to express all your feelings with God. What I like about this work is it cultivates more of a prayer language. It gives voice to pain and grief so that there can be a real healing. It's not just a complaining. It's not just [00:11:00] throwing your voice out into the ether to, you know, wildly pontificate or self-aggrandize about how hurt or upset you are. It enables us to cry out to God in such a way that it promotes emotional authenticity, but at the same time maintains reverence. I think that is, uh, at least what I need. The beauty of this book is somebody you know or yourself need to lament something. Actually, I think we all have something to lament, even as it's getting older or things changing in our lives. So I highly, highly, highly affirm with this book. It's Lament: Crying Out in Faith. P&R does a lot of great publishing in this way. It's just the year of the devotionals, Tony. I don't know why. Yeah. I mean, I even hate to use devotional. It's the year of good resources for daily praise and worship- Yeah ... and lament should be part of our praise and worship. Yeah. So, but doing it in the right way is something I'm learning. I had mixed understanding of it. So this will clarify, encourage, edify in all the ways that I think we need.  Tony Arsenal: That sounds great. I, I do agree with you. I think, um- [00:12:00] Although I think it may be a little bit less so in, in the sort of confessional Reformed tradition just because the Psalms in general play such a prominent role in Reformed worship. Um, I do agree with you that broadly, like, we, we in the Western evangelical w- world don't, we don't know how to do laments. Um, I'm not one of those people that would say im- imprecatory prayers are inappropriate. I know there are some even within the Reformed world that would say im- imprecatory prayers are not appropriate for God's people in, in the new covenant. Um, I don't know that I agree with that, but, but that's another example of, like, that's in the prayer and hymnbook of our people- Right ... and we don't really know how to do it. Yes. So, and, and imprecation and lament are very closely related to each other. They're, they're very similar, um, ways of thinking and they're, they're both kind of modes of prayer that, uh, we don't, we don't really engage in. And so when we do have- when the occasion arises, we're, like, out of practice. So that's a great, uh, a great [00:13:00]affirmation and yeah, a little, a little weirdly heavy. Maybe this is gonna be a, a weirdly heavy episode. Who knows?  Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, it very well could be.  Good Samaritan Deep Dive Jesse Schwamb: I mean, listen, it was no doubt heavy for the lawyer who stood up- True who was  Tony Arsenal: like- Nicely done ...  Jesse Schwamb: I'd like to justify myself, so Jesus, let me ask you, we took our question, "Who is my neighbor?" I do all these things. I'm down with the law. Yeah. I know all this stuff. And I think we had some really great conversation last time. I'm biased, but I think we had some really fantastic unpacking of the first part of this, and if you haven't heard that yet, you should go back and listen to episode 502. But in this episode, we're really getting into all of these wonderful and somewhat colorful characters. So I'm gonna pick us back up in Luke chapter 10, starting in verse 25. So I'm going back a little bit just to set that proper context for this amazing parable that Jesus tells us. So he says, "And behold, a scholar of the law stood up and was putting him," that is Jesus, "to the test, saying, 'Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?' And he said to him, 'What is written in the law? How do you [00:14:00] read it?' And he answered and said, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.' And he said to him, 'You have answered correctly. Do this and you will live.' But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?' And Jesus replied and said, 'A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. And a priest happened to be going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise, a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him, and when he saw him, he felt compassion.'" And he came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them, and he put them on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And on the [00:15:00] next day, he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, "Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, when I return, I will repay you." Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers' hands? And he said, "The one who showed mercy toward him." Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do the same."  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, this is one of those parables we, we mentioned, uh, I guess we've invented a new classification of parables called the Big Daddy parables. That's right. Um, uh, this is one of those parables that is so ubiquitous and well-known, uh, that word there, choice there was a little hat tip to my Lutheran friends. Um, so ubiquitous and well-known that I think we actually can, can rush into a common understanding and not, not be right at all about it. And I think the, the way this, uh, uh, the way I've seen this commonly done in, in circles I've run in in the past is this [00:16:00] becomes a parable about mercy ministry. Um, and, and the primary point is about how we serve our neighbors. And I think there certainly is, um, there certainly is an element of that that we can glean from this, that Christ is making a commentary on the fact that, um, the, the, the right way to not only serve your neighbor but to even identify your neighbor, uh, and it's funny because I think this is, this is where I think people go wrong. The, the Samar- or the, um, the, the lawyer is asking, "Who is my neighbor?" Right. And I think we commonly read this, and we read it to say, well, the Samaritan, uh, or the, the guy who got beat up is the neighbor. Right. And so we have to serve our neighbor like the Samaritan did. But the, the, the punchline, whatever, of the story is that the Samaritan is the g- is the neighbor, right? We, we call this the Parable of the Good Samaritan, but we might wanna call it the [00:17:00] Parable of the Good Neighbor. And so it says more about what it means to be a good neighbor than it does to, um, to say about who, who our neighbor necessarily is, right? The, the s- uh, the lawyer was asking, "Who's my neighbor?" And the answer was the one who shows mercy. And there's kind of a weird, there's kind of a weird paradox there, and this is something Jesus commonly does, where, like, He doesn't really answer the question. Um, the, the lawyer is like, "Well, who is it that I have to love," right? "The, I have to love my neighbor as myself, and who is it that I have to love?" And Jesus' answer basically is like, "Well, the good neighbor is the one who showed mercy." Well, that doesn't answer- Right ... His question. So I think we have to be careful when we, uh, we work through this not to just sort of default and jump to what might be called, like, the lowest common denominator interpretation, right? These are things that, yes, um, there is something to say about, uh, mercy ministry and how important it is to serve the, [00:18:00] serve those around us who are in need, right? That's, that's the command that comes out of this or the outcome that comes out of this is Christ is commanding this, um, this lawyer to go and be merciful to others. Um- But if we, if we move too quickly to that, we miss a lot of what this has to say about the nature of justification- Right ... the nature of Christ as, as the capital T good neighbor, right? The, the good neighbor who, who takes care of our sin and pays the debt for us to be restored, right? I don't, like I said last week, I don't think that that is too on the nose. Um, I think we miss the fact that the question, uh, the question is coming from a place, and we talked about this a little bit last week, but and maybe we'll get into it a little more. The question is coming from a place, um, whether you view this negatively, like I think most do, and there's warrant for that, or whether you view it a, a little bit more neutrally or maybe even positively, which is where I land, the desire to justify or to be [00:19:00] justified is not a bad desire. And the, the text doesn't seem to offer a lot of commentary on the fact that the, the, um, lawyer is desiring to justify himself, other than the implied commentary o- of what the parable says about salvation in that someone else needs to save you, so you can't do it yourself in the first place. So I'm excited to get through this. Um, I, I think we're probably gonna be here, we're gonna camp out here for at least another week after this, 'cause there's just so much to this parable. Who knows? Maybe we'll fly through it and it'll be a quick conversation, but I, I don't... That's not really our jam. Um- That's not really what we do But yeah, it, it's, it's a big daddy parable. There's a lot here to unpack.  Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. You're right about that. Interestingly, as always, Jesus flips the law, but here the law flipping, like, ends up smacking you in the face because it does start with this inquiry about just identify for me who my neighbors are. If you give me these discrete instructions like the law has given me to do all these things, which by the way, I mean, even that when we have this lawyer saying, [00:20:00] "I've done all these things. I've identified just for instance that the law includes loving the Lord God with everything, every part of who I am." He says like, "Yeah, I've done all these things." This is, I've already accomplished that. So now let me get, become self-justified in confirming I've done all these things. If you just tell me who the neighbors are, I'll be able to say to you, "Yep, I've already done that." Instead, what happens is Christ says, "Here's what neighborly love looks like. And what it's gonna look like is so dramatic and so shocking that you ought to take pity and have concern and show compassion for those not just who are unlike you, but are, like, abhorrent, those who you would even never identify with in the parable of the story I'm about to tell you." So I think there's all of that, like you said, to move away from just kind of categorizing this as a nice homily about how we ought to behave. However, there might be, like, some kind of moralistic theme in this that directs us toward actions of love and generosity, which by the way, could just be common grace. Those exist outside of strict belief and adherence to the gospel, and certainly can be far afield from actually loving Christ. [00:21:00] The other thing that I think sometimes happens with this, and I'm gonna be unpopular on this one, I'm afraid, but is that I think there is often a lot of allegorical excess. And certainly there are people more intelligent than I who really embrace that. So I'm looking at you, Patristic Fathers. Like, you know, if you wanna read some interesting stuff, everybody can go look up Origen or Augustine on this. Yeah. And they allegorize this parable in New England what we would call wicked fine detail. I mean, down, down to everything. So the oil and the- Yeah ... wine, the soil, each of the persons here representing something that in itself, like, everything. And I think that that is okay. What I struggle with on that is, and this is where I'm unpopular, I think, is that- There are a lot of other exegetes, I don't think I'm alone, that would look at this and say, "Yes, there is something about this that draws us into, like, just general typological resonance. I'm not gonna reject that." There are these, like, broader canonical themes of, like, helpless [00:22:00] humanity, like you said, and undeserved mercy. Those all legitimately, I think, echo the gospel truths. But I'm kind of resisting, or I'm prone to resist, treating every narrative detail in this as some kind of, like, independent cipher. Yeah. And so I think I want to come a little bit in criticizing, like, the allegorical method here, that instead what happens when we do that is we're, we're... I think we're obscuring a little bit Christ's actual didactic purpose, which is fundamentally ethical and legal, 'cause that's the question he's answering. He's trying to answer this question, "Who's my neighbor?" And he's gonna do it- Right ... with this definition-shattering example. And so I think, like, the most responsible hermeneutic here affirms that, like we said before, a parable should have a single main point, and it's determined in this context by that punchline, like you said. Um, at the same time, I think we can legitimately, like, permit some restrained theological reflection on, like, that broader resonance with the gospel. I'm not denying that. But without multiplying, like, allegorical [00:23:00] correspondences like the text itself doesn't even make. Even, even coming down to, like, who we see as Christ in the story, while that can be useful and helpful, it's not the same identification that we've seen in other parables. Yeah. So that's what makes this, like you're right, Tony, like, really unique and very interesting because we can draw lots and lots of parallels, and perhaps we should. But at the same time, it's always good to remember what is it that Jesus is on about here? What is it that the hearers were really being prone to understand and mull over and meditate on? And that's, like, this first principle of neighborly love, like you already called out.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, and I, I agree with you, too, is I, I think, um- We can sort of fall into a trap or a pit of assuming that all of the parables are meant to explain the same thing. Sure. And I think, like, within Matthew maybe that's a little bit more, uh, accurate because m- I think all, if not [00:24:00] most of, of the Matthean parables, you know, the Kingdom of God is like, the Kingdom of God is like. So th- like, that repeated f- refrain of, like, the Kingdom of God is... In, in Matthew, Christ is using parables to teach about the mysterious hidden reality of the kingdom in a way that people can understand. Um, this is different, right? This is not a Kingdom of God is like. There is no, um, clear this is like that, uh, introduction to this parable. Right. I, I've actually even read some commentaries that would question the assignment of the title parable to this, because they want to restrict what a parable is to those sort of kingdom, like, explicit simile- Good point ... things. Yeah. So- Right ... but I, I do think, um, w- we, we have to be careful not to run down that road, because this parable is not really... Again, like, it's not explaining what the Kingdom of God is like. This is trying to, um, not trying to, Christ is [00:25:00]articulating a reality that is baked into the law, um, and he's flipping the question on its head, and this is what I think is so, um, so wrong about the allegorical approach, right? Is that the allegorical approach seeks to find symbolism in every discrete character or element of the, of the parable, or of the, the allegory if you wanna, we wanna distinguish it. This really is, is trying to just get at that one point. And what- Mm-hmm ... I think is so, what must have been really just infuriating for this lawyer, um, regardless of what happened after this, right? We don't, we don't get commentary like we do with the rich, young ruler, and the stories are in many ways are very much the same. Like, it's the same basic setup. But we don't get commentary that, like, he went away sad, like we do with the rich, young ruler. We don't know what happened with this guy. We don't know what his reaction... But I, I'm sitting there putting myself in his place, and I'm, I'm thinking through this, and this is one of those things that it's actually hard even to mentally get yourself there. The, [00:26:00] the, each character that is introduced here, um, is a candidate for the neighbor. Right. But the most obvious candidate based on, um, the way we commonly interpret this, is that the dude who gets