Podcasts about Christianity

“Are Christians just Protestants?” This question opens a discussion on the diverse identities within Christianity, addressing misconceptions about faith. The conversation also touches on whether Jesus had blood-relative brothers and the Catholic understanding of Mary’s perpetual virginity, alongside the differences between Catholic and Orthodox beliefs regarding the Immaculate Conception. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 03:15 – Are people who call themselves Christian just protestants? 05:35 – My Protestant friend said Jesus had blood-relative brothers. I said if that were true, Jesus would not have entrusted Mary to John's care at the foot of the cross. Was that a good defense? 16:10 – I'm protestant. The bible says Jesus had brothers so how do Catholics come to the conclusion that Mary was a virgin all her life? 35:00 – I'm Eastern Orthodox. What is the Catholic argument for the Immaculate conception rather than the Orthodox believe in the Dispassionate Conception, and the Catholic belief in original sin versus the Orthodox idea of ancestral sin. 51:43 – What covenant did Jesus fulfill?

Today, we hear the story of the prophet Jonah, who, unlike Amos, does not want the people to repent. The readings are 2 Kings 15, Jonah 1-4, and Psalm 138. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Anthony Kaldellis is a historian of the Roman Empire and author of “The New Roman Empire”, a comprehensive history of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire). Thank you for listening ❤ Check out our sponsors: https://lexfridman.com/sponsors/ep498-sc See below for timestamps, transcript, and to give feedback, submit questions, contact Lex, etc. Transcript: https://lexfridman.com/anthony-kaldellis-transcript CONTACT LEX: Feedback – give feedback to Lex: https://lexfridman.com/survey AMA – submit questions, videos or call-in: https://lexfridman.com/ama Hiring – join our team: https://lexfridman.com/hiring Other – other ways to get in touch: https://lexfridman.com/contact EPISODE LINKS: Anthony’s Books: https://amzn.to/49AX7Q1 Anthony’s Publications: https://kaldellispublications.weebly.com Anthony’s University of Chicago page: https://classics.uchicago.edu/people/anthony-kaldellis The New Roman Empire (book): https://amzn.to/3PTFTqk Streams of Gold (book): https://amzn.to/4fgRMRq Byzantium & Friends Podcast: https://byzantiumandfriends.podbean.com/ The History of Byzantium Podcast: https://thehistoryofbyzantium.com/ SPONSORS: To support this podcast, check out our sponsors & get discounts: Upwork: Platform for hiring freelancers. Go to https://upwork.com/lex Fin: AI agent for customer service. Go to https://fin.ai/lex BetterHelp: Online therapy and counseling. Go to https://betterhelp.com/lex LMNT: Zero-sugar electrolyte drink mix. Go to https://drinkLMNT.com/lex Shopify: Sell stuff online. Go to https://shopify.com/lex Perplexity: AI-powered answer engine. Go to https://perplexity.ai/ OUTLINE: (00:00) – Introduction (00:11) – Sponsors, Comments, and Reflections (08:45) – The Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire (12:42) – 2,200 Years of Roman History (33:06) – Power, violence, and civil war (54:20) – Edict of Caracalla (1:07:17) – Crisis of the Third Century (1:21:45) – Constantine and the new Roman Empire (1:33:46) – Christianity in the Roman Empire (1:59:14) – Fall of the Western Roman Empire (2:12:11) – Eunuchs, Taxes, and Power (2:37:17) – Emperor Justinian and wars of conquest (2:54:19) – The Arab conquests (3:13:55) – Why the Roman empire survived so long (3:40:01) – Lessons from history PODCAST LINKS: – Podcast Website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast – Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr – Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 – RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ – Podcast Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOdP_8GztsuKi9nrraNbKKp4 – Clips Channel: https://www.youtube.com/lexclips

Preview for Later Today: Mariam Wahba. Wahba describes how the Iranian regime uses labels like "Christian Zionist" to frame believers as national security threats. These individuals are often charged as "Mossad mercenaries" and traitors to the state. The regime views Christianity as a direct challenge to its theological right to rule.

All Scripture was written for our admonition and learning (1 Cor. 10:11 and Rom. 15:4). Join Andrew Wommack as he explores the life of David, a man after God's own heart (1 Sam. 13:14). Learn lessons from David's life that you can apply directly to your own.

What if the words spoken over Jesus at His baptism, "You are my beloved Son," are the very same words the Father is speaking over you today? Dr. Sri uncovers the Father's relentless love throughout salvation history and explains how Jesus reveals the heart of the eternal Father. Learn why your baptism changed everything—and how God continues to call you His beloved child. _ _ For full shownotes, visit Ascensionpress.com/Allthingscatholic, or text ALLTHINGSCATHOLIC to 33-777 for weekly shownotes sent to your inbox.

