Podcasts about decalogue

In episode 502 of The Reformed Brotherhood, Tony and Jesse begin what promises to be a multi-part deep dive into the Parable of the Good Samaritan — one of the most culturally embedded and theologically rich stories Jesus ever told. But before a single character hits the Jericho road, the hosts ground listeners in something easily overlooked: the charged context in which this parable is told. A lawyer — trained, confident, adversarial — steps forward not to learn but to test. What follows is a masterclass in how Jesus turns the law back on those who wield it as a weapon. This episode covers Luke 10:21–36, explores the covenant of works and covenant of grace, the noetic effects of sin, and why the Good Samaritan is far more than a lesson in being a helpful neighbor. Buckle up. Key Takeaways The lawyer's question is self-contradictory from the start. Asking "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" smuggles a works-righteousness assumption into the very grammar of the question. Inheritance by definition is received, not earned. Jesus does not give the lawyer a new paradigm — He reorients him to the true one. The covenant of grace is not a New Testament innovation. It runs through every Old Testament covenant administration. The lawyer should have already known this. "Do this and you will live" is not a Pelagian concession. Christ is holding out the law's own terms — perfect, total, unrelenting obedience — not to suggest it is achievable, but to expose its impossibility and drive the lawyer (and us) to the only alternative: mercy. "Desiring to justify himself" is more complex than it first appears. Tony argues that the desire to fulfill the covenant of works is not inherently wicked — it is the misguided belief that one can which is the problem. This distinction creates room for reading Christ's response as genuinely merciful instruction, not merely rebuke. The noetic effects of sin mean accurate theology can be deployed in service of self. The lawyer knows the right answers and still uses them to avoid repentance. Correct doctrine alone does not save. The fundamental human problem is not ignorance — it is the will's bondage and the heart's self-love. The parable is primarily Christological, not merely ethical. Jesus is the Good Samaritan. The story is not first about mercy ministry; it is about who binds up our wounds when we are left for dead on the road, unable to save ourselves. The priest and the Levite are not exonerated by their ritual obligations. Considerable ink has been spilled trying to justify their passing by on grounds of Levitical purity concerns. The parable refuses that exit. Everyone in the story — and everyone listening — already knows what the right thing to do was. Key Concepts The Covenant of Works Is Not a Black Box One of the more quietly important arguments Tony makes in this episode is that the covenant of works was never meant to be mysterious or inaccessible. When Jesus responds to the lawyer's question by asking, "What is written in the law? How do you read it?" — He does so with a visible assumption: there is a clear, knowable answer, and the lawyer should be able to give it. And he does. Love God completely, love your neighbor as yourself. The covenant of works was always coherent and comprehensible. The problem has never been that its demands were obscure. The problem is that no one — save the Mediator — has ever kept them. Jesus is not introducing a new ethical framework. He is forcing the lawyer to confront a standard he has always known and has never met. The Lawyer as a Warning to Reformed Christians Jesse closes the episode's first movement with a pointed and personal application that cuts across theological self-satisfaction. The lawyer is not a caricature of ignorance — he is a portrait of someone with accurate, affirmed theological knowledge who instinctively deploys it in the service of self-justification the moment he senses conviction. Jesse names this directly as a danger particularly acute in Reformed circles, where doctrinal precision can become a subtle mechanism of self-defense rather than an occasion for repentance. The Reformation's great recovery of grace must not become a new form of the very disease it diagnosed. Knowing the right words about total depravity, the covenant of grace, and the mediator does not exempt anyone from the need to actually be humbled by them. Theology is not armor against repentance — it is, rightly received, the road toward it. Context Is Not Just Setup — It Is Part of the Lesson Tony and Jesse both emphasize that Luke 10:21–24 is not merely throat-clearing before the real content begins. The theological statement embedded there — that the Father has hidden these things from the wise and revealed them to little children, that no one knows the Son except the Father or the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him — is the hermeneutical key to everything that follows. The lawyer approaches Jesus as one rabbi testing another. But Luke has already told his readers that this is not a conversation between equals debating interpretive options. It is the Lawgiver being questioned by someone who does not recognize Him. The parable that follows is not just an answer to a legal question. It is a revelation — the kind that only happens when the Son chooses to give it. Memorable Quotes You do not want to pit the law against the one who has given the law, the one whose character is represented in the law — because you're always going to get owned, and you'll get owned before you realize you've just gotten owned on multiple levels. - Jesse Schwamb Jesus is trying to sort of reorient them back to the true paradigm of grace that is present under all of the Old Covenant administrations. It's not so much a matter of developing a new framework and imposing it on this guy. It's really trying to say, 'Listen — think about this for a second. Think about the fact that, yes, you know you have to love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole soul, your whole strength, your whole mind, and you have to love your neighbor as yourself. You've answered correctly. If you can do those things, you will live.' — with the subtext: and of course you cannot possibly do those things. - Tony Arsenal The fundamental human problem is not primarily ignorance, but the will's bondage and the heart's self-love. It's a problem no amount of correct discipline or doctrine alone can fix apart from some kind of regenerating grace — which is exactly what Jesus is going to illustrate for us in the mercy he's about to display in this parable. - Jesse Schwamb Full Transcript Tony Arsenal: [00:00:00] This parable is not primarily about us figuring out how to do mercy ministry. Like, that's important. It's probably an outcome of this. It's probably something for us to think about. But really, this is actually Christ saying, like, "Hold on a second here, dude." Like, "Let's just think about this." Do you need someone who is going to tell you to pick yourself up off your bootstraps and cross to the other side of the street and leave you to your own devices? Or do you need someone who's gonna throw you on their donkey, who's gonna bind up your wounds, who's gonna pay the innkeeper, and is gonna pledge to pay everything that is owed for your salvation? Right? That's not too on the nose here, I think. Welcome to episode 502 of The Reformed Brotherhood. I'm [00:01:00] Jesse  And I'm Tony, and this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey, brother.  Jesse Schwamb: Hey, brother. Well, we've got a big one to talk about on this episode. We're marching further and further into all of the glorious parables Jesus told as part of His teaching. And as you and I kind of joked before we began, I mean, what did you call it? Did you say this is, uh, the big daddy?  Tony Arsenal: It's the big daddy, one of the big daddy parables.  Jesse Schwamb: It's one of the big daddy parables. Now, this one is probably second maybe only to the prodigal son. Yeah But in terms of its ubiquity and its kind of just common knowledge in culture, this one ranks right up there. And before I reveal what it is, which you may already know, I was thinking how so many times we look at the Beatitudes as expression of a master class in Jesus teaching the law, and I think that's true. But as I was reading and thinking about this particular parable, I thought, "I don't know. I think this one is, uh, right up there," because [00:02:00] this is like law on law. It's double law. Yeah It's law coming back at the law giver who's trying to use the law to test Jesus, and then Jesus tests him with the law that He himself gave His people. It's... I'm already getting too excited- ... and we've got something to do before we get there. But we're talking about the parable of the Good Samaritan. And so I can't imagine, can I just make a prediction up front? I, you know where I'm going with this, and probably everybody else does. Uh, this is gonna be like two conversations-  Tony Arsenal: At least ...  Jesse Schwamb: probably.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah, at least two.  Jesse Schwamb: Is that fair? Because I realize we, of course, wanna get to the parable itself, and oh, my goodness, how much ink has been spilled. Even going back to, like, if you read, like, Augustine or, like, the early church, like the Patristics, the Church Fathers, there are so much that could be said, and maybe some stuff that just shouldn't be said about all the allegorical potential intent here about these characters. But [00:03:00] there's so much amazing stuff that happens in the opening of this, that's not just the setup, but it is its own lesson, and I'm real excited actually to talk about that with you before we even get into, like, all the good stuff that everybody expects that you wanna talk about. So we're gonna do it all. Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: We're gonna do it all, but it'll take time.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. I'm interested to see if we're even on the same page about where to start reading, 'cause I, I think we might not be, and that's gonna be fun. So we'll, we'll let it fly and see what happens. It'll be our own little, uh, podcast game.  Jesse Schwamb: But, uh, I think- Well, I mean, we're gonna be in Luke chapter 10, but I guess to your point, we should be starting in Luke chapter one to get to this. Yeah.  Tony Arsenal: Exactly. But  Jesse Schwamb: we, we do have to back up quite a bit, and I was gonna ask you about that. Yeah. But I, apparently we're just gonna play that on the fly and see where we go.  Affirmations Denials Segment Jesse Schwamb: But of course, the Reformers had their five solos. Chalcedon had its, what, seven withouts. We've got opinions, and we're just as confident about ours, so of course it's time for affirmations, denials, where we affirm something that we think is good or awesome or [00:04:00] we wanna recommend, and we deny, again, something that is not so great or maybe just plain annoying. So before we talk about the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Tony, what do you got for us on this episode? Are you affirming with something, or are you gonna come in with a denial?  Tony Arsenal: Well, I've got two affirmations. That's fine. One is just- I will allow it ... a declaration of joy, and one is, like, a real affirmation. I, I just can't... It would be remiss of me not to share with our podcasting family that my son August and my daughter Adeline, uh, joined the visible church today as- Hear, hear ... uh, non-communicant members. Uh, Augie and Addie were baptized on the 16th of August of 2026, uh, into the visible church, into the name of Jesus Christ. Uh, was, it was just a great service. Um, it's funny because I've been- been talking with Augie. One of the thing with toddlers when you're doing something big like this is you kinda have to talk about it and practice and rehearse, rehearse it and, and get them ready for it. And up until maybe, like, I don't know, three days [00:05:00] ago, every time it would come up he would be saying, "I don't wanna be baptized. I don't wanna be baptized." And, um, you know, I, I, I, you know, I don't wanna force him to do something, but also, like, I make him eat vegetables. But, um- ... he, I, I think it was nerves, and I think something clicked in his head and all of a sudden he was very excited to be baptized. So, um, it was great. We've been talking about, you know, what baptism is, God's promise to you that if you trust him he'll save you. And so today he- Right ... he was like, "God's gonna make a promise to me to save me." So he was very excited. Nice. And he did a great job just standing quietly and listening to the pastor talk. Uh, and Addie was, was, was just a beautiful little girl, and she, um, she loved it as well. So that's just a bonus affirmation. I don't know that I could get through a podcast without gushing over that.  Glorify App and Devotionals Tony Arsenal: Uh, but the, the affirmation I have, uh, this is an, an app that I think some of our listeners may have heard of. Um, some may roll their eyes at it, to be honest with you. Um, I stumbled on this because, uh, you have an Oura Ring, don't you, Jesse? Jesse Schwamb: I do.  Tony Arsenal: You [00:06:00] do, yeah. So for those who don't know, an Oura Ring is like a little wearable ring that's like a, almost like a fitness tracker, but it tracks biometrics, pulse rate, temperature, all these different things, sleep. Um, there's a startup, uh, that has been doing a GoFundMe or a funding kind of thing for, uh, what they're calling like a Christian version of an Oura Ring. So it does a lot of the same things, sleep tracking, basic biometric tracking. Hmm. But it also has like alerts built in, and it's tied into an app that they use for devotionals. So it'll, it'll remind you to pray. It'll remind you, you know, bring you to an app to do a devotion. But the app it uses is a standalone app that I looked up, and it's called Glorify. Have you ever heard of this app before this evening? I have heard of  Jesse Schwamb: this, yeah.  