beat up and left stripped naked is, is the neighbor that we're supposed to love Right? So the lawyer, as he's hearing this parable, as it's being told, and the, the people who are there listening, right, the, the other people that are around, there's this character introduced, "Who is my neighbor? Well, a man was going down to Jerusalem. He fell among roggers, Roger, robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead." Like, the obvious answer is that Christ is introducing this poor, destitute, beat-up, naked dude, uh, as the neighbor that needs to be loved. And so he goes through the whole parable, and you're like, oh, well, like, the, you know, the, the priest and the Levite, they didn't love this guy. Uh, the Samaritan, you know, I think an audience of Jews probably would've been thinking like, "Well, the Samaritan can't be..." You know, the Samaritan [00:27:00] is just a dude. Like, none of these people are loving the, the, the beat-up dude like a neighbor should. Right. And then all of a sudden, Christ flips the script, and the neighbor is not the dude who's laying there naked, half dead, who's been rescued and, and, you know, restored and is being healed. It's actually the Samaritan. And so there's this... We have to... Part of the reason, I think, I mean, I, I, I guess I don't know for sure, but part of the reason I think s- that parables have this, like, reversal of expectation baked into many of them is that it is there to challenge our assumptions, and th- that sort of whiplash effect when you get to the end of it, you're like, "Whoa, that was like he was talking about totally, something totally different than what it seemed like he was talking about." I think that's actually a teaching tool here as well. Right. That the, the whole time you're thinking like, "Oh, this dude is the neighbor, and I've gotta figure out how to love him best," and that's what plays into these mercy ministry interpretations, is thinking that the, the point of the parable is to show us how to take [00:28:00] care of the, the people who need help, when really the point of the parable is the good neighbor. And, uh, we might butt heads a little bit on this, 'cause I think I take probably more of a Christological, uh, topological, typological interpretation than you do. I, I think that the point of the parable is that you can't justify yourself, and the only one who can justify you is the one who's kept the law perfectly. And what does it mean to keep the law perfectly? Well, love the Lord your God, but also love your neighbor as yourself. Well, who's the only person in the story who's loved the neighbor as himself? The one who s- rescues and heals and pays for this poor man who's been, you know, waylaid by robbers. He's the good neighbor who fulfills the law. He's the one who's justified himself. Now, yes, "Go do likewise," there's some echoes there of, of the go and sin no more language that we see in other places, too. So I, I think this parable is more, is more about- A, and this is where it shares some affinity with the rich young ruler, [00:29:00] right? The rich young ruler is told to go and to, to sell everything he has and donate it to the poor and to come and follow Christ. And he says, you know, he, he can't do that. He walks away sad. In this instance, it's the same kind of situation. It's an, a question about how do I fulfill the law? What do I need to do to be saved, to inherit eternal life, to obtain eternal life, whatever the phrasing is. And the answer is, "Obey the law perfectly." And the guy goes, "Well, hey, I did that." And he said, "Well, let me show you how much you didn't do that." And the reality is the only one who did that is Christ, the good teacher, right? I mean, there, there's so many parallels between these two accounts. It, it's almost the same, it's almost the same story. This one just in sort of parable answer form versus a more direct form, which we see with the rich young ruler. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, what I find really fascinating about these is that whereas, like you said, the, some of the other parables, they come under the volitional teaching of Christ. That is, He is presenting forward the topic at hand. So usually it's in the context of conversation, but He essentially makes [00:30:00] the segue. He presents and opens up this new kind of vista to explore. In this case, or in both those cases you talked about, the confrontation really comes from the outside. Of course, God, through Christ, predestined all of these things to pass, so I'm not saying that Christ was caught off guard, of course, by this line of questioning. And presumably He understands that when the lawyer asks this question, He knows that it's from a position of self-justification. So I don't disagree that that might be there, some of that at play, and that really the ultimate end of this would bring, to bring one's self to the realization that you can't do this. At the same time, though, I think almost, especially in this one, I think, uh, it's not that Jesus withholds that, but I read that do, go and do likewise is this is what you said you wanted. You asked me for an answer, and I gave you the answer. You asked for the law- Yeah ... I will give you the law. So I actually don't know how this ended. It doesn't strike me that it ended well, and I think, I don't know if there was some kind of massive realization there, but it's almost as if there is some [00:31:00] obscuring of this. This is like typical parable, parable language where I think if you're there and you're listening, and you're trying to just track with the question and track how that compounds and corresponds with the law, that you would leave more destitute, more confused, and perhaps more angry than before, and certainly not in a position of understanding, "Well, th- this one before me is the Christ." But that's exactly what parables do. So again, I, I think to me- Right ... I see this more as certainly, again, there are these wonderful themes These kind of overtures of the gospel within, but they are dark and very obscured because the man asks a question about the law, and Jesus comes with a message about the law. And like you said, that law is- Yeah ... like, there's almost no grace in his tone as I read it because, not that he is not graceful or full of grace and gracious, but this guy asks for justification under the law. And so it ends with saying, it ends with this really phenomenal phrase, of course, of the lawyer realizing he's got himself [00:32:00] caught in having to respond truthfully in answering the question of who is the neighbor, but of course doesn't identify the neighbor except to say, "Oh, the one who has compassion," as if like he himself couldn't bring himself- Right to say these words. And then for Jesus to say, "Yeah, go do it," is, is kind of like the ultimate nail in the coffin.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and to tell a first century Jew to go and do, to be- Yes ... like a Samaritan is- Yes ... you know, e- even, even though that's not, like, highlighted in the text, you're right. Like, the, the lawyer probably couldn't bring himself to say the Samaritan was, right? And I, I think, um, you know, whether you take, uh, and maybe I'm novel on this. I guess I haven't really read, read a lot of people that take a, a more optimistic approach of this. But whether you take a more optimistic outcome approach or a more pessimistic or neutral, whatever, the, the actual outcome is the same, right? The, the lawyer is asking about self-justification under the law, like you said. Right. And Christ gives him [00:33:00] that. He tells him exactly what that means and what that looks like. And I think the, the impossibility of being the good neighbor as is described in the parable is exactly the sort of beat down of the law that, that, you know, we've talked about in the past is it's not as though, um, the, the, the actions of the Samaritan are not, uh, outwardly impossible, right? We- Right ... it's not unreasonable to think that someone could rescue someone from the side of the road and bring them to ... And like, the scenario itself is not that crazy. But the, the overall complex of the scenario, right? The fact that this man, um, was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, right? The, the ... All of this points to sort of like an impossible circumstance, an impossible situation. And, and the idea that even [00:34:00] within that impossible situation you're still expected to take care of the person who is your enemy, right? The Samaritan seeing a Jewish man beaten by the side of the road- That's right ... and although the parable doesn't specifically call out that he's Jewish, if he's going from Jerusalem to Jericho, there's an implication that he may actually also have been a priest. Um, we, we don't need to get into all the details on that, but there's, there's some good, uh, some good research out there that would point to the fact that the road from Jerusalem to Jericho is, uh, was actually a very common pathway traveled by either priests or Levites. And further evidence is that a priest and a Levite are also on this same road. And so the idea that the Samaritan would, um, would- Sacrifice of himself to take care of someone who very likely considers him to be an enemy, and sacrifices in a pretty significant way. Um, I, I'll, I'll pause and now as you're [00:35:00]talking I'll do all the, the background scrambling to make it look like I know exactly how much- a denari is supposed to, to be, and I know we've talked about it before, it's just not there.  Lavish Impossible Mercy Tony Arsenal: But, but it's not a- Yeah ... it's not a trivial amount of money. That's right. We're not talking about checking this guy into, like, a Motel 6 and, and dropping a couple hundred dollars. We're, we're talking about a substantial amount of money and, and we're talking about a commitment to pay whatever is required. Okay. An unknown amount of money for this man who has been left for dead. We're not talking about a minor injury. The, the robbers beat him up, they took his clothes, and they expected him to die in the desert. He needed to be carried on a donkey. He needed to have immediate first aid attention. We're talking about a, a relatively long-term recovery. So the scenario would be more like, we think of it like, "Oh yeah, I dropped him off at the local hotel for him to sleep it off." The scenario would be more like, "I found a guy on the side of the road. I didn't know who he was. He's, he's of a group of people that would consider me to be their enemy, and he's been shot 100 times, and I'm gonna patch up his [00:36:00] wounds. I'm gonna take him to the hospital. I'm gonna not only pay and say, 'Here, I, I've already used some supplies. Let me pay for that,' but I'm gonna pay for all of his medical bills until he's healed." Like, that's the scenario we're talking about. So it's not, it's not just, like, a good deed that has been done that is maybe, like, a really, really good deed, like it's a really nice thing to do. It's a, it's an outlandishly almost impossible to conceive of doing good deed. N- I don't know anyone, um, who would... And, and I know a lot of really great people. This is not a slam. I don't know anyone who would find a stranger on the road and who is, who's gravely injured and commit to pay for all of their medical care until they're healed. I just don't know anybody who would do that. Right. Um, some might say there's actually some wisdom in that, and, uh, we've talked about how sometimes the parables present a situation where maybe, like, this isn't actually the best practical knowledge. It's there to prove a point. Right. But I don't know anybody who, I don't know anybody who would do that, who, who would even think about doing that. Um, so the, the scenario here is one [00:37:00] of impossible lavish goodness being extended to those who you have no reason to be good to, and probably have reason to not be good to. That's what we're talking about. And so the, when the, the lawyer is told to go and do likewise, he's being told to do something that is impossible to fulfill, or even to conceive of fulfilling. And so there is this element of, like, "You think you can obey the law? Well, let me tell you how much you can't  Jesse Schwamb: obey  Tony Arsenal: the law."  Jesse Schwamb: Right. By the way, this episode is brought to you by State Farm. Like a good Samaritan, State Farm is there. Every time we've been saying good neighbor, I've been just been trying to avoid thinking about- Yeah Jake from State Farm. That's what I've been doing most of this time.  Tony Arsenal: Jake from State Farm?  Jesse Schwamb: Um, I totally agree, of course.  Priest Levite And The Law Jesse Schwamb: Like, what strikes me here is that it's, like you said, there is all this emphasis on what it means to show neighborly love, but the setup is also in those who basically should be showing it but aren't, and that's where we get, can get into this lovely... It's, [00:38:00] it's okay to kinda think through some of these characters. You know, for this priest and the Levite here, and what we know about them is that they, at first it sounds like there, there's almost this sense in the language like the priest falls ab- upon this, this, you know, bloodied man by chance, and that kinda heightens the drama, I think. The priest's confrontation is a little bit unplanned, but it's immediate and unavoidable, and he chooses to cross on the other side of the road, which is of course a deliberate act of avoidance. It's not mere obliviousness. And then the Levi almost goes further, or he came to the place, he saw him closer inspection, you know, greater culpability, and yet he still passes by. I really do wish I could hear this, like, in real time, like be among, because I have to- Yeah ... wonder that there'd be this kind of sense of building in the story. And the people might be kind of getting the sense that the characters that they know and love or should love as the heroes are not gonna be performing that way. And so I think even they're curious. They might be hoping against hope that it's gonna turn out well, but knowing the question and maybe something about Jesus, [00:39:00] they might anticipate that he's gonna go in a different direction. And so again, I think we have to stick with the text here. Like, Jesus doesn't explicitly state the motives of these gentlemen, but it's truthful. What's true- Right ... is that, like, these boys should have known better. You know, a lot of people have speculated that it was for ritual purity concerns or the, another ambush or social distance or just callousness. And I think that ambiguity might be deliberate because, again, what cuts against the lawyer here is whatever the specific excuse, the point is that these, like this kind of professional religiosity and even, like, meticulous law observance are of course not identical with, and probably can even distract or obstruct the love of neighbor that the law itself commands, which is wild, right? Because we talked about how, again, this just shows the law doesn't empower you to do the thing, and in fact, here- Right ... you could essentially abuse the law so that you suck the spirit right out of it and therefore do not do the very thing that it was intended to accomplish. So even this by itself, you just stop the parable here, it's kind of condemning because it's really this [00:40:00] potent warning against some kind of merely external ceremonial, professionalized religiosity that fails to produce, I guess, what Matthew calls, like, the weightier matters of law, like justice and mercy and faithfulness. And, you know, we should understand this because I think those that are from tradition have a certain affinity for the third use of the law as a guide for the grateful Christian living, and that's, you know, kind of what we're talking about here. But it insists that true law keeping is never merely ritual or notional, but it must issue in love, like costly love. Love outside of being inconvenienced is not genuine. I, I guess we'll get there. But, you know, I don't wanna harp on the characters as some are prone to do, but that is, I think, why the characters are here. It's both to set up and show, like, you're about to see that you really do not wanna identify by your own persuasion, by your own presuppositions with the one who's gonna be the hero, that is the, the one that shows neighborly love. At the same time, I'm gonna show you by way of condemnation that those who should exercise the greater love, [00:41:00] that do know better, that should know better, that should emblem- be emblematic of the spirit of the law, have done the exact same thing. Which I can only, uh, hope but believe is what this lawyer heard as well was that he was hearing that he was being stuck into this place before he was even given the question, well, who was the neighbor here? Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, and I, I think, um- There is a real sense in some of the parables that are sort of spoken against people. Um, this one doesn't specifically use that language, but it, it is a targeted, kind of a targeted response. There is a sense that throughout the course of the parable being told, they start to recognize midway through that they're like- Right you are the man. Like, this is one- Right, right ... of those Nathan and David kind of parables where, like, at some point the realization must have dawned on this guy that, like, "I've gotta be somebody in this parable." And I think that's where, where the, the challenging part is, is it's not clear, um, [00:42:00] it's not really clear even at the end of the parable who Christ is intending this guy to be, right? Right. Is he the lawyer or is he the, uh, is he the, the dead man on the side of the road, right? Is he... Or the dying man. Is, is he the l- the priest and Levite who pass by? Is he supposed to be the Samaritan, which would just be wildly offensive. Um, he's not necessarily, like, supposed to be anyone except for the fact that now at th- the punchline of the, the encounter here, Christ says, "Go and be like the Samaritan." And it's kind of like y- you know, if you were really following God's law, you would be the Samaritan in this one- Yeah, that's right ... but you're not. That's right. You're not and you can't be. Um, and so go, go ahead and do likewise.  Christ As True Neighbor Tony Arsenal: Um, I, I do think, too, there is some elements here where, um, I- Again, I, I think I take a little bit more of a typological, Christological-centered approach on this, but I, I don't think they're incompatible. But I do think there's an element here where Christ is also [00:43:00] unveiling, uh, sort of what he would do, like what, what his own plan of salvation is as the good, as the capital G, capital N good neighbor. Um, he is the one who does pour oil and wine on our wounds, right? A- and I don't wanna ... I don't think we need to fly off the allegorical deep end of reading oil and wine to be a reference to the Holy Spirit and t- Right but sometimes those things are evocative, indirect things that should, we should call our mind to those things. Like, I think, um, you know, when Melchizedek comes to bless Abraham and he, he presents him with bread and wine, right? I, I think, like, it's okay for us to go, "Wow, the Holy Spirit really made a point there that's subtle." And I think those little things within this parable drive me to look at this a little bit more along the lines of not only is there this sort of, like, law beat down, you [00:44:00] know, John Bunyan or not, um, Bunyan style, like the, "Moses just beat the crap out of me," kind of a- Right ... kind of a thing from Pilgrim's Progress. There's that, and I think it's really there. But it's also, uh, it's also sort of like this, uh, you know, "Blessed is the one who has ears to hear" side of it of, like, for those who are regenerated and can see the parable, can see the figures in the parable, it is now this beautiful picture of what it is that Christ does for those who cannot do it for themselves, right? And it's almost like the parable becomes a litmus test. If you look at the parable, and as you're reading through it, you sit there and you go, "Yeah, man, I'm like that guy who got beat up and left for dead. That, that really describes me," um, you're gonna get to the end of this and you're gonna be sort of, like, sitting in awe of, like, "Man, I have such a great savior who threw me on his donkey and, and promised to take care of all of my, all of my wounds, and promised to pay whatever it, whatever it cost." Um, y- you know, and all of these elements of, [00:45:00] like, oil and wine and, and all of these things be- kind of become alive to you in a way that someone who sees themselves as the, the good Samaritan, who thinks they're the one who's gonna come and rescue people, or I think increasingly in our day, and it's, it's weird to even say this, I think there are people who would look at this and resonate with the priest and lawyer and actually say, like, "Yeah, they shoulda, they shoulda crossed to the other side of the room." Mm-hmm. I've heard defenses of that in trying to argue that- The priest and the Levite, if they had, if this person was dead, they had touched the dead body, then, you know, they would've been ceremonially unclean. Uh, all of that is, I think, worth speculating about. But the reality is, um, who you see yourself in the parable actually says a lot, I think, about how you see Christ in light of either our ability to fulfill the law or our inability to fulfill the law, and therefore have our need for Christ. If you think you're the good Samaritan, if you think you're the one that's gonna come and [00:46:00] rescue people, that you're gonna be, you're gonna be the good neighbor, you're much more likely to see, uh, to, to be needing this as a sort of a law beat-down. Where those of us who, maybe this is the way you wanna parse it out, right? There's those of us who are, uh, regenerated and in Christ, and this is third-use law, right? This is, this is us- Right ... seeing what it means to be holy, and going and doing likewise, trying in our power, in our, our best to go and do likewise, empowered by the Holy Spirit, recognizing that we can't, and trusting the Lord to accept our feeble attempts- Right and be pleased by them. Right. Um, or maybe if you're not regenerated, this is f- this is first use, right? Right. And, and, and this is actually there to terrify you and to show you your condemnation and to serve as your condemnation. And, and there's even, and I didn't really intend to go all the way with this, but there's, there is also an element in here, and this is where, like, the mercy ministry interpretation comes in, where this is civil, this is civil law, where this is the, the, the, um, you know, the civil use of the law [00:47:00] to restrain evil, to show society what it is to be good, to, to restrain sin. Right. Yes, we want to be, uh, we, I would rather live in a society where people stop and help someone who's stranded or injured on the side of the road than, than a society where people pass by. Um, so I, I think all of those elements are in play here, and we do have to be careful not to take the full-on, like, never go full allegory approach to this, 'cause y- you can really... That's just a good general wisdom for all of, all of the Bible, but especially the parables and other figurative stuff. You can really just go totally far afield of what actually the point of the parable is- Right ... if you're not grounding it in the purpose that Christ is teaching it for, and, and the stated outcome of the parable, right? No one in the Bible makes c- I don't know that anyone in the Bible makes specific commentary on this within scripture, but the, the idea that, like, there's all these hidden meanings, well, if those are the hidden meanings, then why doesn't Christ talk about it? Why doesn't he come back- Right ... and [00:48:00] interpret those symbols later on like he does, like the Parable of the Sower or the Parable of the Seeds or Soils. Um, that one is much more directly allegorical in that the different seeds, the different soils represent specific people with specific s- scenarios. Christ comes and, and does that allegorical interpretation later on in the passage. There's nothing like that here. So I think we have to be really careful not to slip down that road. Jesse Schwamb: I think that it could be all those things. I, I totally agree with you on that. I think it could be all the use cases of the law. I think what makes this so wonderfully complex and a little bit tricky is that when I read this, I actually don't necessarily find myself gravitating toward putting myself in one place or the other. It almost depends on where I am or what's going on in my life. So for example, I think any time that any one of us, and we've all done this as Christians, have quenched the spirit, especially with respect to helping, serving, or loving others as my, our neighbor, then we're firmly in this parable in the place [00:49:00] of the priest and the Levite. Sometimes I think we are the one on the side of the road. We look to the church, to our brothers and sisters to help us, and what do they help us with? Like you were saying, Tony, they help us with that blood and oil. They help us with this, the power of the Holy Spirit, which is given to each one to help and to serve, to identify, to comfort with the comfort we ourselves have been received. And then I do think, and this might be unpopular, that, that sometimes by the grace of God, He empowers us to be the Samaritan, but only through His empowerment. Not, of course, because we're trying to just self-justify or because we're overtly generous in our own merit, but in fact, this is the way we ought to live, and that we ought to commend that kind of behavior to, again, acknowledge it as God-given and to promulgate it, especially among the body of believers. So I do think all three forms of the law are present there, but I do think I tend to, for whatever reason, right or wrong, I tend to tilt a little bit toward that third use here, just to see this as it's not wrong to, of course, to, I think, uh, lay over all of this, all these delightful variables and [00:50:00] details. Again, this idea of blood and oil, n- normative things, normal things, standard things that are being used to address- Yeah ... wounds. They're, they're... Of course, that would've been the practical way which you would've provided some kind of medicinal care to somebody in both that extreme circumstance, but also generally, because nobody's, like, keeping gauze or popping Advil to help this, this poor guy. And so it is- Right ... like this beautiful complexion of, I think, everything that we just talked about, that there is the law present, and depending on where you are, both in terms of your ingrafting into eternity, into the Kingdom of God, and then where you are in life, you- we should read ourselves probably, or l- let me say it this way, not so it's like eisegesis, but, like, that we should see ourselves often at different pli- times maybe playing or being tempted to play the parts of these different characters. And in that we find, I think, ultimately, of course, as you're saying, that Christ is over all, and that He is the one that, of course, perfectly emphasizes all of what it means to be the Savior, the [00:51:00] true loving neighbor who cares and binds and heals completely full stop. And yet there is something instructive here, I think, as well about going and bringing that compassion. I was just thinking, like, as we were talking, that there's such a difference, isn't there, like, in our world between these days, like, pity and compassion? Like, pity often is like, "Yeah, I feel sorry for you," but it strikes me as kind of like the James, is it James 1 or James 2, where it's kind of like, "Oh, you're... I, I'm so sorry that, like, you're, you're hungry and cold. You know what? Go, be warm, and be well-fed." You know, that's like pity. Like, "Yeah, I just- Yeah ... I feel a little bad. I identified with your emotions." Sending  Tony Arsenal: good vibes.  Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. I've got- Yeah. Yeah. That's right, right? Sending good thoughts and good vibes your way. I wanna say, like, keep those to yourself 'cause they're probably not all that- Yeah ... good. Um- I  Tony Arsenal: don't want your vibes.  Jesse Schwamb: I don't want your vibes. Get your vibes out of here. What I need is that power of God himself, uh, to bring compassion, and compassion is always wrapped in action. It identifies- Right ... and then goes. It, it's, it [00:52:00] is not self-promoting, it's self-sacrificing. And so that rule of law, which is like the good rule of law, the good teaching, the kind that brings life because it's the Decalogue wrapped in skin perfectly performed by the power of the Holy Spirit through the one who is perfect again in his passive obedience and active obedience. Yes, yes, we need, we need all of that. It's modeled here, I think, to a certain extent, but I think the go and do likewise is actually for all of us, but it's not the kind like we would say, "Well, like, good luck." It's more the- Yeah ... you know the one from whose side the blood flowed. You know the one who is pressed in the garden as if olives under the press leaking oil. You know who that one was, and that one is His spirit resides in you. So now go and do these acts- Yeah ... of mercy. Again, not s- for some kind of meritorious reward, but because you were made for good works, which were set apart for you to do, and part of those good works are [00:53:00] just always being a good neighbor. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, and, and maybe to, to close out, I, I, I think maybe we actually did it. I don't know that we're gonna have to do another episode on this. I guess we'll see after we do- Who would've guessed? ... our postmortem here.  Mary Martha And Final Charge Tony Arsenal: But I, I think part, part of, um, part of what we need to at least acknowledge is that what, what follows this parable, right? This, this goes from a parable of a lawyer seeking to justify himself to now the account of Mary and Martha, and the fact that, uh, that, um, M- Martha, you know, is busy with much work, and Mary is sitting and listening to, to Jesus and is said to have chosen the better part. And I think, like- Mm ... this is something that I think because of the way, like, Bibles are formatted, the way that certain things are sort of, like, extracted out as discrete teaching units, this parable is pulled out and separated from this next part. And I, I think we can [00:54:00] really run into problems when we do that because- You know, even if we, even if we were to sort of treat the scripture as, like, a purely human book, right? Luke chose to put this account of Mary and Martha after this, right? And, and- Right ... probably not just because, like, it happened chronologically. There's no real, um, there's no real necessity that this account of Mary and Martha in this particular story had to happen immediately afterwards. Like, there's no organic link in, in the chronology of the story to drive that, right? And the two aren't related in terms of, like, historical cause and effect or, uh, proximity. There's none of those things. So the only answer as to why this was selected to follow the parable of the Good Samaritan is that there's some thematic connection that drove Luke as an author to put this, put this right following that. And so I think even that should drive us to thinking about, all [00:55:00] right, we've got this statement of go and do likewise, show mercy. Now there's almost this foil that the, the, the person in, in the account in the, the narrative here, and a, a true narrative, right? We're not in parable land anymore, but the person in the narrative that seems to be showing mercy, seems to be taking care of people the most, is actually the one who's chastised a little bit for, for being- Right overly zealous about m- mercy ministry, hospitality ministry- Right ... is what you might call it. She's the one who's like, "Tell my sister to help me with this." And she said, like, "You know, you're always gonna have time to do this, but, like, I'