What does it look like to live at the intersection of neurodivergence and queerness? In this annual Neurodivergent Pride panel, a collaboration between ADHD reWired and Shimmer Coaching, host Eric Tivers and panelists Savant, Kristen, Jill, and moderator Chris share deeply personal stories about identity, masking, belonging, and the ongoing work of becoming themselves. The conversation moves through the ways masking shows up across queer and neurodivergent lives, from religious trauma and racial identity to the quiet labor of maintaining relationships while autistic. Panelists explore the overlap between coming out as queer and discovering neurodivergence later in life, noting how one process of unmasking often catalyzes another. They discuss heteronormative and neurotypical expectations, burnout, somatic awareness, the role of alcohol as a masking tool, and the power of finally believing you are inherently good. Whether you're early in your own journey or deep in the unmasking process, this episode offers honest, layered reflections from people who understand the territory. It closes with simple, powerful affirmations: your safe people are out there, there's nothing wrong with you, and being fully yourself is always worth it. Show Notes This special Neurodivergent Pride episode of ADHD reWired brings together a vibrant panel for an honest, intersectional conversation about what it means to live at the crossroads of queerness and neurodivergence. Recorded in collaboration with Shimmer Coaching, the panel features host Eric Tivers alongside Savant, Kristen, Jill, and moderator Chris, each bringing their own layered experiences of ADHD, autism, queerness, race, faith, gender, and self-discovery. The episode opens with each panelist sharing how they relate to both the queer and neurodivergent communities. What immediately emerges is that these identities are not separate tracks running in parallel. They are deeply intertwined. For many on the panel, discovering one identity illuminated the other. Kristen, recently diagnosed as autistic and agender, describes a lifelong journey of masking so thorough that her own mind kept her queerness hidden from her until age 28. Savant, who is Black, gay, semi-verbal, and autistic with Savant syndrome, reflects on the particular pressures of unmasking in Black queer communities and how identity categories can feel like cages even within LGBTQIA+ spaces. Jill connects with Nick Walker's concept of "neuroqueer," a framework for understanding how queer and neurodivergent identities together subvert normative expectations. Eric shares his own evolving journey: coming out as bisexual at 14, stepping back into the closet after a painful family response, and gradually, over the last several years, coming more fully into his queer, polyamorous, and autistic identity. A central theme is masking: the exhausting, sometimes invisible labor of performing neurotypicality and heteronormativity in order to feel safe. The panel explores how masking operates differently depending on context. Race, religion, socioeconomic status, and gender all shape how much masking is required and how dangerous unmasking can feel. Kristen speaks powerfully about growing up with an unnamed sense that something was "wrong" with her, and how evangelical Christianity offered both structure and suppression. Savant describes the specific neurological experience of unmasking, what he calls "the peanut butter feeling," and how musical theater taught him to mask with almost military precision. Jill is candid about the role alcohol and substances have played in her own mask, and how her whiteness, cisness, and socioeconomic privilege have buffered her from some of the costs other panelists face. Eric describes experiencing his first autistic meltdown after years of not recognizing the depth of his own burnout. The conversation also touches on the practical, embodied work of unmasking. Kristen shares a therapist's suggestion to draw your masking self versus your unmasked self, and talks about learning to notice somatic cues: face pain from performative smiling, shallow breathing, tense shoulders. Eric recommends Devon Price's work and describes how 145 consecutive days of meditation have been part of his recovery. Savant offers the insight that his "observer brain" was always turned outward and never inward, and that true unmasking means turning the mirror around. The panel closes with single-sentence affirmations to a younger self or to anyone earlier in their journey: Eric: "Just be completely you and don't worry about your mother." Kristen: "Your safe people are out there. Don't give up." Jill: "There's nothing wrong with you. You're not broken, and you don't need to be fixed." Savant: "Neurodivergence and divinity aren't too far away from each other. Beware." This episode is for anyone who has ever felt like they were too much, not enough, or simply inexplicably different. It's a reminder that unmasking, while messy and sometimes painful, is a path toward authenticity, connection, and a kind of pride that doesn't require anyone's permission. Produced in collaboration with Shimmer Coaching. Key Takeaways Queerness and neurodivergence are deeply intertwined. For many people, discovering one identity catalyzes the discovery of the other. Masking is a survival mechanism, not a character flaw. Unmasking can reveal which relationships are truly safe and affirming. Religious, cultural, racial, and gender expectations can intensify the pressure to mask. Burnout is often a signal that the mask is no longer sustainable. Identity labels can be both liberating and constraining. Privilege shapes the risks and costs of unmasking. Somatic awareness can help people notice where masking lives in the body. Alcohol and substances can sometimes function as masking tools. The concept of "neuroqueer" offers a powerful framework for understanding the overlap between queerness and neurodivergence. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with you. You do not need to be fixed. Keywords / Tags neurodivergent pride, queer identity, ADHD, autism, AuDHD, masking, unmasking, intersectionality, coming out, burnout, religious trauma, neuroqueer, queer community, bisexual, pansexual, non-binary, agender, Black queer experience, somatic awareness, authenticity, belonging, LGBTQIA+, polyamory, alcohol and masking, Devon Price, Nick Walker, Shimmer Coaching, ADHD reWired