Tony Arsenal: So Glorify is just a small devotional app. Uh, it's not much different than you would expect based on the name. It is connected to this, uh, to this Glorify ring, which again is, is sort of like an Oura Ring tied into this app. But this app basically is, is [00:07:00] designed to help you complete short daily devotional exercises, and they're usually very brief. They're based on a very brief, um, a very brief passage of scripture. Today's passage, uh, c- there's a quote. So today's quote is from Dietrich Bonhoeffer. It says, "True love does not consist in finding the perfect person, but in faithfully loving an imperfect one." Not sure why this devotional app is using a romance, uh, quote from Bonhoeffer of all people. But that was today's. Um, and the passage is Proverbs 5:15-17. So it's a, it's a devotional based on two verses, which is fine. So you read the passage. There's a very brief devotional on that passage, and then sort of a guided prayer, and they have both premium and free models. The premium model includes like you can listen to the devotional, you can listen to the prayer. Um, but just for example, today's prayer, it, it's very simple. "Loving Father, thank you for, uh, thank you because you're faithful and unchanging. In a world [00:08:00] marked by broken promises, disposable relationships, you remain the same. Teach me to reflect that faithfulness in my relationships. Help me to love with perseverance, grace, and commitment following the example of Christ. Protect marriages, strengthen families, restore what needs healing. May every relationship be marked by respect, truth, and genuine love. Shape in me a heart of integrity that honors you in both the small and significant choices of life. In Jesus' name, amen." So I think what I love about this, and this, I mentioned last week that there was, this is kind of like, sort of like the fluffy evangelical devotions. Like- Right ... there's not a ton of like solid doctrinal meat- But like, it's still nourishing. And sometimes we need a little bit of help. Sometimes we don't know what to pray, we don't know what to read, we're not sure. Sometimes in, I think in our Reformed circles, we feel like if we're not reading large portions of scripture and reading deep theological treaties or long, complex devotionals, that we're really not doing anything, and that's just not the [00:09:00] truth. So I've been using this in addition to other devotional studies I'm doing. I don't do it every day. I mean, there's some like streak functionality, kinda like habit tracking type stuff that's built into it. Um, but it's nice. It's nice to be able to pick it up, read a very short scripture, a brief devotional thought, and then have some guided prayer. I know one of the reasons I don't pray as often as I ought to is because I struggle to know what and how to pray. So even having some written prayers, I mean, this is why the Psalms are good, things like the Valley of Visions are good. Um, having some pre-written prayers that you genuinely pray but you're not having to come up with in the moment can really help. Right. So the app is called Glorify. I know it's available on iPhone. I'm not sure about Android. I'm sure it probably is. I'm sure they wanna have a pretty broad ecosystem. Um, and, and it's good. Again, it's, it's not anything fancy. It's not anything like super technical. Uh, and as I kind of alluded, like some of it's a little weird. Um, I, I didn't read the proverb. I think maybe the proverb is about romantic relationships, why they're, why they're tying in that, um, Bonhoeffer quote in, in the prayer. [00:10:00] But, um, even that, like it's pretty innocuous. And the quotes, like you don't have to read the quotes. It's not like you have to have to do that. Um, you could jump in, just read the scripture or just read the devotion and just do the prayer and you would be fine. So check it out. It's called Glorify, available on iPhone for sure. I'm pretty sure it's on, on Android. And maybe it's something you add daily, you know, this kinda thing like you do when you're on the bus or you're waiting at the grocery store, something quick you can do when you might be wasting that time just sorta sitting around or scrolling Twitter. Again, Twitter's fine. You can use your leisure time as you see fit. But if you wanna fill it with something like this, something that is more spiritual, then this would be a good option to just add a little bit of, uh, a little bit of nourishment to your diet where you might not otherwise be getting it  Jesse Schwamb: I have no proof of this, but I just keep saying it anyway. It might be that we're living in the golden age of really great- ... daily worship resources. Like, something to actually cultivate, not just, like, a devotional nugget, but something that actually leads you into a pattern and a habit of [00:11:00]worship, giving your attentive focus on Jesus. And I love that. So, uh, uh, 'cause I was just thinking, like, I was trying to look back on some of our past affirmations here. We've talked about the book Walking in Faith. I just gave everybody Awake My Soul last week. You're coming in with the Glorify app. I- we've talked about Dwell, if not recently, we've talked about that for some time. It's like a great Bible reading app, and there's lots and lots of new features, by the way, coming out on that- Yeah that are fantastic. And then, yes, all these other great prayers. I, I see, like, these books on prayer, like, actually, I'm sorry, like, prayer books, I guess, as, like, a great way to kinda... It's like a jumper for your car. You know what I mean? Like, just gets you started. What a, what a lovely thing to come into a place and have a launching pad. And I've been using a lot of Into His Presence, which is a collection of Puritan prayers, sometimes because, for instance, this just happened, where I wanted to pray for someone who was just going through a rough time, a good friend of mine. And I went to that place to kinda start and frame, knowing that I was gonna sit down with him and pray, how I might be able to do that well and [00:12:00] effectively. And these things are just, like, really phenomenal resources. It's just an amazing time to have all these things at our disposal. So that's another great option. It's, it's really more about, like you and I have talked about, Tony, like, whatever gets us into that pattern, whatever gets us, like, authentically experiencing under our own volition, coming in the discipline of sitting before God in daily worship with that expression being pretty broad in its representation- Yeah is to really include something of devotional time in the scriptures, memorization, metabolation, metabolizing. Metabolation, I'm just gonna make that up as, like- ... what happens when you, when you take the scripture and metabolize it into your own life. Meditating on it and, you know, again, maybe looking through the confessions and creeds that have shaped our distilled understanding of what the scripture teaches so that we're enhancing and edifying our mind. We're also engaging the heart, and then we're engaging God and ourselves in communication with Him through prayer. I'm all for anything [00:13:00] that gets us into those rhythms, reminds us of the importance of them, and like we talked about last week, makes it so that when we think about what it means to be married to Christ, so to speak, it's not just about whipping out some kind of marriage certificate to prove that, but that we actually have a frame and a behavioral pattern that fits a married person, that- Yeah how they act, how they think, how they behave, how they communicate, they're never too far away from their lovely spouse in some way or another. And so I think that these tools are great ways to get us exactly into that kind of mindset and practice.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah, absolutely. And like I said, like, I think- In our Reformed circles, we can, you know, we, we tend to be maybe a little eggheaded, and we, we tend to be a little more intellectual and, and a little more, I don't know, studious. And there's nothing wrong with that. Um, but I think sometimes it can breed a sort of, uh, elitism and arrogance. Sure. Uh, this is a perfectly valid devotional tool. Yes. Mm-hmm. And, and I think, [00:14:00] you know, kinda like the old adage, like, well, what's the best translation of scripture? Well, whichever one you're gonna read. Exactly. Like, what's the best devotional tool? Whichever one you're gonna use, whichever one's actually gonna bring you into the Word, uh, on a, on a regular basis. Um, and again, like, two verses of the scripture is two verses of the scripture that you might- Right ... not have other spent time, otherwise spent time reading. And it really is short enough, and it saves your progress. Like, you can do, you can do the quote in the morning, and then you can check the scripture on the way to the, you know, the word work, on a stoplight or whatever. Um, if you have the, the paid subscription, you can listen to this stuff, you know, on the, the bus or whatever. Um, so check it out. Glorify app, they have a ring they're making. It's in funding, I guess, if you wanna check it out, you can check that out too. I am neither affirming nor denying whatever this Glory ring is, Glorify ring. But, um, but yeah, the app is great. The, the app is free, and it's, it's worth even just checking out and adding once in a while to your day  Jesse Schwamb: The glory ring or the glorify ring sounds like almost too Tolkien, even for me  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. It's the one ring to rule all of your devotions. [00:15:00] Uh, and in the, and in the morning bind them. Jesse, save me from the trail I was about to go on, and, and I was gonna speak in the language of Mordor, I think, on accident. Uh, save us from this. What are you affirming or denying?  Jesse Schwamb: That's  Tony Arsenal: beautiful. Please tell me it's the language of Mordor. Elvish AI and Music Pick Jesse Schwamb: Uh, no, but can I just say at the risk of really taking us really far afield so early on, which is not necessarily off-brand for us, I have done this... I, I don't know if I should be ashamed by this or I should be excited by this. But- ... um, the Elvish tongue in the Tolkien universe-  Tony Arsenal: Oh, no. ...  Jesse Schwamb: is like, there's several... If you're super nerdy, you'll know there's like several different kind of iterations or formulas of it, and there's no, like, official language like Klingon, but there ha- it has been studied, and basically, like, it's kind of like the Eugene Peterson of the language. Like, there's, like, just kind of a dynamic equivalent or an expression of words. Anyway, all that to say- ... there's several languages that, uh, Microsoft Copilot will just not [00:16:00] translate because it says, like, "This one, this language doesn't actually exist. There's not enough for me to do anything." Let me tell you something. Tolkien Elvish is not one of those languages, and I actually built an agent, because I have a coworker who can, uh, who can appreciate all this stuff, that takes a text, translates it into this kind of academic high-level Elvish from Tolkien, and then translates it back to English. That makes anything you're saying way better and far more poetic and just absolutely amazing. So if you wanna have some fun, go and do that with whatever your favorite AI model is. Anyway, that's free of charge. Real quick, my affirmation is more music. It just turns out I've found this band, and I've been listening to them a lot. The band's name is Thronebreaker, which is just a phenomenal name, I think, for any group. Uh, it's amazing. Uh, th- this is... I'm gonna read you their description from Spotify. It just says, "Thronebreaker is Christian metalcore built for the bruised, the doubting, and the ones still fighting their way home." And what I've really been [00:17:00] loving about them is it is kind of like Wolves at the Gate adjacent. It's really lovely music. It is melodic, so it's, there's not just that there's that kind of hard edge, but that is present in it. But, uh, the music is really lovely and beautiful, and in part that's because they're going through this, like, drip of releasing music where they're taking, like, old hymns or maybe songs if you're of a certain age like I am of kind of childhood Sunday school- And they're taking the lyrics, not the melody, and they're reimagining them. So they have two versions of Jesus Loves Me that they just released. They have the old We're Gonna Cross, a song called Glory to the King Most High. These songs are just saturated with gospel. Like, they're just all power, all encouragement, and all authority represented in Jesus Christ. They're incredible, and I've j- where I've, what I've been really blessed by is these two versions of Jesus Love Me are just fantastic. Like, they're orchestral. There is a children's kind of chorus at one point, and it got me [00:18:00] singing that song again, and really, maybe to what you were saying before, Tony, like sitting in those three words, which are really phenomenal words to hear. And so I have been surprised at how moved I've been by what really I, I first understood, of course, as a children's song with simple truth that seems, you know, depending on how long you've known some part of the gospel, obvious. And yet I found them all new again, and a, a really lovely way of just sitting in the truth of God in music that I didn't expect to find. So if you're interested in any of that or maybe just curious of what it would sound like if a Christian metalcore band took Jesus Loves Me and turned it into their genre, then honestly you should just go check out Throne Breaker. I mean, you pretty much have to at this point.  Tony Arsenal: I, I don't ever have anything to add to your musical affirmations or denials, 'cause I, I just don't. What I do have to add is that Throne Breaker actually sounds like some sort of really [00:19:00] amazing, like, mace-type weapon in Lord of the Rings. Yes.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes,  Tony Arsenal: it does. Or like a big hammer that a dwarf carries. And I would also like to say that if you ask Google Gemini to translate something into Tolkien English, it not only will do it, it will tell you how to pronounce it.  Google Elf: A ava aini Ilai amel i trona se.  Tony Arsenal: What do you think that was, Jesse?  Jesse Schwamb: No idea.  Tony Arsenal: First of all, that was elevated Quenya, a Quenya. Yes.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes, that's  Tony Arsenal: the one. Classic Quenya.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  Google Elf: A leta Ilai amel aima.  Tony Arsenal: I would be willing to bet... Actually, let's do this.  Jesse Schwamb: Ugh.  Tony Arsenal: Uh, we don't give out prizes very often. Uh, I will say to anyone who can tell me what that is, the first person that emails, uh, or, or goes into the Telegram chat, we'll do this. We'll be professional podcasters and drive people to one of our channels. Here we  Jesse Schwamb: go.  Tony Arsenal: The first person who goes to our telephone, our Telegram chat and tells me what that [00:20:00] means, what that, uh, Elvish means, will get a Reformed Brotherhood T-shirt.  Jesse Schwamb: Oh, that is big.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: That-  Tony Arsenal: So I'm gonna, I'm gonna play it one more time.  Jesse Schwamb: Okay, here we go. Everybody listen. Every- All right, pull over. Stop your vehicles. Here we go.  Google Elf: A leta Ilai amel aima.  Tony Arsenal: There it is, everybody.  Jesse Schwamb: I'm not being a cry- I have a guess, but I, I, I wanna try to win the T-shirt, so I'm gonna- Yes ... wi- withhold. All right. Uh, yeah, that's, that's super fun. Did it, um... Did you also translate it back into English from that  Tony Arsenal: just to see- No, I'll do that later, 'cause that would give away the, that would  Jesse Schwamb: give away the prize. Yeah, it's, it's... We'll have to save that for next week, because that, that is the fun. It creates, like, what I was doing to, to have fun with this coworker is take very technical, like, work-related emails, and I would send it through. It would go through that iterative process, and I actually loved how it, it was talking. Like, it wa- this was an email about risk, and it, it gave, like, these beautiful grand metaphors that didn't sound corny or cheesy. That's the beautiful thing. That's amazing. It [00:21:00] was like true Elvish. Like, you were just like, "I wish I spoke that way all the time about, about risk." And it, like I said, it wasn't just like... You could, you could obviously throw something in and be like, "Make this Shakespearean," or, you know, "Make this, you know, sound like, you know, Milton." This is way better. This is way better, because it's not, like, actually trying to manipulate what you're saying. It's takes, like, the dynamic equivalent of what you said, then translates it back with way more kind of poetic infrastructure while maintaining, like, the essential meaning that you have. I'm, I'm selling this too hard. Everybody just has to go out and try it. So, all right, you know what's at stake here, but here's how you have to win this. If you want a chance, if you want a chance at winning this, you gotta go to t.me/reformedbrotherhood, t.me/reformedbrotherhood, and that link will take you to the Telegram app and our little corner of it, and you're gonna find there's a bunch of chats there. You gotta go to the affirmations or denials chat, and then you gotta put in what is the translation of what Tony just played.