Deepak, Hayley and Garrett talk about using Scripture as homework.Resources Mentioned:31-Day Devotionals for Life (Series)Workbooks and resources from Christian Counseling & Educational Foundation

What's your every day sacrifice for God? Pastor DJ Trento challenges us to choose God's Kingdom over the world in the moments that matter most. Watch today's Daily Dose. Video available at: https://youtu.be/fkj29VnBZUs

What's your every day sacrifice for God? Pastor DJ Trento challenges us to choose God's Kingdom over the world in the moments that matter most. Watch today's Daily Dose. Video available at: https://youtu.be/fkj29VnBZUs

In this episode of 15:14, Andrea Lee joins us to discuss her new book, Body Image: Valuing God's Good Gift. This book is part of a new series, 31-Day Devotionals for Teenagers, published by P&R Publishing in collaboration with Rooted. Andrea serves as a biblical counselor for women, is a certified member of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC), and a regular contributor to the BCC blog.    FROM OUR SPONSOR:  To learn more about an undergraduate degree in biblical counseling, go to BoyceCollege.com/1514. For more information on the Biblical Counseling and Master of Divinity degree in 60 months go to BoyceCollege.com/five.   ONE WORD ONE WORLD CONFERENCE 2025: To learn more and register for the One Word One World Conference presented by the Biblical Counseling Coalition go to: bccglobalsummit.org. Support 15:14 – A Podcast of the Biblical Counseling Coalition today at biblicalcounselingcoalition.org/donate.