Why is the Jerusalem Council so significant? What is required for salvation? In this episode, Emma Dotter discusses Acts 15:1-35 and the influence of the Jerusalem Council. She unpacks how the Jerusalem Council protected the true gospel, opened the door for global Christianity, and modeled how the Church handled theological conflict.   // ADDITIONAL VERSES MENTIONED: Mark 7; Luke 18; John 3: 16; John 6: 29; Matthew 28: 19; Acts 1: 8; Acts 10; Acts 13-14 // RELATED JOIN THE JOURNEY EPISODES:  “S4:263 – Introduction to the book of Acts” (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...)   “S4:269 – Acts 15-17” (https://open.spotify.com/episode/3NShJvbx2EPozwMwxJq2Hm?si=98ac89d64476429c)   “Episode 204: Acts 15” (https://open.spotify.com/episode/1C4nPaR3RZjQlAN7nYyAX6?si=2d16480ac3b34d66)    // WHAT IS JOIN THE JOURNEY? Join The Journey is a realistic daily Bible reading plan that helps followers of Jesus at Watermark Community Church and beyond enjoy abiding in Jesus together. Join The Journey Jr. is designed to help parents guide their kids in Bible reading through interactive and age-specific lessons. In 2026, we're studying the book of Acts—one passage per week. For another year, teaching on Sunday will align with each week's passage. Then, for the next six days, we'll return to the same passage with fresh focus, exploring insights about who God is and how we can enjoy him more deeply. Monday through Saturday, we'll approach the same passage from a different perspective each day—whether observation, interpretation, prayer, or another spiritual practice—to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for God's Word. Then, watch or listen to the video podcast to tackle the week's toughest verses and discover key historical, theological, and practical insights. Daily Bible lessons for adults: https://jointhejourney.com Daily Bible lessons for parents and families: https://jointhejourney.com/jr Weekly Bible podcast for kids: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...  // MORE RESOURCES FROM JOIN THE JOURNEY:  Digital Bible study resources: https://jointhejourney.com/resources Previous years' print curriculum: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Waterma... Contact the Join The Journey team: jointhejourney@watermark.org 

As we conclude the book of Amos, we hear Amos rebuke the people for grudgingly giving their time to God, as in prayer or on the sabbath, and counting the minutes until they could do whatever they wanted. Fr. Mike points out that if we don't give our hearts and minds to God, we won't be able to stand heaven, where prayer and praise are everlasting. The readings are 2 Kings 13-14, Amos 7-9, and Psalm 124. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Philosopher Stefan Molyneux debates a listener on coming back to Jesus, where the caller claims true Christianity would protect kids.GET FREEDOMAIN MERCH! https://shop.freedomain.com/SUBSCRIBE TO ME ON X! https://x.com/StefanMolyneuxFollow me on Youtube! https://www.youtube.com/@freedomain1GET MY NEW BOOK 'PEACEFUL PARENTING', THE INTERACTIVE PEACEFUL PARENTING AI, AND THE FULL AUDIOBOOK!https://peacefulparenting.com/Join the PREMIUM philosophy community on the web for free!Subscribers get 12 HOURS on the "Truth About the French Revolution," multiple interactive multi-lingual philosophy AIs trained on thousands of hours of my material - as well as AIs for Real-Time Relationships, Bitcoin, Peaceful Parenting, and Call-In Shows!You also receive private livestreams, HUNDREDS of exclusive premium shows, early release podcasts, the 22 Part History of Philosophers series and much more!See you soon!https://freedomain.locals.com/support/promo/FREEDOMAIN2026

In the second half of this follow-up to the recent Ruling Your Domain series, John, Blaine, and Allen address some really big questions. Topics include how to deal with chronic pain and the overwhelming suffering in this world, ways parents can respond to a physically and verbally defiant foster child in their home, how to interpret and navigate depression as part of our domain, and what a wife can do if her husband is uncooperative or not interested in leading their realm in a godly way.Show Notes: Discover how you can support the ministry of Wild at Heart here. The books referenced—The Dark Night of the Soul by Gerald May, The Life-Changing Art of Self-Brain Surgery by W. Lee Warren, and Practicing the Way by John Mark Comer—are available wherever books are sold. The Captivated podcast (Episode 128) featuring John and Stasi Eldredge answering viewer and listener questions will be released August 19th, 2026.Keywords: Q&A, Christianity, Emotional Regulation, Parents, Chronic Pain, Marriage_______________________________________________There is more.Got a question you want answered on the podcast? Ask us at Questions@WildatHeart.orgSupport the mission or find more on our website:WildAtHeart.org  or on our app.Apple: Wild At Heart AppAndroid: Wild At Heart AppWatch on YouTubeThe stock music used in the Wild at Heart podcast is titled “When Laid to Rest” by Patrick Rundblad and available here.More pauses available in the One Minute Pause app for Apple iOS and Android.Apple: One Minute Pause AppAndroid: One Minute Pause App

All Scripture was written for our admonition and learning (1 Cor. 10:11 and Rom. 15:4). Join Andrew Wommack as he explores the life of David, a man after God's own heart (1 Sam. 13:14). Learn lessons from David's life that you can apply directly to your own.