[00:22:00] I just love... Isn't it amazing, though, that, like, y- as you discovered, there's more than one version of Elvish available? Yeah. And they do differentiate between the various kinds. This is a big deal. I learned there are actually scholars who have, like, again, filled in kind of like the details of the language- Oh, yeah taking as a basis what Tolkien had there. Yeah. So I think that this is the best. We couldn't have conceived of this if we'd actually tried and planned for it, so-  Tony Arsenal: It's true ...  Jesse Schwamb: it's just better that it all happened in, in real time. It's true. And, and speaking of which, I think now we get to have the fun of figuring out, uh, where in Luke chapter 10 are we gonna begin? Or should we just start in Luke 1 and just let's see how far we can get reading  Tony Arsenal: in this- I could have, I could have Google Gemini read it in elevated Kenya, Quenya I did try to get it to put it in Sindarin, and it wouldn't do it for some reason. I'm not sure. Maybe this anti-Sindarin bias in Gemini,  Jesse Schwamb: man. Disappointing.  Tony Arsenal: It's disappointing.  Jesse Schwamb: Dis- disappointing. So let's kick off some Good Samaritan talk, which again, I think is gonna take us [00:23:00] through maybe in the next couple of conversations, in part because, like I said, we're not even gonna start at, uh, verse 25 because there is so much more that needs to be said, I think, before that. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I, I think actually the proper place to start this, and I, I'm guessing Jesse probably, whether he was there or not, he probably figured out where I was going, uh, over the course of the last 20 minutes or whatever. Um, I actually think the proper place to start, at least one of the proper places to start, is in verse 21. Yeah. Um, and I- we'll talk about why that is. And I'll... I'm gonna read here, um, 21, uh, through the end of the parable. Uh, and this is Jesus talking. He says in this, uh... Well, it, this is, um... Yes, uh, I'll just read it here. "In the same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, 'I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for such was Your gracious will. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one who knows who the Son is except... No, no one knows who the Son is [00:24:00] except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Himself.'" Then turning to the disciples, he said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see and did not see it, and hear what you hear and did not hear it." And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, 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 he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and he saw him and passed on the other side. So likewise a Levite, [00:25:00] when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. And he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take good care of him. Whatever you, whatever more you spend I will repay you when I come back.' Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" And he said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "You go and do likewise."  Jesse Schwamb: I think you're right, of course, to back us up into verse 21 because I don't want to keep saying it's always a setup, but Jesus is certainly giving us like the right context in which... Well, Luke of course is the author here and as he's explaining the teaching of Jesus, he does so well to start out with some irony that we don't realize is gonna be ironic until we get to the, to verse 25 [00:26:00] when we realize who's testing Jesus, who's setting this all up. So this idea that the Holy Spirit, everybody rejoicing in the Holy Spirit and the knowledge and the wisdom, the intelligence that's revealed through the Holy Spirit to all of these lesser people and in particular here emblematic the infants That here we have kings and rulers, and in this case, this beloved scholar of the law, who all have this adventure in missing the point. They think, in fact, they're looking for the one who is to set them free, and they can't even see that it's Him who is before him. And yet, incidentally, God has already revealed all these things to the lowest, to the ones who are the most humble, the meek, the mild, the down and outs, the ones who are weak by the view of everybody else. And so it's amazing that if we just kinda, again, like blow past it into, like, just all the characters, we don't see that the teaching starts actually well above this, that even everything we're about to understand, that unfolds in our lives, ev- every spiritual incarnation and insight that we have [00:27:00] first starts with God himself in his revealing it to us both in his general revelation, but of course, in the specific revelation of his teaching. So I like that you started us there, because I, I'm with you. That's where this whole thing launches off, right?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Parables Reveal and Conceal Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and as we come into when we very, like very start of this, uh, series, the, the parable series, Jesus sort of embeds a theology of parables into this introduction, right? Or I should say Luke does. But this, uh, this is written a- as though all of this is occurring as sort of one event. Right. And likely it was, right? So sometimes, uh, in the Gospels, events are kind of, like, moved next to each other for thematic reasons. It's possible that that's the case. It seems like this may have actually just been one, one teaching, and I'll, I'll talk about why that is in a second here. Um, but at the very least, this is placed next to each other in the Gospel almost as, like a, "Here's the theology of parables. Now, here's actually that happening in real [00:28:00] time."  Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  Tony Arsenal: And then also, like, a parable kinda demonstrating it, right? So the theology of the parable here is that there are many prophets, kings who desire to see what it is that, that, uh, uh, the disciples are seeing, right? And all things have been handed over to the Father or to, to the Son, by the Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father. No one who knows who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal, right? So the, the theology of parables here presented in Luke is that the parable itself is being used as a way to reveal the Father and the Son to those whom the Son chooses to reveal it to. The Lawyer as the Fool Tony Arsenal: And that leaves us with this lawyer, um, sort of playing, playing the fool in almost like a dramatic sense, right? In a lot of drama, there's kind of like the fool character who's sort of like the foil or the idiot of the thing who's, who's unaware and is almost like made an example of, right? Um, I, I can't think of any examples off the top of my head, but there's often a character in a play who's like, uh, it's [00:29:00] almost like the opposite of the everyman, right? The everyman in a, in a play- Right ... or in a movie is sort of like the outsider who things gets explained to, and he's sort of the proxy for, for the audience. Um, I think like, um, Hawkeye in Avengers is kind of the everyman. He's sort of just like this regular dude swept up in this thing, and oftentimes he's the one that, uh, the big characters are explaining things to. And really what that is is the big characters are explaining that to the audience through this proxy. There's also this concept of the fool in a lot of these plays or movies who's sort of like the dummy, the idiot of the play, who things are explained to, and it's still a way to explain it to the audience, but the character doesn't get it. And so that's kind of, kind of the role that this lawyer is playing in this, this narrative here. He, he steps forward. He's like, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus answers his question, and then in this like sort of like stunning moment of, like unawareness, he's trying to justify himself. He says, "Well, who is my neighbor?"[00:30:00] As though that's a question that needed to be asked, right? I think, like, we sort of think of it as like, "Oh, yeah, that's a valid question." I actually don't think it is. Like, it's pretty obvious, in the Old Testament at least, who your neighbor is. It's the people who live immediately with you. It's the other people of Israel. It's the people in your immediate concentric circles, the people you have direct access to. Um, and so then Jesus explains it through this parable, and whether or not he gets it at the end, I guess is maybe a little bit unclear. We can talk about that as we get there. But at least in the beginning, he's portrayed as this sort of, like, fool who doesn't understand what Jesus is saying, and then this parable is taught. So it's this theology of, um, revelation to those whom it is intended to, and further obscuring from those it's intended not to, not to illuminate, which is identical. Uh, maybe it's a different flavor of the same thing, but it's the same thing as what Matthew had and what Jesus taught- Right ... in Matthew with the parables. Jesse Schwamb: Right. It definitely is, again, illustrating, again, God's divine prerogative. I think you really have to do a lot of theological gymnastics [00:31:00] to try to work yourself out of a place here that says, like, "Well, this, this knowledge is accessible to all people."  Tony Arsenal: Right.  Jesse Schwamb: That if somehow we just work hard enough, study hard enough, come even before God with the right attitude or do the right things, that somehow all this will be made plain to us, and that's certainly not the truth here. In fact, again, the ironic setup is you have this lawyer asking this question, which creates this strange contrast because here's a man trained in the law, and he approaches the very wisdom of God to test him while the little children already perceive what this fool cannot. So it's irony upon irony, and then I, I like what you're saying. I think, and we'll get to this to anticipate a bit, I'm reading this as he's hoping that the answer to whom is my neighbor, just like he- he's received the affirmative from Jesus saying, "Yes, you understand. Go and do these things. This is life," and we'll get to all of what that means, I think, as well in terms of the covenant of works and the covenant of grace. But I think he's hoping that the definition of neighbor is gonna mean that he has [00:32:00] already accomplished the thing then, so that if there's somehow- Yeah ... he could just set the right boundaries. He could say, "Ah, yeah, I'm already good then, Jesus. I already, already did all that stuff." So- It's wild to me that it, it all starts with, of course, like some kind of scribal specialist in the Torah, of course, likely some kind of Pharisee by theological alignment. And as I'm looking at the notes here, what I find particularly stunning as we start this out is that Luke, of course, is able to speak several times in this parable to the intent. And so he says right away with great kind of fanfare and description that the intent here from this scribal Torah person was to test or to tempt, which is the same verb used of Satan's temptation of Christ and of Israel's testing of God in Deuteronomy 6, which of course Jesus is gonna quote here later on. So it's not, of course, like sincere inquiry, like you're saying. It, it is like adversarial probing. It is like really profound setup. It is dripping with like [00:33:00] ulterior motive. It's seeking to expose Jesus as either like heterodox or as diminishing the law's demands. And I think we've talked about this before, so Tony, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure in one of the previous parables we talked about sometimes how these get set up with this kind of weird like oxymoronic setting. Inherit Eternal Life Debate Jesse Schwamb: So like this question of se- uh, uh, itself, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: It's like more than just theologically revealing. Biblically it's self-contradictory, 'cause of course like we talked about inheritance, I think actually when we went through the, the parable of the prodigal. By definition, that's received, of course, on the ba- basis of relationship or promise. It's not earned by performance. And if the inheritance comes by a law, it no longer comes by promise, right? I think that's like Galatians. So the lawyer's question already portray- portrays like some kind of weird works righteous paradigm. E- even if you think he's really after trying to understand the true intent of God's heart [00:34:00] behind the law, he is assuming at least in this question that eternal life is some kind of wage that he can earn rather than a gift to be received by grace through faith. And that's a fundamental error that the entire subsequent exchange, including the parable, is designed to expose. It's both, like you're saying, Tony, he has not learned yet what it means to be in the kingdom of God. He's outside of that, and so he's trying... Now Jesus is bringing in this corrective action, as it were, set up in a story, but he's gonna turn the law on him, which, which I don't wanna get too excited about that yet. But he's... But essentially, here we have somebody who's the expert in the law trying to leverage the law by way of force against the one who he does not understand has all leverage and authority over him, and is in fact the law giver himself So he's gonna, Jesus is gonna drive him to see his own ability to keep the law that he claims to honor, and that's more than just brilliant. This is what the law does. You do not wanna pit the law against the one who has given the law, the [00:35:00] one whose character is represented in the law, because you're always going to get owned, and you'll get owned before you realize you've just gotten owned on multiple levels, and I think that's what basically unfolds here. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, I, I have a little bit of a different take on the, the word inherit here. Um, I don't think what you're saying is wrong, um, but I think there's a little different flavor here, and actually, I, I think it, it still sort of propels us forward to the conversation we have to have, um, about the law and the gospel and the covenant of works, the covenant of grace. The, the Greek that lays under this word is, uh, it's a compound word of the word for, like, lot or portion and the word for law. And so, so the, this force of the word is more along the lines of, like, what shall I do to have a legal right to eternal life? Like- Right ... inherit, I think we hear inherit, and we think of, like, um, like what you get when someone dies, and so, like, obviously there's nothing you do to earn it, and that's certainly an element of the way this [00:36:00] word is used in some instances. I think reading this and kind of how, how the rest of the text plays out, this lawyer is coming forward and he's like, "What do I need to do to have a rightful legal claim to eternal life?" Right? We might even be able, and this is where it comes into the covenant of grace, covenant of works k- kind of paradigm. We might even be able to say that what this lawyer or this person comes forward to ask Jesus is, how do I gain, how do I gain the benefits of the covenant of works, right?  Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: Yep. That's language that was developed later that's not, not, like, biblical language in terms of, like, the actual language within the text, but that's the force of what he's saying. What must I do to be a rightful legal... Uh, what must I do to have a rightful legal claim on all of the blessings of the covenant of works, is really the question that's here. And so Jesus' answer is so instructive- Right ... 