What does everyday praise sound like - when life isn't picture-perfect? Today's Daily Dose features “Praise You Every Day” Join the songwriters as they talk about worship that doesn't wait for Sundays - and get ready to praise through it all.Pre-Save The New EP – Out August 1st! We're so excited to share our upcoming worship album with you. “By Grace, By God I Go” releases August 1st, and you can pre-save it now so it's ready in your library on day one. Find all the details here northcoastchurch.com/music/ Video available at: https://youtu.be/CxMm0NnqcBw Message by Trent Jenkins, Russ Freshwater, Andrew Polfer, Jake Lambresi, Terence Cooper.

Proverbs 16:16 says, “How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.”In a world that chases wealth as the ultimate goal, Scripture calls us to something better—wisdom. Because without godly wisdom, even abundance can lead us astray. Today, Jim Newheiser joins us to explore why wisdom, not money, is the true measure of success in God's economy. Dr. James (Jim) Newheiser, Jr., is the Director of the Christian Counseling Program and Professor of Christian Counseling and Pastoral Theology at RTS Charlotte. He is also the author of several books on the subject of counseling, as well as Money: Seeking God's Wisdom (31-Day Devotionals for Life).Investing in What SatisfiesIsaiah 55:2 details an account where the Lord asks, “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?” It's a poignant reminder that many of us chase things that leave us empty. How we spend our time and money reflects what we value. Yet so often, those values are shaped by a world that overpromises and underdelivers.Instead of finding fulfillment in wealth, ultimate satisfaction comes from our relationship with God and the good gifts He provides. Time spent in Scripture, prayer, and worship is far more nourishing than any financial gain. Even the principle of rest in Scripture is God's reminder that we don't need to fill every waking moment with striving.Wisdom or Wealth? A Tale of Two WomenThe book of Proverbs is interesting because in this compilation in Scripture, wisdom is personified as a noble woman worth pursuing, while folly appears as a seductive but destructive adulteress. Proverbs sets up a contrast because Lady Wisdom is like the soul's true bride. She brings joy and delight. But Madame Folly, who represents false promises like the pursuit of money for its own sake, is spiritual adultery, and she leads to misery.The point is clear: what we pursue will shape us. Chase wisdom, and you'll find joy and lasting purpose. Chase wealth, and you may find yourself grasping at the wind.Applying Wisdom in Daily LifeHow do we actually live out this pursuit of wisdom over wealth? For someone who's not used to reading Scripture regularly, it can start with just two pages a day or with a chapter of Proverbs a day. Ask God to speak to you through it.God has promised something far better than material wealth—His presence, His wisdom, and His joy.There's such a huge connection between our hearts and our money, and God is ultimately after our hearts.If you're ready to go deeper in your walk with God by rethinking your financial life through the lens of biblical wisdom, Wisdom Over Wealth is a great place to start. This new 12-lesson study from FaithFi, based on Ecclesiastes, unpacks how true joy isn't found in accumulation but in reverence, surrender, and trust.You can receive a copy of Wisdom Over Wealth when you become a FaithFi Partner. Your monthly gift of $35, or annual gift of $400, helps us continue to share biblical financial wisdom across the globe. Visit FaithFi.com/give to partner with us today.On Today's Program, Rob Answers Listener Questions:I have a TIAA retirement account from my husband's time as an adjunct professor at a local community college. It's a small amount. As I'm 76, I'm required to set aside a certain amount each year. I would like to give this to my son now so that those amounts can stay in the account and start accruing interest. Can I do that?We have a credit card balance of $15,000 with an interest rate of 11%. We try to pay $2,000 a month, but the balance keeps increasing. Part of the reason is that our 29-year-old daughter, who lives and works in London, has a card on our account. We initially gave her the card for emergencies and plane tickets home, but she's using it for other expenses, such as occasional Ubers and travel. We really want to pay off this card, but we can't make any progress. What can we do?Resources Mentioned:Faithful Steward: FaithFi's New Quarterly Magazine (Become a FaithFi Partner)Money: Seeking God's Wisdom (31-Day Devotionals for Life) by Dr. Jim NewheiserSelectQuoteNational Christian Foundation (NCF)Wisdom Over Wealth: 12 Lessons from Ecclesiastes on Money (Pre-Order)Look At The Sparrows: A 21-Day Devotional on Financial Fear and AnxietyRich Toward God: A Study on the Parable of the Rich FoolFind a Certified Kingdom Advisor (CKA) or Certified Christian Financial Counselor (CertCFC)FaithFi App Remember, you can call in to ask your questions most days at (800) 525-7000. Faith & Finance is also available on the Moody Radio Network and American Family Radio. Visit our website at FaithFi.com where you can join the FaithFi Community and give as we expand our outreach.

Daily Dose series: Reflections. On this first day of 2025, let's take the time to thank God for who He is, what He's done, His Son, our salvation, grace and mercy. Happy New Year, Daily Dosers! Message by Chris Brown. Video available at: https://youtu.be/DUHK09w685g

Daily Dose series: Reflections. On this first day of 2025, let's take the time to thank God for who He is, what He's done, His Son, our salvation, grace and mercy. Happy New Year, Daily Dosers! Message by Chris Brown. Video available at: https://youtu.be/DUHK09w685g

In this episode of the Faith First podcast, we tackle the sensitive yet crucial topic of battling pornography with Dr. Curtis Solomon. Dr. Solomon, Executive Director of the Biblical Counseling Coalition and Assistant Professor at Boyce College, shares his insights and experiences to help those struggling with pornography and sexual sin.Dr. Solomon defines pornography and discusses its widespread availability and impact on individuals of all ages, particularly young people.We explore what the Bible says about pornography and how it warns us to guard our hearts against anything that tempts us away from loving Christ.Dr. Solomon provides practical steps for battling pornography, including the importance of amputation, accountability, and adoration.We discuss the importance of seeking help and not fighting this battle alone, emphasizing the role of community and mentorship in overcoming temptation.Dr. Solomon offers gospel hope for those feeling hopeless in their struggle, reminding us of God's faithfulness and the better life He has for us beyond pornography.References:Boyce Collegehttps://boycecollege.comSouthern Seminaryhttps://sbts.eduDr. Curtis Solomonhttps://www.biblicalcounselingcoalition.orgRedeem Your Marriage by Dr. Curtis Solomonhttps://www.amazon.com/Redeem-Your-Marriage-Husbands-Pornography/dp/194813087431-Day Devotional on Pornography by Deepak Rejuhttps://www.amazon.com/Pornography-Fighting-Purity-31-Day-Devotionals/dp/1629953636The Faith First Podcast Music was created and produced by Samuel Silhavy, B.S. Worship and Pastoral Studies, Boyce College class of 2019.

Tyler Zach is an author and Enneagram coach who has sold over 12,000 40-Day Devotionals for all 9 Enneagram personality types. He served in full-time vocation ministry for 18 years on the college campus and in the local church. He is the co-founding pastor of One Hope Church in Omaha, Nebraska, where he resides with his lovely wife and two sons. He started an Instagram account (@GospelForEnneagram) which has grown to 46,000 followers who want to discover gospel truths for their personality type.    Download Tyler's FREE PDF Should Christians Use The Enneagram?  www.tylerzach.com/free    Get 50% off e-course on The Real History of the Enneagram www.tylerzach.com/history (use code AINSLEY at checkout)    Download your FREE 5-Day Devotional for your Enneagram Type  www.tylerzach.com/free    Check out Tyler's 40-Day Enneagram Devotionals on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VGPJTX6   Follow Tyler for more valuable content: Web: https://www.tylerzach.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gospelforenneagram Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gospelforenneagram

In this episode we talk with Stuart Scott, who is a counselor, professor, and author of Wayward Children: Finding Peace, Keeping Hope. Stuart shares with us some encouragement for parents who struggle to know how to connect with a wayward child. He also talks about the need to lean into God's comfort and wisdom in the midst of difficulty. If you are a parent whose child has walked away from the faith, or if you are a pastor or counselor who ministers to parents, you won't want to miss this episode. We also encourage you to read Stuart's book, part of P&R's series called 31-Day Devotionals for Life. Become a friend of the podcast by subscribing! Our subscribers are invited to quarterly zoom calls with the hosts, and they have exclusive access through Patreon messages which allows them to ask questions and make suggestions for episodes. Subscribers are also automatically entered into drawings for free books and resources given away by our sponsors. But most importantly, for just $3 a month you become part of the family of friends that keep the Counsel for Life podcast going! Your small membership fee helps to cover the production costs encountered by hosting a free podcast. Thank you for choosing to become a friend of the podcast we are glad you are here and are grateful for you! (Memberships are for one year and automatically renew each month.)To learn more, visit our website: www.counselforlifepodcast.com

In this episode, Shiloh OPC, Raleigh, NC Deacon and CDM member Tim Hopper welcomes Dr. Jim Newheiser, professor at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC and author of the book, "Money, Debt and Finances: Critical Questions and Answers." Dr. Newheiser says the goal of his book is to bring together finance, accounting, and investing with a Biblical perspective that is rooted in sound theology. "I really believe in the sufficiency of Scripture to guide us in life," he says.  In this episode, Dr. Newheiser wisely points out that we have freedom to spend money, "and we can't tell someone how to spend, but to use godly wisdom. So much of our life involves our vocation, our responsibility to provide, [and] our stewardship of the resources God has given us."Referenced in this episode:"Money, Debt and Finances: Critical Questions and Answers" by Dr. Jim Newheiser Review of "Money, Debt and Finances: Critical Questions and Answers" from New Horizons December 2021Financial Crisis: What to Do When the Bottom Drops Out by Jim NewheiserMoney: Seeking God's Wisdom (31-Day Devotionals for Life) by Jim NewheiserHow to Love Difficult Parents: Wisdom for a Challenging Relationship by Jim NewheiserThe Institue for Biblical Counseling and DiscipleshipYou can find all of our episodes at thereformeddeacon.org. Make sure to follow us on your favorite podcast player, so you don't miss an episode. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for giveaways and more information. Find other resources on OPCCDM.org. Make sure to give us some feedback on your podcast player or by going to OPCCDM.org.