Brittany Dicus is a sales and marketing director for a beverage company, a master's student at Talbot School of Theology, and serves on the teaching team at Church of the Open Door in Maple Grove, MN. With one foot in the corporate world and another in the church world, Brittany has thought a lot about viewing her work as mission. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Recording from Washington DC Gospel Truth Seminar 2011:Did you know that the nearly-too-good-to-be-true news of the Gospel is about far more than the forgiveness of sins? The Gospel's power is intended to bring freedom into every area of your life—leading to healing, prosperity, joy, and peace (Rom. 1:16). Wherever you're not experiencing life and victory, there's still more of the Gospel to discover. Join Andrew as he explores the true Gospel—it really is that good.

What if much of what you've been told about America's founding isn't the whole story? As America approaches its 250th anniversary, Pastor Josh Howerton sits down with historian Tim Barton to examine six of the most common myths surrounding the nation's history. From Christopher Columbus and the Founding Fathers to Christianity's influence on America's founding and the role of believers in public life, this conversation dives into original documents, historical evidence, and firsthand accounts that challenge popular narratives. Whether you're passionate about history, faith, or understanding the foundations of our culture, this episode will encourage you to think critically, seek truth, and engage the world through a biblical worldview. In This Episode: • Was Christopher Columbus really a genocidal colonizer? • Were the Founding Fathers mostly deists? • Was America founded as a secular nation? • Is America's story defined entirely by slavery? • Did settlers commit genocide against Native Americans? • Should Christians stay out of politics and public life? History matters. Truth matters. And as followers of Jesus, how we understand both can shape how we live today. Stand firm. Think biblically. Live free.

Fr. Mike points out how Amos' warning against being overly preoccupied with comfort and thus blinded to the needs of others can be especially relevant to us today. The readings are 2 Kings 11-12, Amos 4-6, and Psalm 122. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Episode 4161 │ June 28, 2026 Raising your hand for heaven is not the same as being transformed. A black belt doesn't mean you've arrived — it means you're finally ready to begin. WHAT THIS EPISODE COVERS  Scott Kesterson and Brad Cummings open with a shared frustration — that so much of modern Christianity has settled for the confessional declaration of faith as the endpoint rather than the beginning, producing a church full of people who have raised their hand for heaven but never experienced the actual transaction of the new creation — and build the case from Romans 8, John 1, and the book of Job that what God is after is not religious performance or disciplined obedience but sonship: the genuine indwelling of the Holy Spirit that produces transformation from the inside rather than behavior modification from the outside. The conversation moves through the difference between the old covenant and the new — man promising obedience versus God writing His law on the heart — the church's pornography and abuse crisis as evidence of what happens when leaders operate from a broken nature they are trying to discipline rather than a new nature that has been genuinely begotten from above, and the book of Job as the oldest book of the Bible and the first answer to why transformation requires fire, why the Hasatan is a God-appointed refiner rather than an equal adversary, and why Job's restoration came not from confessing a list of sins but from an honest encounter with the living God that moved him from I have heard of you to now I see you. The episode closes with Brad's distillation of the new covenant in a single sentence: if you get the loving correct, the keeping will follow. KEY QUESTIONS ADDRESSED  What is the operative difference between the old covenant and the new — and why does Brad argue that 99% of pastors are good Pharisees operating under the old covenant without realizing it? What does the book of Job reveal about the Hasatan as a God-appointed refiner rather than a supreme adversary — and why did God allow the requisition knowing Job would pass rather than punish Job for something he had done? Why does shotgunning a list of sins without the Holy Spirit's specific conviction produce condemnation rather than transformation — and what does genuine repentance actually look like when you stand before God in raw, naked honesty? ABOUT BARDSFM BardsFM is a daily independent podcast covering faith, liberty, history, and information warfare. Hosted by Scott Kesterson — combat veteran, documentary filmmaker, and rancher. Over 4,100 episodes and 50 million lifetime downloads. New episodes every weekday. bards.fm This episode was researched and produced under the Sentinel Framework v3 — the analytical methodology built by Scott Kesterson — with AI-assisted research synthesis at a 70/30 human/AI authorship ratio, fully disclosed. All analysis, conclusions, and editorial judgments are those of Scott Kesterson. AFFILIATE LINKS Bards Nation Health Store: www.bardsnationhealth.com MYPillow promo code: BARDS >> Go to https://www.mypillow.com/bards and use the promo code BARDS or... Call 1-800-975-2939.  EMPShield protect your vehicles and home. Promo code BARDS: Click here Treadlite Broadforks...best garden tool EVER. Promo code BARDS26: TreadliteBroadforks.com EnviroKlenz Air Purification, promo code BARDS to save 10%: www.enviroklenz.com Morning Intro Music Provided by Brian Kahanek: www.briankahanek.com Founders Bible 20% discount code: BARDS >>> TheFoundersBible.com Windblown Media 20% Discount with promo code BARDS: windblownmedia.com White Oak Pastures Grassfed Meats, Get $20 off any order $150 or more. Promo Code BARDS: www.whiteoakpastures.com/BARDS Mission Darkness Faraday Bags and RF Shielding. Promo code BARDS: Click here DONATIONS: If you wish to support this podcast directly you can donate here... DONATE: Click here MAILING ADDRESS: Xpedition Cafe, LLC Attn. Scott Kesterson