'cause what he says is, "Well, what's written in the law?" Like, he, he basically says, like, "Well, you should be able to tell me, teacher- Exactly of [00:37:00] the law, like, what, what needs to happen there." And there's an assumption on Christ's part that, like, there is an answer. I think sometimes, sometimes we, we, uh, we make an error in thinking that the covenant of works was never attainable, that it's somehow this, like, um, it's almost like a black box. Like, nobody could know what we have to do to, like, obtain eternal life. That's absolutely not the assumption Jesus makes. Jesus not only knows that there's an answer, it's such a straightforward answer that he expects this scribe to be able to answer it, right? And the scribe can, right? The scribe says, "Well, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, your soul, your mind, your strength, and your neighbor as yourself," right? The summary of the law. Just good old classic Westminster larger, shorter catechism. Where's the law summarily comprehended? Summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments. And then, then again, I don't know the questions exactly, but then it also, like, says, like, "Where does Christ summarize this?" Well, you should love the Lord your God, and you should love your [00:38:00] neighbor as yourself, right? Covenant Works and Grace Tony Arsenal: So the, the lawyer comes forward and says, "What do I need to do to have a legal right to all of the blessings of the covenant of works?" Christ says, "Well, what do you think?" He says, "Well, you obey the entirety of the law." And he says, "You've answered correctly. Do this. Obey the entirety of the law and you will live." So the parable itself doesn't necessarily speak to this law, gospel, covenant of works, covenant of grace paradigm. The, the parable is used to show that not only does this lawyer know what is required of him, but that he won't do it.  Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: And I think that's really key, because even in the parable, within the parable itself, there are these figures that know what they should do, right? I, I think, um, we'll get into it, but there's a lot of ink spilled on almost like, um, explaining [00:39:00] why the priest and the Phar- phar- and the, the Levite almost like did the right thing by going to the other side of the room, and it points to like, well, their priestly and Levitical responsibilities, if they touch a dead body, like they can't do those things, and those things are so important. Like, there's a lot of ink spilled trying to almost explain why what they did is right, when the point of the parable is that actually we all know what the right thing to do in that sense was. And even the most righteous people in the mind of the hearers, the Levites and the priests, the most righteous people, even they don't do what they're supposed to do. Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: This, this paradigm, this gospel law paradigm, law gospel paradigm, this covenant of works, covenant of grace paradigm, is so baked into the very like fabric of, of human thought that it's just there. And Christ takes this time to point out to this lawyer, like, "You know what's expected of you." And so that's why the phrase desiring to justify himself is so key [00:40:00] here. I actually think that the, the, the I don't wanna go so far as to say, like, that this person was regenerated in the midst of this conversation, 'cause I don't know that. But I actually think that there's a forward movement of this lawyer as he interacts with Christ that is optimistic. I'm optimistic about it, right? Right. He starts out trying to test Jesus, then he star- then he moves to having a desire to justify himself. I think we hear that, we read that, desiring to justify himself, we automatically think that that's a negative thing. But if we think about justifying himself in terms of what he's talking about, how do I fulfill the obligations of the covenant of works, that's not a bad thing to wanna do. Right. It's not bad to wanna obey God's law and to lay claim to His promises. It's a misguided notion of something we can't accomplish, but in itself, desiring to justify himself is to desire to fulfill the obligations of the covenant of works. That's not necessarily a bad thing. And so I think this is a merciful, a merciful [00:41:00] teaching on Christ's part. He's trying to instruct this guy to say, "Look, you can't do it. And even if you could do it, you wouldn't do it. So let's, let's talk about mercy instead and what that looks like." And that's where we get to kind of the end of the, uh, the end of the parable.  Jesse Schwamb: And again, we have to remember that we know that the intent here is actually to test or try Jesus, so He's certainly being merciful by using this opportunity not to just put him on blast, but to actually provide true instruction. And of course, like, that was, to some degree, this turning the question back would've been, like, a rabbinic pedagogical technique, but theologically, this is what floors me, is from the jump, Jesus refuses to let this man treat Him merely as one more voice among competing rabbis. Yeah. Instead, He holds that lawyer to the standard of God's own revealed word by, like you said, asking not just what does it say, but how do you read it? Mm-hmm. He's pressing not just for, like, some kind of recitation, but for the lawyer's own understanding and application, and Jesus is gonna hold him [00:42:00] accountable to his own hermeneutic. So by, by the time we get the answer, we know as readers, and all those present would've understood, he already knows the right answer, and he's not ignorant to God's requirements. He already summarizes the whole moral law correctly, encompassing both tables of the Decalogue. And so I think that does lead us then to this statement that we probably should spend a little time on, like, do this and you will live, like you introduced for us. Like, what does that even mean? Because i- it's not, like, in my view It's not like a Pelagian or Arminian concession that law keeping actually saves. I mean, it is the covenant of works principle stated truly inexorably that the law as law does promise life to perfect obedience. But that's the exact problem. I, I like what you said that it's not as if we can't understand what it would be to comprehend or contemplate this perfect law and what it means to fall under the covenant of works. It's just that he also presents for us at the same time this covenant of grace in which life is [00:43:00] granted freely through faith in the mediator who alone fulfills all of these laws' demands. So it's wild in this back and forth that's happening here where it's... I don't even know if it's fair to say this is like the most incredible subtext ever. I'm imagining trying to process this in real time and realizing everything that's being said, not just listening to what's being said and like the technical answers going back and forth. But I think like you said, that the Spirit even here is at work, I would like to believe, in the life and at the heart and the mind of this lawyer who's bringing forward this question with nefarious intent first to test and to undermine, and then is being drawn in almost inexorably into this debate to more profound understanding about a covenant based on works that cannot be accomplished, uh, in perfect obedience except through the mediator who organizes and distributes liberally this covenant of grace to his children for whom he has accomplished at least passively and then actively in his obedience in life and death. And so Jesus' reply is, I [00:44:00] think, thus a very genuine like if that functions to expose an impossibility. I, I don't think he's teaching salvation by works here, of course. He is holding out the law's own terms so that the lawyer and everybody else listening, and even us as well, can discover through this narrative which is about to happen the impossibility of self-produced righteousness, which again is what this gentleman is theologically all about. He's trying to justify himself. And that is precisely the pedagogical strategy like Paul uses later when he systemizes all of this by saying that the law was our guardian or school master until Christ came in order that we might be justified by faith. I think- Yeah ... and it's only because God is good to us and we might sit in some of this teaching, I think this is all in play. So, so I ask you, like, have I gone too far with all this? Like, how much do you think in the real time was being processed? And maybe that's a horrible question to ask because we know the Spirit does this work of illumination and enlightenment, and we're on the other [00:45:00] side of this and have this time to sit and to kind of parse and to really kind of just be pickled in all of this. But there's so much happening here, right?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. Uh, maybe I'll answer the question a, a little bit of a different way. I think, um- We often can think about Old Testament religion, if we wanna kinda call it that. We think about Old Testament religion as though it was totally uniform and, um, entirely legalistic. Right. Uh, my- the, the listener is gonna panic a little bit when I say this, so please don't freak out, but I, I think N.T. Wright, uh, and some of the new perspective on Paul stuff is a, a little bit helpful in this, in that it gives us a foil to sorta push against. Yes. The new perspective on Paul is this idea that, um- Paul was not saying that Judaism was legalistic and Christianity is a grace-based religion, right? He, m- [00:46:00] um, N- NPP is not, is saying, um, Paul was not correcting New or Old Testament religion. And where they go wrong is that they say that Paul actually retains this concept of covenantal faithfulness, covenantal nomism fidelity. Uh, where I think, where I think they're right is that this idea that, like, the Old Testament religion is entirely legalistic and Paul was just sort of correcting that, I think that's way too simplistic. And the reason I say that is that the Mosaic Covenant for, you know, w- and predominantly this podcast is coming from a sort of Westminster Confession of Faith Presbyterian perspective, give or take, right? The, the broad Reformed tradition would say that the, the Mosaic, uh, covenant, the Davidic Covenant, all of the covenants of the Old Testament, and we can break them up in all sorts of different ways, but all of the covenants of the Old Testament, [00:47:00] um, with maybe the exception of the Noahic Covenant, and there's some debate about that, all of those are They're not just, like, supporting structures for the covenant of grace, but they actually are the covenant of grace in various administrations. If that's true, and of course we believe that it is, if that's true, then the people of those covenants understood that on some level. Right. Right? So to think that, like, people under the administration of the covenant of grace somehow thought that they were operating under a legalistic framework doesn't make any sense. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah,  Tony Arsenal: that's true. So, so where I think that applies here is I think this person coming forward, it's not as though the concept of the covenant of grace... Again, that's language that we would develop later, but the concept that God graciously saves His people by the counsel of His own will, apart from their works of righteousness, apart from their meritorious effort, that God [00:48:00] simply extends His grace and conveys the cov- the blessings of the covenant of works to those who trust in the mediator, those who trust in the one to come, the, the forthcoming serpent-crushing seed, right, if you wanna use- Right language from Genesis 3. The, the idea that God simply graciously conveys the blessings of the covenant of works to those people Um, that's not something that's alien to the Old Testament, right? It's not alien to the, even to the Mosaic economy. The most law-based of all of the Old Testament, um, covenants, even that starts with the concept that these people are God's people who he redeemed out of Egypt, right? Right. The redemption out of Egypt comes before the giving of the law, and the giving of the law is a result of the redemption out of Egypt. So to think that this lawyer comes forward, and again, this had been sort of corrupted and distorted and had become a very works-based, uh, [00:49:00] meritorious-based understanding. But the idea that this framework of a covenant of grace is totally alien to this guy just doesn't, it just doesn't, I think it doesn't play. And so I think rather than us read this as I think sometimes we do, of Christ as kind of like giving this guy, trying to give this guy an entirely new paradigm, or like the rich young ruler is very much a parallel kind of situation. We read this, this guy comes forward, he's like, "What do I gotta do to earn eternal life?" Christ is like, kinda basically says like, "Well, you dum-dum, you can't. And I'm gonna demonstrate for you that you can't by- Right ... taking sort of like this situation that you can't possibly believe that you fulfilled and telling you to fulfill it." That's the outcome of this. We'll get to that when we get to the end of the parable. Um, he's not trying to give them a new paradigm. He's trying, in my opinion, he's trying to sort of reorient them back to the true paradigm of grace that is present under all of the Old Covenant administrations. So it's not so much a matter of like [00:50:00] developing a new framework and impli- like imposing this new framework on this guy. It's really trying to say like, "Listen- Think about this for a second, dude. Think about this, right? Think about the fact that, yes, you know you have to love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole soul, your whole strength, your whole mind, and you have to love your neighbor as yourself, right? You've answered correctly. If you can do those things, you will live. With the subtext, which I think is what you're getting at, the subtext of, like, and of course you cannot possibly do those things. Right. Right. So what's the alternative, my friend? The alternative is not justifying yourself by somehow identifying who the person is that you have to love the most. The, the, the, um, the... Well, we'll get this when we get to the parable itself, but the, the alternative is... This will be interesting, 'cause I'm not sure that we... I don't know where you are on this, but, um, the alternative is that there's someone out there who shows us mercy. [00:51:00] Right. There's someone out there who takes care of our need despite our total inability to do so. Jesse Schwamb: That's right.  Tony Arsenal: That's the alternative to the covenant of works, is the covenant of grace. I m- maybe I'm, like, hinting at it too much, so I'll just say it. Like, Jesus is the Good Samaritan, right? Like, there's something for us to learn about our own justification here and our own- Right ... like, um, our own need to be merciful, to treat people as our neighbors. But just like we talked about when we talked about, like, what does the least of these mean, this parable, uh, I'm totally, like, burying the lede for next, next week, but that's fine. This parable is not primarily about us figuring out how to do mercy ministry. Right. Like, that's important. It's probably an outcome of this. It's probably something for us to think about. But really, this is actually Christ saying, like, "Hold on a second here, dude." Like, "Let's just think about this." Do you need someone who is going to tell you to pick yourself up off your bootstraps and cross to the other side of the street and leave you to [00:52:00] your own devices? Or do you need someone who's gonna throw you on their donkey, who's gonna bind up your wounds, who's gonna pay the innkeeper, and is gonna pledge to play- pay everything that is owed for your salvation? Right? That's not too on the nose here, I think. Right. And, and I really look forward to, like, unpacking that, although maybe we don't need to now, but I think, like, this parable is so much more about how salvation works than it is about, like, what it means to have a good neighbor and to be a good neighbor. I think we get bogged down in that, and I just am really excited to talk more about, like, what I think this parable actually gets at.  Jesse Schwamb: I agree, and it's happening in the contex