Let's learn how to parent our youngest children through the hardest days, with the biggest emotions.Is it possible to help them find peace and calm?Can there be a distinctive Christian approach for our Under 7's?Come listen to Eliza Huie. She holds both clinical and biblical counselling qualifications. She is also the author of several books on helping children and teens with their mental health. She knows about this stuff!(Amy is also a massive fan of her brand new book, 'Count yourself calm'. Many of her adult friends are being given the book and wondering what is says about them.... As the pictures are very big and very colourful.People:Ed Drew - is the Director of Faith in KidsAmy Smith - is a writer for Faith in Kids.Eliza Huie is a counsellor, author, speaker, and trainer committed to providing care and resources for the whole person. Trained both biblically and clinically, she understands the complexities people face in their spiritual, emotional, and physical lives. Eliza is the director of counselling at McLean Bible Church located in the Washington D.C. metro area. She is the Dean of Biblical Counseling for Metro Baltimore Seminary in Maryland. She is the author of The Whole Life: 52 Weeks of Biblical SelfCare, Raising Teens in a Hyper-Sexualized World, Raising Kids  in a Screen-Saturated World, Raising Emotionally Healthy Kids, and How to Get the Most Out of Your Counseling. Helping people experience God's redeeming grace through the hope of the gospel is her motivation for counselling.Recommended resources from this episode:Teens and Anxiety: How Parents Can Help by Eliza HuieAnxiety: Finding the Better Story (31-Day Devotionals for Teenagers)by Liz EdringtonBuilding Bridges: Biblical Counseling Activities for Children and Teens by Julie LoweGood News for Little Hearts (13 books)Ed's Written a book! Check it out here:Raising Confident Kids in a Confusing WorldSupport the show

In this episode, hosts Mike and Shauna are joined by special guest, Esther Smith, author of "A Still and Quiet Mind: 12 Strategies for Changing Unwanted Thoughts". Esther Shares why she wrote this book and how, as counselors, we can personally practice these strategies and also practice them with our counselees in session.  Episode Notes & Resources:Books: A Still and Quiet MindBut God, Wouldn't I Be More Useful to You If I Were Healthy? (Chronic Pain and the Christian Life)Chronic Illness: Walking by Faith (31-Day Devotionals for Life)The Whole Life: 52 Weeks of Biblical Self-CareResources: Webinar with CTHN: https://christiantraumahealingnetwork.org/events/webinars-workshops/Christian Trauma Counseling: https://www.christiantraumacounseling.com meditation classes: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/340376414017

We are continuing our talk on anxiety and Paul gives us a great talk on how to deal with it from a Biblical mindset.  Here is the Link to Paul's book. https://www.amazon.com/Anxiety-Knowing-Peace-31-Day-Devotionals/dp/1629956228/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=paul+tautges+anxiety&qid=1681343705&sprefix=paul+taut%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-1 For more info visit our website. https://4freedompodcast.com For Merch visit this site. https://www.teepublic.com/user/freedom-ministries?utm_source=designer&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=Gq_E0abDp_8

We continue to tackle the thought of anxiety and how it can control you.  Here is the link to the book by Dr Robert Jones https://www.amazon.com/Why-Worry-Getting-Resources-Changing/dp/1629953717/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2HW0MQM5TLT9E&keywords=why+worry+jones&qid=1681343262&sprefix=why+worry%2Caps%2C226&sr=8-1  Here is the Link to Paul's Book https://www.amazon.com/Anxiety-Knowing-Peace-31-Day-Devotionals/dp/1629956228/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=paul+tautges+anxiety&qid=1681343705&sprefix=paul+taut%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-1 For more info visit our website. https://4freedompodcast.com For Merch visit this site. https://www.teepublic.com/user/freedom-ministries?utm_source=designer&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=Gq_E0abDp_8

Why do we feel grief ... especially at the holidays? How should we feel about the famous "five stages of grief”? Does everyone's grief look the same? When does grief end? What are some Biblical strategies for dealing with grief? These are just same of the questions that Pastor Matt and Nathan answer in this episode of NorthWoods Church Matters podcast.   Books mentioned:   Grief: Walking with Jesus (31-Day Devotionals for Life) by Bob Kellemen. What Grieving People Wish You Knew by Nancy Guthrie. (We didn't actually mention this one, but Matt used it in preperation, and we recommend it!)

Christ is coming back soon. But what difference does that make? Does it change how we should live? Join Pastor Nat as he searches Revelation for the answers. Today's message is part of our "Looking Back - Moving Forward" series that runs through the end of August. This is a collection of our best episodes from the past year and a half so days and dates mentioned in the program may not be current. We are looking forward to sharing another brand new series on September 5!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

What's the difference between acting like a Christian and actually being a Christian? Today Pastor Nat Crawford shines the light on worldly principles that can cloud your thinking and keep you from living in the faith and freedom of Christ.Today's message is part of our "Looking Back - Moving Forward" series that runs through the end of August. This is a collection of our best episodes from the past year and a half so days and dates mentioned in the program may not be current. We are looking forward to sharing another brand new series on September 5!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Anxiety and worry are at an all-time high. The world is falling apart, but God's Kingdom is not. Join pastor Nat as he searches for an unending source of peace. Today's message is part of our "Looking Back - Moving Forward" series that runs through the end of August. This is a collection of our best episodes from the past year and a half so days and dates mentioned in the program may not be current. We are looking forward to sharing another brand new series on September 5!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Being available and real for others creates special relationships that impact lives for generations.  Such was the case with the Apostle Paul and Timothy.  Pastor Nat looks to their example and takes the mystery and complication out of mentoring.  Today's message is part of our "Looking Back - Moving Forward" series that runs through the end of August. This is a collection of our best episodes from the past year and a half so days and dates mentioned in the program may not be current. We are looking forward to sharing another brand new series on September 5!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Who is God? What is God like? Today Pastor Nat begins a study of the essential qualities of God, highlighting His power over the universe, and His willingness to use that power to care of you. Today's message is part of our "Looking Back - Moving Forward" series that runs through the end of August. This is a collection of our best episodes from the past year and a half so days and dates mentioned in the program may not be current. We are looking forward to sharing another brand new series on September 5!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

When is Jesus coming back? Before the tribulation? After? After the millennium? Does it even matter? Join Pastor Nat as he studies this much-debated topic. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Forgiving others or forgiving yourself isn't easy, but it is required. And as Pastor Nat reminds you, God frees you to forgive, to be forgiven, and to live in forgiveness!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Is obedience just legalism renamed? Is obedience necessary for Christians under grace? Join Pastor Nat as he tackles these hard questions. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Quit living like a beggar when you can dine at the head table! Pastor Nat appeals to the hearts of believers who sometimes live in spiritual poverty when, in truth, we have access to unlimited spiritual resources! Let Christ make His home in your heart today!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

The God of the universe doesn't keep office hours!  Jacob Wirka explains that while God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-present, He still wants to hear from you any and every minute of the day! Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

What if eight biblical prophecies were perfectly fulfilled in the life of Christ? What if there were more? Like 350? Or over 2000? Nat Crawford highlights the amazing reliability of Scriptural prophecy that has been fulfilled and verified by history, archeology, plus internal and external corroboration. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Today Pastor Nat explains another important role that Jesus plays – He is the mediator between us and God. In other words, He is our ultimate priest. But He's also our friend – a friend Who has the power to help in any situation!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Living a meaningful, faithful life is a wonderful desire, but how does it become reality? Pastor Nat shines light on the path God provides to guard you, to guide you, and to grow your faith!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Selfishness ultimately divides. But true humility brings people together forever! Nat Crawford takes you to Philippians to discover the secret to living in unity.Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

There is no amount of prayers you need to pray, no amount of money you need to give away, and no amount of random acts of kindness that can save you. Salvation and freedom from slavery to sin come as a gift from God through Jesus Christ. Today, Pastor Nat helps you discover how to stand firm in this vital truth.Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Paradise restored. Now, that's worth living for! And Pastor Nat encourages you to keep that picture in mind as you look forward to the return of Christ in the not-so-distant future!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Today Pastor Nat looks at the life of Paul, the apostle who gave up hard-won status for a joy that couldn't be stifled, even by constant suffering.  What kept him on track all the way to the finish line will also help you finish well!  Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

First things first – what does that mean for you?  Pastor Nat looks at the Bible's emphasis on, “Making the most of every opportunity in these evil days,” and helps you gain God's perspective on how to maximize your time!Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

The bible contains history, poetry, and the wisdom of the ages. But is it the actual inspired Word of God?  That's the question Pastor Nat tackles in today's episode as he kicks off this week's look into the claims of the Bible. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

What do love and endurance have to do with trials? Is there a reward for enduring to the end? Join Pastor Nat for the answers.   Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Reading the Bible is intimidating. It's often confusing. But does it have to be? Join Pastor Nat as he looks to make it simple.Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Don't be a doormat, but do be someone who defers to others out of your love for Christ.  Today Nat Crawford talks about trusting God, trusting each other, and trusting the outcome God desires as we submit to Him and the people around us. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Is Jesus coming back? If so, how do we know? Join Pastor Nat as he begins his study of the book of Revelation. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

Is sexual sin a real thing? What does it look like? Is it a big deal today? Join Pastor Nat as he turns to the Bible for the answer. Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

“That isn't my job!” Are you tempted to use that phrase when it comes to sharing the gospel?  Today Pastor Nat looks at the grace, power, and privilege God gives to believers to dispel your fears about spreading His Good News.Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift.