Fr. Mike points out how Jehu followed God half-way, but God wants us to follow Him with our whole hearts. He also explains the prophecy of Amos, who is trying to call people back to the Lord before it is too late. The readings for today are 2 Kings 10, Amos 1-3, and Psalm 110. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Fr. Mike shortly touches on David's honest prayer in Psalm 109 before diving into the unending love God has for his people. As we continue to journey through our readings, we will begin to see the words of the prophets come to fruition as those who return to the Lord in faith will experience his undying love and forgiveness, despite their unfaithfulness. Today's readings are 2 Kings 9, Hosea 11-14, and Psalm 109. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

John Luke's attempt to turn a four-foot rat snake into a calm teaching moment for campers goes sideways fast, leaving the kids panicked and John Luke woozy at the sight of his own blood. Al, Zach, John Luke, and Christian use Augustine's story to dig into why modern people are so restless, why getting what we want still doesn't satisfy us, and how our appetites quietly train our hearts. The guys contrast Augustine's confession of sin with today's culture of self-worship. Al points to history's examples of Christianity's tendency to bring order, healing, and hope out of cultural chaos. In this episode: Romans 7, verses 21–25; Romans 8; 1 Corinthians 9, verses 24–27; Philippians 2, verses 5–11; Genesis 1, verse 31 Today's conversation is about Lesson 11 of Ancient Christianity taught by visiting Hillsdale Professor of History Kenneth Calvert. Take the course with us at no cost to you! Sign up at http://unashamedforhillsdale.com/. More about Ancient Christianity: Christ entered the world during the reign of Caesar Augustus. The tensions between Christianity and the Roman Empire shaped the daily practice of the Christian faith and led many Romans to distrust and persecute the early Christians. But Christianity also benefitted from the Roman world. And when Rome collapsed in the West, Christianity provided the hope for preserving civilization. In this free, eleven-lecture course, Professor Kenneth Calvert will explore: How the Jewish, Greek, and Roman cultures all contributed to preparing the world to hear the Gospel. Why many Romans distrusted and persecuted the early Christians. The inspiring stories of Christ, His apostles, and faithful ones throughout the first four centuries of Christianity. The arguments of key early Christian apologists—Ignatius, Irenaeus, Justin, Athanasius, and more—who defended and defined the Christian faith amidst the animosity of the Roman world. The conversion of Constantine and how he brought stability to Rome, and how the rivalry between his sons almost returned Rome to paganism. How Augustine's writings helped preserve the message of Christianity during the collapse of the Roman Empire in the West. You will discover the uncertainties, trials, and triumphs of the earliest Christians as they confronted controversies within the faith and persecutions from outside it. Join us today to discover the improbable and miraculous story of Christianity. Sign up at ⁠http://unashamedforhillsdale.com/ Check out At Home with Phil Robertson, nearly 800 episodes of Phil's unfiltered wisdom, humor, and biblical truth, available for free for the first time! Get it on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, and anywhere you listen to podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-home-with-phil-robertson/id1835224621 Listen to Not Yet Now with Zach Dasher on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, or anywhere you get podcasts. Chapters 00:00 Summer Camp Chaos & ER Trips 05:54 Everyone Wants a Beach Photo 10:43 Augustine's Influence on the Church 16:10 Augustine's Wild Past and Conversion 22:23 The Beach Ball Picture of Human Design 29:11 Appetite, Discipline & Reordered Desires 35:05 Augustine vs. Rousseau on Human Nature 43:10 Christianity Brings Order to Chaos — Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's special episode, I'm joined by Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith (R), who is also a Pentecostal pastor, to discuss the danger of Islam in America. He has recently jousted with other Indiana Republicans who believe Islam can be treated like any other religion. Beckwith explains why it is not a real religion and why its political and strategic aims need to be countered immediately. We also delve into a much deeper discussion about the state of Christianity in America and on the political Right, the growing Jew hatred and antipathy toward the Old Testament in some circles, and the need to move away from the weak Republicans of last generation, who had toxic empathy but at the same time teach the new generation traditional virtue.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OA1273 - On June 23, 2026, eight people were sentenced in DOJ's first so-called “Antifa” terrorism prosecution by federal judge Reed O'Connor in the Northern District of Texas to a combined 450 years in federal prison for their participation in a protest held at the Prarieland ICE detention facility on July 4th, 2025. Six of these defendants were charged with what amounted to being present at (or in the vicinity of) the protest, and one who wasn't even there received 30 years for moving a box of First Amendment-protected publications. In this continuing coverage of one of the most unjust criminal prosecutions of the second Trump administration, Matt goes deep on the government's case to show just how shoddy the “material support for terrorism” charges really were, and how DOJ used a few text messages, some consumer fireworks shot off on the 4th of July far from any people or property, and $4805.95 in property damage to engineer sentencing enhancements which virtually guaranteed that these protesters would receive harsher punishments than many defendants in the federal system charged with far more serious offenses. What does all of this mean for the future of dissent in the U.S., especially given the national security memo which promised heightened investigation and prosecution of “anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, [ ]anti-Christianity… and hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on family, religion, and morality” after the assassination of Charlie Kirk? Then in today's footnote: An Arizona appeals court takes on one man's truly contemptible email address. OA 1252: “Peaceful Protestors Are Facing Decades in Prison - Inside the Prairieland Trial” (OA interview with Defense Committee member and attorney Xavier de Janon) 18 U.S.C. § 2339A (“Material support” statute)  Full docket in U.S. v. Arnold et al — CourtListener Meet the Defendants (Prairieland Support Committee website) First Superseding Indictment Second Superseding Indictment Jury Verdict Benjamin Song — Rule 29 Motion Maricela Rueda — Rule 29/33 Motion  Benjamin “Champagne” Song's statement at sentencing (6/23/2026) Defense court-documents hub Commans v. Dunbar, Arizona Court of Appeals #CA-CV 25-0256 (2/6/2026) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do!