Today, Pastors Henry, Patrick, and Jim tackle the Second Commandment in the Decalogue as summarized by the Westminster Shorter Catechism: Q. 49. Which is the second commandment? A. The second commandment is, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments (Ex. 20:4-6). Q. 50. What is required in the second commandment? A. The second commandment requireth the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his word (Deut. 32:46; Matt. 28:20; Acts 2:42). Q. 51. What is forbidden in the second commandment? A. The second commandment forbiddeth the worshipping of God by images (Deut. 4:15-19; Ex. 32:5, 8), or any other way not appointed in his word (Deut. 12:31-32). Q. 52. What are the reasons annexed to the second commandment? A. The reasons annexed to the second commandment are, God's sovereignty over us (Ps. 95:2-3, 6), his propriety in us (Ps. 45:11), and the zeal he hath to his own worship (Ex. 34:13-14).

Today, Pastors Henry, Patrick, and Jim tackle the Second Commandment in the Decalogue as summarized by the Westminster Shorter Catechism: Q. 49. Which is the second commandment? A. The second commandment is, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments (Ex. 20:4-6). Q. 50. What is required in the second commandment? A. The second commandment requireth the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his word (Deut. 32:46; Matt. 28:20; Acts 2:42). Q. 51. What is forbidden in the second commandment? A. The second commandment forbiddeth the worshipping of God by images (Deut. 4:15-19; Ex. 32:5, 8), or any other way not appointed in his word (Deut. 12:31-32). Q. 52. What are the reasons annexed to the second commandment? A. The reasons annexed to the second commandment are, God's sovereignty over us (Ps. 95:2-3, 6), his propriety in us (Ps. 45:11), and the zeal he hath to his own worship (Ex. 34:13-14).

Today, Pastors Henry, Patrick, and Jim tackle the Second Commandment in the Decalogue as summarized by the Westminster Shorter Catechism: Q. 49. Which is the second commandment? A. The second commandment is, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments (Ex. 20:4-6). Q. 50. What is required in the second commandment? A. The second commandment requireth the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his word (Deut. 32:46; Matt. 28:20; Acts 2:42). Q. 51. What is forbidden in the second commandment? A. The second commandment forbiddeth the worshipping of God by images (Deut. 4:15-19; Ex. 32:5, 8), or any other way not appointed in his word (Deut. 12:31-32). Q. 52. What are the reasons annexed to the second commandment? A. The reasons annexed to the second commandment are, God's sovereignty over us (Ps. 95:2-3, 6), his propriety in us (Ps. 45:11), and the zeal he hath to his own worship (Ex. 34:13-14).

Send us Fan MailIn this final episode of the season, there are three parts which support the concluding chapter of The Christian Past That Wasn't. The first part is former Secretary of Health and Human Services Ben Carson's false telling of Ben Franklin's call to prayer during the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Carson said the delegates stopped and prayed after Franklin called them to prayer. They didn't. This is the kind of folklore which I correct in The Christian Past That Wasn't. The second part of this segment is a brief analysis of Al Mohler's admission that the Constitution doesn't acknowledge any Christian foundation. This significant admission came in a short video this week. Even though Mohler is honest about one aspect of the Constitution, he considers the lack of explicit Christian language to be an error on the part of the founders. Here is where he is wrong and I respond to Al Mohler's opposition to the American Constitution. The third and final part tracks with the Conclusion of The Christian Past That Wasn't. I discuss separation of church and state in light of the golden rule and the moral teachings of Christ. I end the podcast where I started it by examining the issue of posting copies of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. I come down on the side that posting the Decalogue is an imposition of one faith over others and thus an improper establishment of religion. As such it violates the golden rule. If I don't want someone to impose their faith on me, I shouldn't do that to others. In the words of Texas state legislator John Bryant from the podcast, "That's not fair, and that's not American." Produced, written, and hosted by Warren ThrockmortonMusic by Netop, Jonathan Swaim, and Dustin BlatnikTo get The Christian Past That Wasn't go to www.christianpast.com for buying option.The Christian Past That Wasn't Music PlaylistSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6jP94UmS5sCwoB4Ex3ini9?si=C2d_agOxTfechFztsPVXgAAmazon: https://music.amazon.com/user-playlists/d7a5977b7b4543f399f70463b226f4bfsune?marketplaceId=ATVPDKIKX0DER&musicTerritory=US&ref=dm_sh_qtlquXBX7hURQO7DbA05ImNSy

What does the whole Bible teach about which acts, attitudes, and attributes receive God's approval? In Lesson 30, Dave Rich shifts the class into Normative Ethics — the search for answers — and announces the organizing framework for the rest of the series: the Ten Commandments.Dave opens with a survey of biblical ethics summaries, from Ecclesiastes 12 and Micah 6:8 to the Golden Rule and Paul's charge to do all things to the glory of God. These summaries, he shows, are consistent with one another — and consistent with the Decalogue, which offers exactly the right level of detail to cover virtually everything the Bible addresses in ethics.The lesson centers on the prologue and First Commandment of Exodus 20. God's self-identification — "I am Yahweh your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt" — is not mere historical background. It is the ground of all obligation. Rescue precedes command. Grace motivates obedience. Israel's redemption from slavery is a type of the Christian's redemption from sin, death, and the devil — which means the rationale of the prologue applies fully to every believer today.The First Commandment, Dave argues, is not merely one commandment among ten. It includes all the rest. Every sin is, at its core, an act of disloyalty to God — a manufactured idol placed before Him. The commandment still confronts us. The names of ancient gods may have faded, but the human heart, as Calvin observed, remains a perpetual forge of idols. ★ Support this podcast ★

The Decalogue is a universally recognized symbol of law and has indelibly shaped the Western Legal Tradition and American government. Constitutional expert, lawyer, author, pastor, and founder of Liberty Counsel Mat Staver discusses the important topics of the day with co-hosts and guests that impact life, liberty, and family. To stay informed and get involved, visit LC.org.