What should we do all the time and everywhere? Pray in the Spirit. Pastor Nat explains this essential life habit that brings you closer to God and enables you to accomplish all His plan for you, day in and day out.  Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift. 

No one disputes taking care of #1.  But Pastor Nat challenges the idea with “Who is #1 and what does that imply?”    Download the Transcript of Today's PodcastGuilt, loneliness, fear, anger – sometimes these emotions can be overwhelming! But God's Word promises us that “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” - Romans 8:37Finding hope in Jesus is the key, and that's what this month's spiritual resource packet is all about! 3 Win the Day Devotionals, plus our Spiritual Fitness Journal to help you grow stronger in your faith and overcome the things that hold you back!We're looking forward to sending this powerful spiritual fitness collection to you as a thank you for your ministry gift. 

Darlene Larson shares how God helped her stand up and speak out after living in an emotionally abusive marriage for over twenty years.https://livesteadyon.com/Email Angie at: steadyonpodcast@gmail.comFacebook: @livesteadyonInstagram: @angiebaughman421Grab freebies and subscribe to the weekly Steady On newsletter at: https://livesteadyon.com/live-steady-on-newsletter/Find the Covered Podcast Miniseries here: https://livesteadyon.com/covered/Looking for something not listed? It's probably here: https://linktr.ee/livesteadyonhttps://heartswithapurpose.com/Facebook: @LifeCoachDarleneLarson & https://www.facebook.com/darlene.terrelllarson/Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/darlenealarson/_created/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darlene-larson-11a72946/?trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile_picInstagram: @heartswithapurposeDarlene's series of 31-Day Devotionals called, “Enable Me, Lord, to Shift” are available on Amazon.Darlene mentioned:Pathway to Purpose series by Katie BrazeltonStreams in the Desert devotional by L.B. CowmanTheme music:Heartwarming by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3864-heartwarmingLicense: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Midroll music:Sovereign by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4397-sovereignLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Recently on All Things we've been taking a deeper dive into themes that are covered in my new book Cultural Counterfeits. Sex is one of those themes, so I invited Ellen Dykas, who is a counselor, writer, and speaker with Harvest USA, which provides resources that address biblical sexuality for individuals and churches. Ellen helps us think through a number of issues related to sex and sexuality, marriage, the church, and hope and healing for wives who have endured a sexual betrayal. This episode will be especially helpful to any woman engaged in friendships and women's ministry, as Ellen is a wealth of wisdom and gospel-centered hope for an area of life we are often afraid to wade into. Ellen DykasHarvest USAHarvest USA BookstoreReclaim Your Marriage: Grace for Wives Who Have Been Hurt by PornographyHurting Wives: Jesus Is with YouToxic Relationships: Taking Refuge in Christ (31-Day Devotionals for Life)

"Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." - 1 Peter 5:7 ESVCheck out the book: https://www.amazon.com/Anxiety-Knowing-Peace-31-Day-Devotionals/dp/1629956228Visit https://www.thepursuitofmanliness.com/gear to see what is available in our Gear Store. Secure your spot in our next session of Tribe: https://www.thepursuitofmanliness.com/tribe Save 25% off your Order of Armored Nation Coffee by using the Discount Code "PURSUEMANLINESS" when you check out: https://www.armoredcoffee.com/Check out our "A Quiet Life" midweek Podcast Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTxKAejVWq1fCBVnq8hB4IRAJN8cdQERqCheck out our "Out In The Garage" Playlist for our Friday Podcast walking through the Bible: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTxKAejVWq1fCBVnq8hB4IRAJN8cdQERq

Episode 77.5 // Friday Faith Follow-up   When we're feeling stressed, we tend to get stuck thinking about the things that are stressing us out, and the hard emotions that come with it.    But it is SO MUCH more helpful and encouraging to think instead about the truths God gives us in the Bible. He's in control. He knows what's happening. He is good.    Today, join me for a quick devotional look at how we can turn away from the things stressing us out and turn TOWARD God - a God who is good, who is powerful, and who always works things out for good… even when we don't see it or understand it ourselves.    Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes for this week's episodes at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/077     Resources for this week's episodes: Check out the 40 Day Devotionals on Anger & Emotional Control as well as on Communication in Marriage at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/devotionals  Visit my Etsy shop for quick, simple tools! www.loveyourpeoplewell.etsy.com  Get the FREE 51 Self Care Ideas List at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/self-care Get the FREE 10-Point Conflict Resolution Checklist at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/conflict    Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Freebies: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Devotionals: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Marriage: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage Everything: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling. 

Episode 77 // Isn't stress fun? Wait. NO. It is never fun! But, it happens to all of us.    And typically, when we start to feel stressed, we also start to be more easily irritated, less calm, and we experience more conflict or struggle in our relationships. Whether it's a day-to-day moment of stress or we are entering a season of life that will be stressful for awhile, stress is hard.    So today, I'm sharing a 6-step process for dealing with stress: the S-T-R-E-S-S formula to build more calm and peace into your life, even if the things that are stressing you out don't change.    Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/077     Resources for this episode: Check out the 40 Day Devotionals on Anger & Emotional Control as well as on Communication in Marriage at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/devotionals  Visit my Etsy shop for quick, simple tools! www.loveyourpeoplewell.etsy.com  Get the FREE 51 Self Care Ideas List at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/self-care Get the FREE 10-Point Conflict Resolution Checklist at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/conflict    Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Freebies: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Devotionals: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Marriage: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage Everything: www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling. 

Whether we're waiting a traffic light or waiting for suffering to end, Christians are called to be patient through difficulty. In this episode we're joined by Megan Hill, author of 'Patience: Waiting with Hope,' which is part of the 31-Day Devotionals for Life series. We discuss the beauty of patience, how it points us to Jesus, and what we can do to cultivate it.

Episode 76.5 // Friday Faith Followup   When people are being passive aggressive with us, it can be really frustrating. But, as always, we have control over our response… and for the sake of our family relationships and out of obedience to God, we want to respond well.    That's why in today's short bonus episode, we're looking at 4 reminders from Scripture about how to respond to difficult communication in order to move things in a healthy and biblical direction.   Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes for this week with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/076     Resources for this episode: Get the 40 Day Devotional on Communication in Marriage here: www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/shop/marriage40   Get the free 10-Point Conflict Resolution Checklist here: www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/conflict     Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Grab all the freebies at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Check out our series of 40 Day Devotionals at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Get marriage resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage A dedicated page for family life & motherhood is coming soon, but for now, all the resources are at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling.

Episode 75.5 // Friday Faith Followup   I spend a lot of time taking care of my home. The clutter is frustrating, the chores never seems to end, and nothing stays clean for more than five minutes.    And yet, this is the home God has given me. This home takes care of the people whom I love the most.    But does my home reflect God's Kingdom? Does my attitude toward my home and the way I use my home honor God?   Join me today for a brief reflection on how our homes (and all the “stuff” in them!) impact the Kingdom, and find encouragement and hope for the clutter (or cleanliness!) of your home.   Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes for this week with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/075     Resources for this episode: Get the FREE 5-day email course: 5 Tools Every Busy Mom Needs to Move Her Family From Autopilot to Intimacy at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/tools Check out my FAVORITE tool for managing my to-do list and family schedule: The Hope Planner.   Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Grab all the freebies at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Check out our series of 40 Day Devotionals at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Get marriage resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage A dedicated page for family life & motherhood is coming soon, but for now, all the resources are at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling.

Episode 74.5 // Friday Faith Followup   I've been reflecting a lot this week on the wonder of Good Friday. Why do we call it “good” when the most horrible event in human history happened on that day? How do we find God's good in the middle of the awful, the bad, the scary, the unimaginable?   Today is a devotional reflection on the GOODNESS of Good Friday, of God's plans, and of his timing. Join me for a word of encouragement, and find his hope in the middle of whatever mess you're going through.   Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes for this week with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/074     Resources mentioned in this episode: Find our line of devotionals and resources online at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources     Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Grab all the freebies at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Check out our series of 40 Day Devotionals at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Get marriage resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage A dedicated page for family life & motherhood is coming soon, but for now, all the resources are at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling.

Episode 71.5 // Friday Faith Followup   Communication can be difficult with anyone - but sometimes, it's hardest within our own family!   Why is it that we argue with our husbands in ways we would never argue with anyone else?   Or we get upset with our kids for things that we can easily stay calm about for other people?   I've experienced this in my own life, and I've watched it play out for so many families in the counseling room. We often struggle with communication most frequently in our family relationships.   In today's quick bonus episode on the podcast, we're talking about why this happens - and what we can do about it.   Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes for this week with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/071    Resources for this episode: Grab my FREE 10-Point Checklist for Conflict Resolution at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/conflict  Check out the 40 Day Devotional on Communication in Marriage at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/shop/marriage40    Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Grab all the freebies at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Check out our series of 40 Day Devotionals at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Get marriage resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage A dedicated page for family life & motherhood is coming soon, but for now, all the resources are at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling.

Episode 71 // There is nothing more frustrating than talking to someone you love… and feeling like they just aren't hearing you.    Communication is the key to a great relationship. We simply cannot feel connected with our people if our communication is struggling. It might be conflict, distance, or simply never feeling like you're quite on the same page. It's frustrating.    That's why today, I'm sharing the 3 keys to healthy communication. If you start to work on these 3 areas, you'll find tremendous blessing and encouragement in your most important relationships!    Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/071     Resources mentioned in this episode: Grab my FREE 10-Point Checklist for Conflict Resolution at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/conflict  Check out the 40 Day Devotional on Communication in Marriage at www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/shop/marriage40    Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Grab all the freebies at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Check out our series of 40 Day Devotionals at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Get marriage resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage A dedicated page for family life & motherhood is coming soon, but for now, all the resources are at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling. 