“Can historical evidence prove Jesus as Messiah?” This question opens a discussion on the differing claims of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam regarding Jesus. The conversation also touches on the expectations of the Messiah in Judaism at the time of Christ and the significance of the Davidic covenant in shaping messianic hope. Additionally, the role of Isaiah’s prophecies in this context is examined. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 02:00 – Jimmy, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam all make different claims about Jesus. Christians say he is the divine Messiah. Judaism does not accept him as the Messiah. Islam calls him the Messiah but denies central Christian beliefs about him. Can historical and biblical evidence help us determine which view is correct? 06:20 – In the introduction, you lay out the book's argument in four steps . . . Give us the thirty-thousand-foot view of that case. 07:20 – Before we examine Jesus, what did Judaism at the time of Christ actually expect the Messiah to be and accomplish? 19:30 – Everything in the messianic hope seems to hinge on King David and the promise God made him in 2 Samuel 7—that his throne would be established forever. Tell us about the Davidic covenant and why it matters so much. 36:15 – Then came the Babylonian exile, and suddenly there was no son of David on the throne. How did the Jewish people get from that apparently failed promise to the expectation of a future Messiah? 49:25 – You point to Isaiah, writing in the 700s B.C., as providing the first clear and explicit prophecies of the Messiah: “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” What makes these passages different from what came before?

Dr. John Flo, Board Certified Psychiatrist The post Christianity and Psychiatry, Part 2 – Dr. John Flo, 6/26/26 (1772) first appeared on Issues, Etc..

All Scripture was written for our admonition and learning (1 Cor. 10:11 and Rom. 15:4). Join Andrew Wommack as he explores the life of David, a man after God's own heart (1 Sam. 13:14). Learn lessons from David's life that you can apply directly to your own.