In this episode I discuss how the covenant God made with Israel in the Old Testament was a form of an ancient Near Eastern suzerain-vassal treaty. Building from the fantastic work of Sandra Richter's ‘Epic of Eden' book, a suzerain vassal treaty is one in which a king or imperial power, the suzerain, makes a treaty with a lesser kingdom or people, the vassal. They are asymmetrical in the sense that the suzerain clearly holds the power but also reciprocal in that both parties are contractually obligated to one another. Generally, the vassal offers loyalty and taxes to the suzerain while the suzerain grants military protection in peace. Seen in this light, the covenant God makes with Israel depicts him as the rightful king, and in the climax of the Pentateuch, Deuteronomy 27-32, the blessings and curses of covenant faithfulness are laid out clearly. If vassal Israel honors suzerain YHWH by obeying His Law, God will bless Israel, keep them safe and well-fed in the land, protect them from outsiders, and allow them to be a light to the pagan nations. If Israel breaks covenant, God will withhold his protection. This logic, found already in the giving of the Decalogue in Exodus 19-24 and Leviticus 26, can be understood through the framework of suzerain-vassal treaty, depicting God as the true king. For Christians seeking to derive political principles from the Old Testament, this is one important aspect of ancient thought to consider.  Media Referenced:Epic of Eden: https://a.co/d/0hZfe5ZZDru Johnson on OT Politics: https://libertarianchristians.com/episode/ep-263-the-torah-the-old-testament-and-christian-politics-with-dru-johnson/ The Protestant Libertarian Podcast is a project of the Libertarian Christian Institute and a part of the Christians For Liberty Network. The Libertarian Christian Institute can be found at www.libertarianchristians.com.Questions, comments, suggestions? Please reach out to me at theprotestantlibertarian@gmail.com.  You can also follow the podcast on Twitter: @prolibertypod, and YouTube, @ProLibertyPod, where you will get shorts and other exclusive video content. For more about the show, you can go to theprotestantlibertarianpodcast.com. If you like the show and want to support it, you can! Go to libertarianchristians.com, where you can donate to LCI and buy The Protestant Libertarian Podcast Merch! Also, please consider giving me a star rating and leaving me a review, it really helps expand the show's profile! Thanks!

May 5, 2026Today's Reading: James 1:16-21Daily Lectionary: Leviticus 23:1-22; Luke 12:13-34“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:16-17)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia! Amen. The epistle of James does not mince words when it comes to the life of the Christian. James makes it abundantly clear that in our sanctified lives, we live as children of God. It is no surprise that many of the reformers reluctantly went to James. Even Luther struggled with James, but Luther also knew that God's word is unchangeable. In Exodus, God gives the promise to Moses to share with the people, “I will be your God and you will be my people.” (Exodus 6:7) God declares that He is the one who is bringing them out of slavery in Egypt and into a land of freedom flowing with milk and honey. Later, when they are in the wilderness, God delivers the Decalogue and reminds them again that He is their God and they are His people. His people do not live like the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, or the Egyptians, but His people live like children of God. When the people of the Old Testament do not live like children of God, He says to them, “You are not people and I am not your God.” (Hosea 1:9)In our sinfulness, we live like the world. We indulge in the pleasures of the flesh. We feed our minds with fantasies of immorality and ungodly conduct. We seek ways to massage God's word so that we can justify our behavior or someone else's behavior. In James, the mirror of the law exposes our sin and accuses us of not being God's children. In that behavior, we are not His people, and He is not our God. James does not leave us in despair. He reminds his hearers that all good things come from God. He writes in chapter 1:17, “....every perfect gift is from above,…” The perfect gift is a “complete” gift. The reader cannot help but connect what James writes here and what Christ says on the cross. It is “finished.” It is complete. The work is done, and it has come from above. Christ has fulfilled the law for us so that we are no longer slaves under the law. We are set free to live as children of God. He is our God, and we are His people. He gives to us His holy law, and we are free to live in His holy law without fear of the world's condemnation. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.To Jesus we for refuge flee, Who from the curse has set us free, And humbly worship at His throne, Saved by His grace through faith alone. (LSB 579:3)Rev. Timothy Davis

The 10 Commandments E6 — Shakespeare wrote in Romeo and Juliet, “What's in a name?” In the Bible, it turns out a lot, actually. The creator God Yahweh is the source of all life and good, so his name is the greatest name. But surprisingly, he attaches his name to Israel, a lowly nation of former slaves, and enters into a covenant with them. The covenant starts with a list of 10 commandments, or 10 words, and following these commandments will lead Israel to life and flourishing. In this episode, Tim and Jon discuss the 3rd Commandment, which is all about how Israel will carry Yahweh's name, or represent him to one another and the surrounding nations. FULL SHOW NOTES For chapter-by-chapter summaries, biblical words, referenced Scriptures, and reflection questions, check out the full show notes for this episode. CHAPTERS What's in a Name? (0:00-16:40) Carrying, Bearing, and Representing (16:40-35:10) What Does “in Vain” Mean? (35:10-48:42) OFFICIAL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT View this episode's official transcript. THE 10 COMMANDMENTS BIBLEPROJECT TRANSLATION View our full translation of the 10 Commandments. REFERENCED RESOURCES Find the related animated video for this episode here. Bearing YHWH's Name at Sinai: A Reexamination of the Name Command of the Decalogue by Carmen Joy Imes Listen to our podcast conversation with Dr. Carmen Imes on this same topic: “Taking God's Name in Vain?” Check out Tim's extensive collection of recommended books. SHOW MUSIC “Planted By The River” by Lofi Sunday feat. Jk Beatbook “New Mercies” by Lofi Sunday feat. PAINT WITH SOUND BibleProject theme song by TENTS  SHOW CREDITS Production of today's episode is by Lindsey Ponder, producer, and Cooper Peltz, managing producer. Tyler Bailey is our supervising engineer, who also edited today's episode and provided the sound design and mix. JB Witty writes the show notes. Our host and creative director is Jon Collins, and our lead scholar is Tim Mackie. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dear Listeners,I send you 208 - If My People - Decalogue Wins in Texas - Three Paths Paradox War - Who Am IThank you for your valuable support of this ministry. God bless you.Alexander Alfanoaalfano@lawalfano.com+1 305 450 8550 

God invited an entire nation to become a "kingdom of priests" and a "holy nation." But while Moses was on the mountaintop receiving the blueprints for heaven, Israel was in the valley building an idol out of the very gold God gave them for the Tabernacle. Are we doing the same thing today? Summary: In this massive study of Exodus 19–34, we witness the highs and lows of the Covenant. We explore the sacred invitation of Sinai, the specific boundaries of the Ten Commandments, and the tragic irony of the Golden Calf. The Invitation to Sinai: We analyze the "Degrees of Glory" on Mount Sinai and how the Tabernacle was designed to bring the mountain to the people. The Ten Commandments: We reframe the Decalogue not as a list of "thou shalt nots" that restrict us, but as "protective bars" that keep us out of life's snares. The Tabernacle Pattern: We dive into the symbolism of the ark, the veil, and the altars, seeing how every piece of furniture is designed to point us back to the presence of God. The Golden Calf Tragedy: We discuss the "Prophetic Absence" and why Israel fell so quickly. We learn the danger of "plundering the riches of Egypt" only to use our blessings to build our own idols. A God of Second Chances: We conclude with the "second set" of tablets. Though the first set was broken, God provided a way for Israel to try again, proving that His mercy is more enduring than our mistakes. Call-to-Action: Are you using the "gold" God has given you (your talents, time, and resources) to build a Tabernacle for Him, or a Golden Calf for yourself? Let's talk about the difference in the comments. To stay "Unshaken" as we build our own sanctuaries today, please like, subscribe, and share this video!

March 11 | Exodus 19:16-20:26, Matthew 23:13-26, Psalm 28:6-9, Proverbs 11:5-6   // Follow along with the "Walking through the Word Daily Reading and Study Guide" in the Daily Life Journal and Daily Life Journal 4 Kids! Get your copy today, or grab a gift for someone you love. lifereachresources.com/core4   

In today's episode, Israel arrives at Sinai and Moses ascends the mountain to speak with God. The Lord sends him back down with a proposition: if Israel will carefully listen to Him and keep His covenant, then they will be his own possession out of all the peoples, even though the whole world belongs to God. After confirming with the people, Moses ascends again and receives a moral code by which they might live; this Decalogue, more commonly known as the Ten Commandments, allowed Israel to know how they could live a life that pleased the Lord. After witnessing the plagues on Egypt, the columns of cloud and fire, and the Red Sea's parting, it would have been no small thing for Israel to know that such a powerful God would be on their side.Exodus 19 - 1:01 . Exodus 20 – 5:59 . Exodus 21 - 10:01 . Psalm 31 - 16:06 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

As the nation of Israel begins their journey into the wilderness, they find themselves without food and water, but rather than turn to the Lord, they complain to Moses. The Lord graciously provides for his people despite their grumbling, giving them, not only food and water, but a moral code by which they might live; this Decalogue, more commonly known as the Ten Commandments, allowed Israel to know how they could live a life that pleased the Lord. After witnessing the plagues on Egypt, the columns of cloud and fire, and the Red Sea's parting, it would have been no small thing for Israel to receive this sense of assurance.Exodus 16 – 1:12 . Exodus 17 – 7:46 . Exodus 18 – 11:02 . Exodus 19 – 15:54 . Exodus 20 – 20:30 . Proverbs 3 – 24:38 . :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by Bobby Brown, Katelyn Pridgen, Eric Williamson & the Christian Standard Biblefacebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

Free Grace Baptist Church, Chilliwack, BC

Fewer Americans are attending church today and many facilities are even slated to be closed down. Fewer women are attending church overall, while men have remained consistent or increased in attendance. However, there is a declining rate of Christianity in the U.S. overall, now just 62% of the country. Some link this decline to the perceived increased in crime, a debatable issue that requires lots of context - some crimes have declined while others have increased. Comparing the U.S. and its largely Christian population to other nations also sets up an interesting discussion. The safest countries in the world are largely Islamic or have a mixture of Buddhism and folk religion, even atheism. Some of the least safe are Christian. The overall safest country in the world based on the Crime Index Numbeo is, however, mostly Christian, but so is the least safest. The most consistently safe and clean countries, without authoritarian-style governments, are overwhelming not comprised of the Abrahamic faiths and share one thing in common - high IQ. In other words, high IQ, at least as much as religion, plays a significant role in morality low crime. This idea is historically validated, too, since long before Moses, Monotheism and the Decalogue, civilized and intelligence cultures had instituted divinely inspired laws to maintain morality and social order. Something similar can be said of dispelling evil in the name of Jesus. In every culture there is a similar practice based on different languages, mythologies, gods and goddesses. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/crime-rate-by-country https://www.numbeo.com/crime/rankings_by_country.jsp https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31961775/ https://archive.is/gsWMa https://religionnews.com/2025/10/07/new-study-shows-men-now-surpass-women-in-church-attendance-in-major-reversal/ https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ephesians%205:22-33&version=NIV https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Peter%203&version=WE*The is the FREE archive, which includes advertisements. If you want an ad-free experience, you can subscribe below underneath the show description.WEBSITEFREE ARCHIVE (w. ads)SUBSCRIPTION ARCHIVE-X / TWITTERFACEBOOKINSTAGRAMYOUTUBERUMBLE-BUY ME A COFFEECashApp: $rdgable PAYPAL: rdgable1991@gmail.comRyan's Books: https://thesecretteachings.info- EMAIL: rdgable@yahoo.com / rdgable1991@gmail.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-secret-teachings--5328407/support.