Episode 70.5 // Friday Faith Followup   As we talk about self care this week, let me address a common pushback that I hear in the church. Some people believe that “self care” is not appropriate for Christians.   I disagree. And in today's episode, I want to encourage you with the biblical reasons I see for investing in self care (good, healthy, and genuine self care!) and ideas for how to live it out in the best possible way - for God's glory and your family's good.   Let's dive in.   Get the FULL show notes for this week with episode highlights and recommended resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/070     Resources mentioned in this episode:   FREE 51 Self Care Ideas List: www.loveyourpeoplewell.com/self-care    Love the show? I'd love your support with Buy Me a Coffee! www.buymeacoffee.com/loveyourpeople    Join our community! You are invited to join our online Facebook Group where we engage, encourage, and equip one another in faith-centered family life. www.facebook.com/groups/loveyourpeoplewell     Check out Love Your People Well's best resources! Grab all the freebies at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/free Check out our series of 40 Day Devotionals at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/devotionals  Get marriage resources at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/marriage A dedicated page for family life & motherhood is coming soon, but for now, all the resources are at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/resources    Disclaimers: I am a licensed therapist, but this podcast is not therapy. If you're thinking about counseling, get some helpful information at www.LoveYourPeopleWell.com/counseling.  I am an affiliate for some of the products that I recommend. If you make a purchase through my link, I may earn a small commission. This is never at any additional cost to you, and I only recommend resources that I personally use or love!

Stephanie D. Moore: https://www.stephaniedmoore.com/homeShe's a BOSSE Organization: https://shesabosse.org/Walking with God: 31-Day Devotionals to Start Your DayShe's a BOSSE: Daily Affirmations for Young Ladies: A Coloring Book 

Dr. John Crotts is the Senior Pastor of Faith Bible Church in Sharpsburg, Georgia. He is an ACBC Certified counselor and author of numerous books. He joins us for the second time on 15:14 to discuss his recent book Hope: Living Confidently in God, a part of the 31-Day Devotionals for Life Series. This episode is brought to you by the BCC's Building Bridges Campaign. Help us build unity by creating connections in the biblical counseling world by supporting us monthly. Visit biblicalcc.org/donate to give today!

A new MP3 sermon from Servants of Grace Ministries is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Elyse Fitzpatrick– Doubt: Trusting God's Promises (31-Day Devotionals for Life) Subtitle: Equipping You in Grace Video Speaker: Dave Jenkins Broadcaster: Servants of Grace Ministries Event: Podcast Date: 1/21/2019 Length: 34 min.

As a counselor and an author, Esther Smith takes us through her personal journey of chronic pain, illness, loss, and redemption. I think by taking a look at the title of her books below, you'll want to check this episode out! Esther shares practical ways we can both grieve our losses and still move forward in the kingdom of God, regardless of what hand we've been dealt. Esther IG: @esthermariesmth Tera IG: @terabradham Heal Website: www.thehealministry.com Esther's Books: The Whole Life: 52 Weeks of Biblical Self Care https://amzn.com/B094JZWDBD Chronic Illness: Walking by Faith (31-Day Devotionals for Life) https://amzn.com/B0882N4D8H But God, Wouldn't I be More Useful to You if I Was Healthy? https://amzn.com/B01HSFXW3Q When Chronic Pain and Illness Take Everything Away: How to Mourn Our Losses (Chronic Pain and the Christian Life) https://amzn.com/B01M7X3MK3 Another great resource we mentioned: The Body Keeps the Score: https://amzn.com/B00G3L1C2K

This week on the Gospel Lifeline Podcast Neal, Matt, and Robert discuss the issue of Anxiety and what solutions the Bible provides! Episode Notes Righteous Hearts Fear the One True God   Books Referenced:   Courage: Fighting Fear with Fear by Wayne Mack Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest by Ed Welch 31-Day Devotionals for Life: Anxiety- Knowing God's Peace by Paul Tautges Questions on the Heart Level by Julie Ganschow   Why We Use the Bible to Help Us Overcome the Issues in Life   The heart is dynamic, comprising of what we think, feel, and do. Think: What we focus on, based on what we take in. Feel: Emotions we have whether they are real or based on how we are perceiving our circumstances and environment. Do: Actions we take or the behaviors we exhibit in our day to day living.   (16) All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, (17) that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. ~2 Timothy 3:16-17~ ***   Scripture is profitable for: Teaching- The Bible teaches us who God is and because we know who He is, we can better understand who we are. Reproof- Through the lens of Scripture we can see what we are doing wrong, thus exposing our wrong heart desires. Correction- God's Word not only tells us that we are wrong and that what we are doing is wrong, it shows us the way to fix bad beliefs, wrong desires, and sinful behaviors. It does this by pointing us to the Who can help us correct those issues. Training in Righteousness- The practical application and implementation of Biblical principles into our daily lives and walk with the Lord.   Solutions to the 4 Main Issues Causing Anxiety:   Guilty Conscience (28) Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. ~Matthew 11:28-30~ (14) Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. (15) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (16) Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. ~Hebrews 4:14-16~   Wrong Values Expulsive Power of a New Affection- The Puritan way of taking a Biblical Principle and filling our hearts with that, thus pushing out the sinful or wrong thoughts and perceptions, wrong desires, sinful behaviors, and bad beliefs. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ~1 John 2:15~   Unbelief/Lack of Trust The story of Elijah- Please read ~1 Kings Ch. 18 & 19~   Idols Biblical Example of Killing Idols: ~2 Kings 23~: We didn't get a chance to cover this in the episode due to time constraints. We wanted to show you a Biblical example of how to put idols to death. In this passage of Scripture, we see that Josiah took to the destruction of all the idols that were pulling hid people away from what God commanded them to do and out of a relationship with him. So King Josiah did the following to the idols: - Burned then (v. 4) - He deposed [the idolatrous priests] (v. 5) - Brought out the Asherah (One of the gods of Baal) (v. 6) - Burned it (v. 6) - Beat it to dust (v. 6) - Cast the dust of it upon the graves of the common people (v. 6) - Broke down the houses (v. 7) - Defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings (v. 8) - Broke down the high places (v. 8) - He defiled (v. 10) - He removed (v. 11) - He burned (v. 11) - Pulled down and broke in pieces and cast the dust of them into the brook (v. 12)  - Defiled the high places (v. 13) - Broke in pieces (v. 14) - Cut down (v. 14) - Filled their places with the bones of men (v. 14) - He pulled down (v. 15) - He burned (v. 15) - Reducing it to dust (v. 15) - Burned the Asherah (v. 15) - Burned the bones from the tombs on the altar (v. 16) - Defiled it according to the word of the Lord (v. 16) - Removed all shrines (v. 19) - He sacrificed all the priests of the high places (v. 20)     Conclusion and Challenge:   4 Things to Pray When Overcoming Anxiety: Confession- Confession is the chemotherapy to put to death the cancer (sin) that causes anxiety. We should confess: wrong or sinful beliefs wrong or sinful thoughts wrong or sinful desires wrong or sinful behaviors Accept- We need to accept the forgiveness from God that is promised to those who are his children (1 John 1:9). Sometimes we hear peoples saying, “I just can't forgive myself.” This statement is a worldly statement that a believer can translate to, “I can't accept God's forgiveness for my sin, it's just too bad.” Both of which are wrong beliefs, we need to accept God's forgiveness, which we have because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Request- Ask the Lord for the strength and tools to flee from, overcome, and resist the sin present in your life. Replace- Switching out the wrong placed fear of our circumstances, environment, and the people in our lives for a right placed fear in God and his glory and power.   *** Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®),        copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by        permission. All rights Reserved.  

This week on the Gospel Lifeline Podcast Robert, Matt, and Neal discuss the issue of Anxiety and where the Bible says much of it stems from.  Gospel Lifeline Episode Notes Anxious Hearts Fear False gods   Books Referenced:   1.) Courage: Fighting Fear with Fear by Wayne Mack 2.) Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest by Ed Welch 3.) 31-Day Devotionals for Life: Anxiety- Knowing God's Peace by Paul Tautges   4 Main Issues Causing Anxiety: 1.) Guilty Conscience a. The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion. ~Proverbs 28:1~ *** b. Genesis Chapter 3- Adam hides from God out of guilt over his and Eve's sin. c. Misguided Guilt- Wrongly assigned guilt by ourselves or other people; guilt that is not assigned to us by God or His Word.   2.) Wrong Values   3.) Unbelief/Lack of Trust a. The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe.           ~Proverbs 29:5~ b. And do not fear those who will kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.                    ~Matthew 10:28~ c. (20) And Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. (21) And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty.(22)  For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself. (23) Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way. ~1 Samuel 12:20-23~   4.) Idols Conclusion and Challenge. 1.) What are you afraid of losing and not getting? Knowing this will help reveal to you what you love and fear most. 2.) You may not feel like you suffer from anxiety, but if you are driven or seek to be in control, these too are symptoms of anxiety. 3.) No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. ~1 Corinthians 10:13~   *** Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®),       copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by       permission. All rights Reserved.

Message preached at Grace Family Church, Caymanas Estate, Jamaica, by Joel Bain on July 12, 2020. Recommended resources: A Praying Life by Paul Miller Fearing Others: Putting God First (31-Day Devotionals for Life)

Featuring: 1. The Importance of if trusting God's providence 2. Anchors of truth in the wind of suffering 3. God's good purposes in our suffering 4. How to minister to those suffering Notes: Paul Tautges, Anxiety: Knowing God's Peace (31-Day Devotionals for Life) https://smile.amazon.com/Anxiety-Knowing-Peace-31-Day-Devotionals/dp/1629956228/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Anxiety%3A+Knowing+God%27s+Peace+%2831-Day+Devotionals+for+Life%29+paul&qid=1583936396&sr=8-1 2019 Pre-Conference | Human Suffering and Heaven's Hope | $20 https://biblicalcounseling.com/store/all-products/2019-pre-conference-human-suffering-and-heavens-hope/