A lecture by author and attorney Colonel John Eidsmoe.   Col. John Eidsmoe's presentation on "Defending the Decalogue" is a significant contribution to the discussion on the principles of the Ten Commandments. He emphasizes the importance of respect for property and the moral implications of the commandments, arguing that they should not be interpreted in a way that contradicts the principles of justice and fairness. Eidsmoe's work is a testament to his commitment to constitutional law and his belief in the moral foundations of society. John A. Eidsmoe is an American attorney and professor of law emeritus. He has previously taught at the Thomas Goode Jones School of Law at Faulkner University in Montgomery, Alabama, the O. W. Coburn School of Law at Oral Roberts University (ORU), and at Oak Brook College of Law and Government Policy.  He was in the US Air Force as a lieutenant colonel and is an Alabama State Defense Force colonel, headquarters judge advocate, deputy chaplain and training officer. He earned his J.D. from the University of Iowa, M.A. from Dallas Theological Seminary, M. Div. from Lutheran Brethren Seminary and D. Min. from ORU.Camp Constitution is a New Hampshire based charitable trust.  We run a week-long family camp, man information tables at various venues, have a book publishing arm, and post videos from our camp and others that we think are of importance. Please visit our website www.campconstitution.netiHeart

Today is day 349 and we are studying The Tenth Commandment. 349. What is the tenth commandment? The tenth commandment is “You shall not covet . . . anything that is your neighbor's.” (Exodus 20:17; Deuteronomy 5:21) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 339 and we are studying The Ninth Commandment. 339. What is the ninth commandment? The ninth commandment is “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16; Deuteronomy 5:20) We will conclude today by praying The Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 330 and we are studying The Eighth Commandment. 330. What is the eighth commandment? The eighth commandment is “You shall not steal.” (Exodus 20:15; Deuteronomy 5:19) We will conclude today by praying The Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 317 and we are studying The Seventh Commandment. 317. What is the seventh commandment? The seventh commandment is “You shall not commit adultery.” (Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18; see also Proverbs 6:32; Hebrews 13:4) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 307 and we are studying The Sixth Commandment. 307. What is the sixth commandment? The sixth commandment is “You shall not murder.” (Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17) We will conclude today by praying The Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 300 and we are studying The Fifth Commandment. 300. What is the Fifth commandment? The fifth commandment is “Honor your father and your mother.” (Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 10 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 290 and we are studying The Fourth Commandment. 290. What is the fourth commandment? The fourth commandment is “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exodus 20:8–10; see also Deuteronomy 5:12–14) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Part 6 of our Trinitytide Series on the Decalogue.

Today is day 283 and we are studying The Third Commandment. 283. What is the third commandment? The third commandment is “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.” (Exodus 20:7; Deuteronomy 5:11; see also Leviticus 22:32; see questions 172–77) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to anglicanchurch.net/catechism. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Top headlines for Friday, October 10, 2025President Donald Trump's upcoming trip to Israel, where he will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and deliver a major address. We also look at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse officially cutting ties with the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. Plus, new Barna research reveals that men—especially Gen X and millennials—are now attending church more than women.00:11 Trump heading to Jerusalem Sunday, 1st stage of peace deal done01:00 Billy Graham Evangelistic Association leaves ECFA01:50 5 highlights from Trump's Antifa roundtable02:40 Appeals court vacates earlier ruling against La. Decalogue law03:27 Alabama church vandalized for hosting Turning Point USA event04:13 Maverick City co-founder denies Chandler Moore's allegations05:04 Men now surpass women in church attendance: BarnaSubscribe to this PodcastApple PodcastsSpotifyGoogle PodcastsOvercastFollow Us on Social Media@ChristianPost on TwitterChristian Post on Facebook@ChristianPostIntl on InstagramSubscribe on YouTubeGet the Edifi AppDownload for iPhoneDownload for AndroidSubscribe to Our NewsletterSubscribe to the Freedom Post, delivered every Monday and ThursdayClick here to get the top headlines delivered to your inbox every morning!Links to the NewsTrump heading to Jerusalem Sunday, 1st stage of peace deal done | WorldBilly Graham Evangelistic Association leaves ECFA | Church & Ministries5 highlights from Trump's Antifa roundtable | PoliticsAppeals court vacates earlier ruling against La. Decalogue law | PoliticsAlabama church vandalized for hosting Turning Point USA event | U.S.Maverick City co-founder denies Chandler Moore's allegations | EntertainmentMen now surpass women in church attendance: Barna | U.S.

Part 5 of our Trinitytide Series on the Decalogue

Today is day 274 and we are studying The Second Commandment. 274. What is the second commandment? The second commandment is “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them.” (Exodus 20:4–6; 34:17; Deuteronomy 5:8–10) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to ⁠anglicanchurch.net/catechism⁠. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Today is day 268 and we are studying The First Commandment. 268. What is the first commandment? The first commandment is “I am the Lord your God. . . . You shall have no other gods before me.” (Exodus 20:2–3; Deuteronomy 5:6–7; see also Psalm 97; Luke 4:5–8; 1 Corinthians 8:1–6) We will conclude today by praying the Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to ⁠anglicanchurch.net/catechism⁠. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

From the September/October 2025 edition of The Scottish Rite Journal.  Any accompanying photographs or citations for this article can be found in the corresponding print edition.Make sure to like and subscribe to the channel!  Freemasons, make sure you shout out your Lodge, Valley, Chapter or Shrine below!OES, Job's Daughter's, Rainbow, DeMolay?  Drop us a comment too!To learn how to find a lodge near you, visit www.beafreemason.comTo learn more about the Scottish Rite, visit www.scottishrite.orgVisit our YouTube Page: Youtube.com/ScottishRiteMasonsJoin our Lost Media Archive for only $1.99 a month!https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv-F13FNBaW-buecl7p8cJg/joinVisit our new stores:Bookstore: https://www.srbookstore.myshopify.com/Merch Store: http://www.shopsrgifts.com/

Week 3 of our Trinitytide series on the Decalogue

Today is day 256 and we are studying The Ten Commandments. 256. Recite the Ten Commandments. 1. I am the Lord your God. You shall have no other gods but me. 2. You shall not make for yourself any idol. 3. You shall not take the Name of the Lord your God in vain. 4. Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. 5. Honor your father and your mother. 6. You shall not murder. 7. You shall not commit adultery. 8. You shall not steal. 9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 10. You shall not covet. (Book of Common Prayer 2019 version from Exodus 20:1–17; Deuteronomy 5:6–21) We will conclude today with The Decalogue found on page 100 of the Book of Common Prayer (2019). If you would like to buy or download To Be a Christian, head to ⁠anglicanchurch.net/catechism⁠. Produced by Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Madison, MS. Original music from Matthew Clark. Daily collects and Psalms are taken from Book of Common Prayer (2019), created by the Anglican Church in North America and published by the Anglican Liturgical Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 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. Catechism readings are taken from To Be a Christian - An Anglican Catechism Approved Edition, copyright © 2020 by The Anglican Church in North America by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Messianic Apologetics editor John McKee reviews Exodus 16:22-30 and the issue of Ancient Israel having to keep the Sabbath, before the formal giving of the Decalogue on Mount Sinai. What questions has this raised about the institution of the Sabbath, possibly being something which preceded the community of Israel? This is then followed by a review of important stories and issues from the past day or so, largely witnessed on social media.

This Sunday we get into the iconic Ten Commandments, often called "The Decalogue." How should we think about these commands and apply them to our lives today?

Week 2 of our Trinitytide series on the Decalogue

——Your Daily Portion Sabbath School Lesson with LD “The Anomaly” Harris (L. David Harris)——Get the YDP Life Application Guide for the JUL., AUG., & SEPT. 2025's Lesson titled, “Exodus: Journey to the Promised Land.” https://amzn.to/3ZyOb8HBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/your-daily-portion-with-l-david-harris--2912188/support.

Saturday, 26 July 2025   For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” Matthew 12:8   “For Lord, He is – even of the Sabbath – the Son of Man” (CG).   In the previous verse, Jesus cited Hosea 6:6 to support His stand against the Pharisees. That verse said, “For mercy I inclined, and not sacrifice” (CG). With that in mind, He next says, “For Lord, He is.”   The reference is not yet stated, but the intent of the words is that the One spoken of is in a position of authority. As such, what He determines concerning the scope of His lordship is acceptable because it is at His disposal. In this case, the lordship extends to “even of the Sabbath.”   Some source texts omit the word kai, even. But based on His words of a previous verse, it seems the word is appropriate. This is because Jesus is referring to Himself. That is seen in the final words of the verse where He identifies the referent, saying, “the Son of Man.”   Some interpret this to mean man in general. Ezekiel was called the son of man numerous times in his book. If this were the case, it would make the Sabbath, one of the Ten Commandments, subservient to all men for any reason. If this were so, and because it is a part of the Decalogue, that authority would, by default, extend to all of the Ten Commandments.   Rather, Jesus repeatedly uses the term Son of Man when referring to Himself. It would be an outlier for Him to use it in a different manner here. Instead, He is referring to Himself and stating an a fortiori argument.   The showbread was reserved for the priests, but David's needs stood above the reserved use for the bread, demonstrating that the needs of the man prevailed. Likewise, the Sabbath was proclaimed as seemingly inviolable for the people, and yet some of the people profaned it and were not held guilty. Thus, the needs of the temple were greater than the prescription for the Sabbath.   But Jesus said in verse 12:6, “And I say to you that the temple – greater, it is here.” Therefore, if the needs of the temple were greater than the prescription set forth in the Sabbath, and Jesus' body was greater than the temple, then His needs, by default, were greater than the Sabbath, because He is Lord even of the Sabbath.   It is once again a claim to deity. The temple was set forth to serve the Lord. The priests were there to minister to the Lord. If Jesus is the Lord even of the Sabbath because He is greater than the temple, He must be God incarnate.   This is especially certain because of His citation of Hosea 6:6, “For mercy I inclined, and not sacrifice.” The words refer to interaction with the Lord, not with others. The word mercy refers to a state of “loyalty to God's covenant” (HELPS Word Studies).   Jesus placed Himself in the position of receiving this loyalty to the covenant. His Father was working (John 5:17) to maintain the covenant. Jesus, the Son of Man, is the instrument through whom this was being worked out. Israel should have seen this and responded with the covenant loyalty toward Him that He deserved. This extended to the fact that He is Lord, even of the Sabbath.   Jesus' claim to deity is on full display as He continues His ministry to Israel, fulfilling the covenant set forth by God and accepted by the people at the foot of Mount Sinai.   Life application: The Sabbath was a set standard of the Law of Moses. It was mandated for the people of Israel to observe as part of the covenant law. This covenant was cut with Israel alone. No other group of people was ever required to observe a Sabbath.   In Jesus' fulfillment of the law, the prescription no longer applies because the law is fulfilled and annulled. Hebrews 4:3 says to the people, “For we who have believed do enter that rest.” The state of rest that the Sabbath only anticipated is realized through belief in Christ.   To mandate a Sabbath day as a supposed requirement for salvation or continued salvation is thus heretical. Such a teaching anathematizes the Seventh Day Adventists, the Hebrew Roots adherents, and other sects and cults who hold to this view.   They have set aside grace. They are attempting to earn what God has already granted through the giving of His Son. Paul clearly defines this heretical thinking in Romans and Colossians –   “One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it.” Romans 14:5, 6   “So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.” Colossians 2:16, 17   If you want to observe a particular day to the Lord, that is up to you. If you are doing it because someone has told you your salvation is dependent on your observance of it, you have fallen from grace because you are trusting in your own merits for salvation. Think! Be wise and don't be pulled into the trap of legalism and supposed self-merit for salvation.   Lord God, thank You for the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. You have done it all through Him. We are the recipients of His wonderful workings. May we never set aside this blessing of grace. Rather, may we rest in it and be joyful for it all our days. Amen.

It's Monday, June 16th, A.D. 2025. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 140 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Adam McManus Pakistani Christian acquitted of blasphemy against Islam charge Last Thursday, a Pakistani judge acquitted a 28-year-old Christian named Farhan Masih of blasphemy against Islam and terrorism charges after the prosecution failed to prove its case against him, reports Morningstar News. Masih had developed a mental illness due to excessive use of synthetic drugs and was entrapped in the false accusation by the complainant. According to Open Doors, Pakistan is the eighth most difficult country worldwide in which to live for Christians. Dear God, we thank you for enabling Farhan Masih, this Pakistani Christian, to be acquitted. Amen. Israel attacks Iran over atomic weapon; Iran retaliates Israel launched blistering attacks on the heart of Iran's nuclear and military structure Friday, deploying warplanes and drones previously smuggled into the country to assault key facilities and kill top generals and scientists, reports the Associated Press. Israeli Prime Minister Benajmin Netanyahu explained. NETANYAHU: “Moments ago, Israel launched Operation Rising Lion, a targeted military operation to roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival. This operation will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat. For decades, the tyrants of Tehran have brazenly, openly called for Israel's destruction. They backed up their genocidal rhetoric with a program to develop nuclear weapons. “In recent years, Iran has produced enough highly enriched uranium for nine atom bombs – nine!  In recent months, Iran has taken steps that it has never taken before, steps to weaponize this enriched uranium. If not stopped, Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in a very short time. It could be a year. It could be within a few months.” Iran retaliated by firing waves of ballistic missiles at Israel, where explosions flared in the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shook the buildings below. The Israeli military urged civilians to head to shelter, as missiles damaged homes and killed two people. U.S. Senate considers defunding Planned Parenthood In the midst of the U.S. Senate's ongoing debate about the budget, they are determining whether to defund Planned Parenthood, as President Trump has requested, reports Liberty Counsel Action. The situation is fluid and can change at any moment because of the razor-thin margin of votes.  Only  two weeks remain to get the budget on President Trump's desk.  Whether or not your two U.S. Senators are Republicans or Democrats, please call them at 202-224-3121 – any time of the day or night -- and urge them to DEFUND Planned Parenthood. Democratic Minnesota Rep. killed and Minnesota Senator injured in targeted attack A Minnesota Democratic lawmaker and her husband were shot and killed in their home early Saturday by someone posing as a police officer and a second Democratic lawmaker and his wife were wounded in what some have described as  “targeted political violence,” reports the Associated Press. Former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her spouse were killed in their Brooklyn Park home. The other lawmaker, Democratic State Senator John Hoffman, and his wife, were shot multiple times in Champlin, a suburb of Minneapolis. Bob Jacobson, Minnesota Commissioner of Public Safety, spoke at a press conference. JACOBSON: “This is a dark day today for Minnesota and for democracy, but we will not allow fear or violence to define who we are or how we move forward.” The gunman has been identified as Vance Luther Boelter, whom Democratic Minnesota Governor Tim Walz had previously appointed to the Governor's Workforce Development Council. Christian singer Michael Tait confesses homosexual conduct & drug abuse Last Tuesday, Michael Tait, the former lead singer of the Christian rock band Newsboys and a member of the Grammy-winning group DC Talk, publicly confessed to a history of "reckless and destructive behavior," including drug and alcohol abuse and unwanted sexual conduct involving men, reports The Christian Post. In a written statement on Instagram, the 59-year-old singer acknowledged that the reports  are “sadly, largely true." He wrote, "For some two decades, I used and abused cocaine, consumed far too much alcohol, and, at times, touched men in an unwanted sensual way. I am ashamed of my life choices and actions, and make no excuses for them. I will simply call it what God calls it — sin. “I was violating everything I was raised to believe by my God-fearing Dad and Mom, about walking with Jesus and was grieving the very God I loved and sang about for most of my life. By His grace, I can say that for the past six months, I have lived a singular life—one of utter brokenness and total dependence on a loving and merciful God." Tait's confession follows an in-depth investigative report published on June 3rd by The Roys Report documenting that three men accused him of sexual assault during separate incidents dating back to 2004. Tait quoted Psalm 51, King David's famous prayer of repentance: "Blot out my transgressions … create in me a new heart, O God." God-haters upset with 10 Commandments displayed in Arkansas schools A group of God-hating organizations has filed a lawsuit against a recently passed law in Arkansas that requires public schools to display the Ten Commandments on the wall in a 16-inch by 20-inch poster with a  font size that makes it easily readable, reports The Christian Post. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Freedom From Religion Foundation filed a complaint on Wednesday on behalf of a religiously diverse group of parents. At issue is Act 573, a measure signed into law by Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders in April and is scheduled to take effect in August. The lawsuit argues that "Act 573 is not neutral with respect to religion." Republican State Senator Jim Dotson, one of the bill's primary sponsors, argued in March that the Decalogue displays were not unconstitutional. He said, "From the state to the federal level all throughout our history, it is an historical reference point or historical document that has basic things like you shall not kill, steal, commit adultery -- those basic foundations of life that are good for everybody to keep front of mind so that we are hopefully living good lives," reports KATV. After God revealed the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai, Exodus 20:20 records Moses telling the Jews, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.” Worldview listeners in South Dakota, Colorado, and Indiana share their hearts I invited Worldview listeners to share what they enjoy about the newscast in 2-6 sentences by email.  You can share your thoughts -- along with your full name, city and state -- and send it to adam@TheWorldview.com Jason Bollwerk in Rapid City, South Dakota wrote, “I am a homeschooled sophomore in high school, and I listen daily to The Worldview for school. My reason for listening is not only to hear what is happening in the world, but I love hearing about all the good things that God is doing out there. Most media outlets show the dark side of what's going on. But The Worldview really shows what God's doing. Tally ho and pip pip.” Cheryl Ball in Indianapolis, Indiana wrote, “I've been reading the transcript of your newscast every morning since the presidential debates last year. I don't watch the news or read other news. So, this is basically my news input and I'm thankful for it.” And Dennis and Alyssa Guse in Castle Rock, Colorado, said, “Thank you for the faithful work you and The Worldview in 5 Minutes team do for the glory of God!  We are blessed to hear relevant news stories and encouraging Scriptures every day.  Keep up the great work for the Kingdom!”  Dennis asked if I could lead an occasional short prayer for one of the news items. I  called him to say that that was a great idea and I would take him up on the suggestion. 17 Worldview listeners gave $6,821 to fund our annual budget And finally, toward our midpoint goal of $61,750 to fund half of The Worldview newscast's annual budget by this past weekend, 17  listeners stepped up to the plate by 1:00pm Central on Saturday. We were only 3 donors short of our 20-donor goal. Our thanks to Augustine in Auburn, California who gave $25 as well as Elisabeth in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and Karen in Waterford, Wisconsin --  both of whom gave $50, and Daniel in Mayflower, Arkansas who pledged $8 per month for 12 months for a gift of $96. We're grateful to God for Leasa in Simpsonville, South Carolina, George in Edinburgh, Indiana, and Woody in Sparks, Nevada – each of whom gave $100 as well as Laura in Millstadt, Illinois and Kerry and Rosana in San Antonio, Texas – both of whom gave $200. And we were touched by the generosity of Derrick in Evans, Georgia who gave $250, Justin and Oliver in Grover Beach, California who pledged $25/month for 12 months for a gift of $300, Eric in Warren, Minnesota who also pledged $25 per month for 12 months for a gift of $300, Matt, Amanda, Elijah, Malachi, and Samuel in Greencastle, Indiana who gave $450, Shy in Ingalls, Indiana who pledged $50 per month for 12 months for a total gift of $600, Aaron in Fort Bragg, North Carolina who gave $1,000, Katie in Hutchinson, Kansas who gave $1,000, and Scooter in Naples, Florida who will match those last two $1,000 donations with another $2,000 gift of his own. Those 17 Worldview listeners gave a total of $6,821. Ready for our new grand total? Drum roll please.  (Drum roll sound effect) $38,892.20 (People clapping and cheering sound effect)   That means we fell $22,857.80 short of our $61,750 mid-point goal to stay on the air and fund our 6-member Worldview newscast team for another fiscal year. Toward this Friday, June 20th's goal of $92,625, we need to raise $53,732.80. Remember, if you are one of the 4 final people who give a one-time gift of $1,000, Scooter in Naples, Florida will match you with a corresponding $1,000 gift.  Now, if that happens today, Monday, June 16th we will have raised an additional $8,000. In order to raise the remaining amount, I need to find 38 Worldview listeners who will pledge $50/month for 12 months for a gift of $600. And another 76 listeners to pledge $25/month for 12 months for a gift of $300. Has God placed it on your heart to be one of the Christian patriots to fund this unparalleled newscast which unashamedly cites relevant Scripture, includes compelling soundbites, and practical action steps to speak out for Biblical principles? Please, we need your help right now!  Go to TheWorldview.com and click on Give on the top right.   Click on the button that indicates a recurring monthly donation if that's your wish. I'll be honest. In my flesh, I'm getting very nervous indeed!  But, in my spirit, I confidently trust that God will prompt the right people to give generously to cover our annual budget. Close And that's The Worldview on this Monday, June 16th, in the year of our Lord 2025. Follow us on X or subscribe for free by Spotify, Amazon Music, or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com.  You can get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

How can we serve God? The Catechism identifies ways in which we can keep the first commandment through adoration, prayer, sacrifice, and promises and vows. Fr. Mike relates these to us and identifies how we can truly worship and serve the Lord throughout our daily lives. Today's readings are Catechism paragraphs 2095-2103. This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

“You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.” Taking a look at the first commandment, we see how we are called to love and worship God above all else. The Catechism also lists the ways in which we may potentially fall into sins against faith, hope, and charity. Fr. Mike elaborates on these violations and reminds us that while it may seem overwhelming, God loved us first, and we must trust in him. Today's readings are Catechism paragraphs 2083-2094. This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

We continue our overview of the Ten Commandments by looking at the two parts: love of God and love of neighbor. Together they form a “coherent whole,” and there is a unity between the two. While the Catechism shows us our obligation to follow the Commandments, it also reminds us that, “What God commands, he makes possible by his grace.” Fr. Mike emphasizes that even though it may be challenging at times, we are not alone. Jesus is here to help us keep his Commandments. Today's readings are Catechism paragraphs 2064-2082. This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

God reveals himself and his glory through the Ten Commandments. We begin exploring the Ten Commandments as shown in the Catechism and learn about how these laws are not meant to limit us, but set us free from the slavery of sin. Fr. Mike reminds us that the Commandments are truly a gift from God and reflects his love for us. Today's readings are the Ten Commandments and Catechism paragraphs 2052-2063. This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

“The Beatitudes are at the heart of Jesus' preaching,” the Catechism tells us. Jesus' proclamation in Chapter 5 of the Gospel of Matthew purifies our hearts, sets a standard for earthly discernment, and directs our actions towards heaven. Fr. Mike invites us to choose God's ways and forsake our own ways. Today's readings and paragraphs 1716-1729. This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.