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In this episode of The Reformed Brotherhood, Tony Arsenal walks through Jonah 1–2, focusing on the remarkable prayer Jonah offers from the belly of the great fish. Far from a simple morality tale, the Book of Jonah presents a complex, deeply theological portrait of a disobedient prophet who nonetheless clings to the Lord in his darkest moment. Tony explores the Hebrew literary features that shape how we read Jonah's prayer, the doctrine of divine sovereignty as it operates through human agency, and the rich typological connections between Jonah and the death and resurrection of Christ. Most importantly, the episode grounds Jonah's experience in the Westminster Confession's teaching on sanctification — offering genuine hope to believers who feel buried under besetting sin, assuring them that salvation, from beginning to end, belongs entirely to the Lord. Key Takeaways Jonah is not the hero of his own story — he functions more as an anti-hero whose failures actually make him a more useful and relatable example for ordinary believers. Divine sovereignty operates through, not apart from, human agency — the sailors freely threw Jonah overboard, and yet Jonah rightly says God cast him into the deep; both are simultaneously true. The sequence debate in Jonah 2 matters theologically — whether Jonah prayed before or after being swallowed affects how we read the book; reading it as a strict cause-and-effect sequence risks turning the gospel into a quid pro quo transaction with God. Jonah's "yet I will see your holy temple" is a confession of eschatological faith — in the midst of near-certain death, Jonah expresses confidence not merely in earthly rescue, but in his ultimate destiny as one of God's people. The deep is a Genesis image — Jonah's descent into the primordial waters deliberately echoes the formless void of Genesis 1 and the undoing of creation in the flood, placing his experience within the grand arc of biblical cosmology. Jonah is a prophetic type of Christ's death and resurrection — his three days in the belly of the fish, his descent into the pit, and his emergence onto dry land anticipate and foreshadow the resurrection, as Jesus himself confirms in Matthew 12. Sanctification is real but imperfect — drawing from Westminster Confession Chapter 13, Tony argues that the up-and-down nature of Jonah's spiritual life is not an aberration but a description of the normal Christian life, in which the flesh and spirit remain in perpetual war until glory. Key Concepts Eschatological Faith in the Pit One of the most striking moments in Jonah's prayer is his declaration in 2:4 — "Yet I shall again look upon your holy temple." Tony argues that this is not merely a hope of physical rescue and a return to Jerusalem. Jonah believed he was dying. The waters had closed in to take his life; he was being dragged into underwater trenches that the ancient Semitic mind associated with the very gates of Sheol. In this context, Jonah's declaration is better understood as eschatological faith — a confession that even if God takes his life in judgment, he will still see the Lord face to face in the heavenly temple. It mirrors Job's cry, "Yet in my flesh I shall see God," and anticipates the kind of faith that says, with the father in Mark 9, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief." Sovereignty and Human Agency Working Together Tony uses Jonah's descent as a teaching moment on the Reformed doctrine of concurrence — the truth that God's sovereign decree and human free will are not in competition but operate simultaneously on different levels. The sailors made a free, agonized decision to throw Jonah overboard; and yet Jonah rightly attributes his casting into the sea to God himself. Tony draws the parallel to Joseph's words to his brothers in Genesis 50: "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good." This is not a philosophical sleight of hand. It is the consistent testimony of Scripture that God governs all things — including the underwater currents that dragged Jonah to the ocean floor — without reducing human beings to puppets or eliminating their moral responsibility. Sanctification Is Real, Imperfect, and Guaranteed Perhaps the most pastorally significant thread of the episode is Tony's application of Westminster Confession Chapter 13 to Jonah's experience. Jonah makes genuine progress in faith — his prayer is theologically rich and demonstrates real trust in God — and yet he almost immediately slips back behind the curve, making vows the sailors had already made before him, and later in chapter 4, sulking over a dead plant. Tony refuses to read this as a failure of the text. Instead, it is the text faithfully portraying the reality of sanctification: real throughout the whole person, yet imperfect in this life, with an irreconcilable war between flesh and spirit. The hope is not that we will finally overcome that war on our own, but that through the continual supply of the sanctifying Spirit of Christ, the regenerate part will overcome. Salvation — including sanctification — belongs entirely to the Lord. Memorable Quotes Jonah is constantly behind the curve, but for this little moment, for this glimpse in the very center of the book, the pinnacle of the book is Jonah finally catching up to the sailors. All outside visible indicators said he was going to die and he was going to hell. Yet he trusted in the Lord that he would see his holy temple again. God redeems our life from the pit. From the very depths of hell itself, he snatched us like brands from the fire. Full Transcript [00:00:08] Tony Arsenal: Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it. For their evil has come up before me." But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.  [00:01:24] Storm and Sailors [00:01:24] Tony Arsenal: But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. So the captain came to him and said, "What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god. Perhaps the god will give us a thought that we may not perish." And they said to one another, "Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us." So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. Then they said to him, "Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation, and where do you come from? What is your country, and of what people are you?" And he said to them, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land." Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, "What is this that you have done?" For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. Then they said to him, "What shall we do to you that the sea may quiet down for us?" For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. [00:02:36] Cast Into Sea [00:02:36] Tony Arsenal: He said to them, "Pick me up and hurl me into the sea. Then the sea will quiet down for you. For I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you." Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to the dry land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. Therefore they called out to the Lord, "O Lord, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood. For you, O Lord, has done as it pleased you." So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea. And the sea ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows. [00:03:15] Fish and Prayer [00:03:15] Tony Arsenal: And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, saying, "I called out to the Lord out of my distress, and he answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice. For you cast me into the dep-- into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me. All your waves and billows passed over me." Then he said, "I am driven away from your sight. Yet I shall look again upon your holy temple. The waters closed in over me to take my life. The deep surrounded me. Weeds were wrapped around my head." At the root of the mountain I went to the land, whose bars closed upon me forever. Yet you brought my life up from the pit, O Lord my God. When I-- when my life was fainting away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to you into your holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. But I, with a voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord.  [00:04:23] Jonah Not the Hero [00:04:23] Tony Arsenal: And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land Jonah is an interesting book because, as I commented a year ago, Jonah is not necessarily the hero of the story. Uh, if anything, he is kind of the villain in, in some senses. But nevertheless, I think as we'll see today, Jonah still gives us a good example to follow in a sense, and that I think is really the centerpiece of this prayer, is that even as Jonah's going through all of this, his prayer is still remarkably filled with faithful sayings and trust in the Lord. We learned early on in Jonah that Jonah was a prophet during the time of the kings. Uh, he, uh, he seemed to have been a sort of a court temple. He was in the presence of the kings in Jerusalem itself, and he received a calling from the word of the Lord, and this phrase, "the word of the Lord," seems to imply a pre-incarnate, uh, visible manifestation of the second person of the Trinity. So we're not just talking about a, a disembodied voice. We're not just talking about some sort of sense or impression, but the word of the Lord itself, himself, came to give Jonah this mission, to give Jonah this task, to commission him as a prophet to Nineveh. And Jonah gets up and says, "No, thank you," and he goes the opposite direction. We see in that first section there the repeated phrase, "He goes to Tarshish. He boards a ship in Tarshish." The author here, who we, we think is Jonah, is hammering that he did not go where he was supposed to. He went the opposite direction. He went to Tarshish instead of Nineveh, which is 180 degrees the other direction from, uh, from Nineveh on the map. And he boards the, he boards the ship in order to flee the presence of the Lord. He pays, probably buys out the entire ship itself. He pays the fare for the whole ship, and the Lord hurls a great wave, uses the language of weapons. He hurls this storm like a spear. He weaponizes nature itself to correct and chastise and judge Jonah for his disobedience We get to verses seven through 17, and everyone on the boat is crying out to their chosen deity except Jonah. Jonah is asleep in the hold of the ship, oblivious to everything, totally dead to the world and dead to his Lord. The sailors begin to seek divine li- divine wisdom after they wake Jonah. He comes to the deck of the ship, and they cast lots to identify by divine, uh, revelation, sort of a strange practice in the Old Testament or the old, uh, world. Divine revelation that shows them Jonah is the source of this wickedness that is being wrought upon them, at least their impression of it. So they ask Jonah, "Who are you? Tell us who it is that has caused this great calamity." And he says emphatically, "A Hebrew am I." He identifies himself with God's people, and he says, "The Lord is my God, and he made the heaven and the earth and the sea." There's no small amount of irony, and it explains why the sailors are so afraid when he says that God created the heavens where the storm was. He created the sea where they were about to die, and he created the dry land where they were trying to get to. And so this one phrase that Jonah uses almost casually demonstrates that the Lord has total and utter sovereignty over what is going on, which is a theme that we'll see come back again and again through the book The sailors say, "Well, what do we do about this?" And Jonah says, "Throw me into the ocean, because I know that if you do so, then the storm will calm down and you will be saved." Whether he knew this because he's a prophet and it had been revealed to him, or whether he just was surmising that this was the case, we don't know. But the, uh, sailors are hesitant to do so, and we talked about how it was a little bit strange that these, uh, pagan sailors from cultures that d- had no qualms about human sacrifice were suddenly, uh, unwilling to throw Jonah over the sea a- as a, an appeasement offering to this Lord. And we came to the conclusion that they had been regenerated. They had come to faith in this God who created the heavens and the sea and the dry ground. And so they knew intrinsically that this was wrong, that there was a moral imperative not to do this. So they tried to row back to the land. They jettisoned all of their, uh, all of their goods, all of their cargo. They were making for land as best they could, and when it finally became clear that they couldn't do this, they sought the Lord's mercy in saying, essentially, "We don't understand how this is, but please don't put this man's blood on us, because you, Lord, have done as you please," right? The sovereignty of the Lord again comes to the forefront. They finally cast Jonah into the sea, and this is, this is important. They cast Jonah into the sea, and then they worship, they vow vows, and they vow to sacrifice. They offer sacrifices. They seek the Lord, they acknowledge his s- his sovereignty, and they worship him with what they have left. And then rounding out the chapter, the Lord appoints a great fish to come and swallow up Jonah. And we talked about how this, this swallowing of Jonah, although our popular children's books and VeggieTales and other stories we might read to our kids paints the fish often as the vehicle of judgment, it's actually a vehicle of deliverance for Jonah. There's this interesting grammatical feature that happens where in 1:17 the fish is masculine. The, the, the gender of the word is masculine, and then when we get to 2:1 it switches over to the feminine, almost as if to indicate that the whale was pregnant with Jonah, that Jonah was in the whale and was about to be reborn into the world in a new way And that brings us to our passage here today.  [00:10:21] Sequence Debate [00:10:21] Tony Arsenal: I'm gonna read, uh, 1:17 even though that's a little bit outside of our scope. I'm gonna read it along with 2:1 to, to make the point here. It says, "The Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the whale, of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish." When you look at the Hebrew text, 1:17 is actually verse 2:1 and 2:1 is then 2:2 and so on and so forth. In the original Hebrew mindset of how this book goes together, these two things were linked together, him being swallowed by the whale and being in the belly of the fish and then him praying was linked together in this sequence. There's a feature in the Hebrew that's called a vav consecutive. You don't need to remember that. Nobody is gonna care about that. But it's, it's a little grammatical feature where it adds this little character to the front of the verb and it indicates a sequence. It's the narrative storytelling. When you look at Genesis 1 it's, "And then God said, 'Let there be light,' and then there was light." It tells you the sequence of events. Sometimes it indicates that it is a strict sequence of events. This happened and then that finished and then the next thing happened and then that finished. And many of the commentators use this passage to justify a perspective of Jonah where Jonah is this rebellious, stubborn prophet who holds out his stubbornness until the very last minute. He's swallowed by the whale, he's getting digested by stomach acid and he sort of finally relents to the Lord and cries out for deliverance and the Lord acquiesces in response to his prayer. That's certainly a possible interpretation. There's lots of good reasons in the, the text here to think Jonah was kind of a chucklehead and was not paying too much attention to what the Lord had for him The other option is to see this as a way for the author of the text to situate this prayer in contrast to other prayers that are not necessarily talked about directly in this text. And I'm gonna take that later view here, and I think it's important. This makes good sense of the text, and we'll explain exactly why that is when we get to the next little section here. But it also protects us theologically if we understand it this way. Jonah is already a book, uh, as I've alluded to, that tends towards a sort of crass moralism or fabulism. We tend to read it as sort of an allegory of if you do the wrong thing, God punishes you, and when you finally do the right thing, He blesses you. And there's a certain level of common grace wisdom to that approach, right? The whole book of Proverbs is-- are these proverbial sayings that if you do this, then the God-- then God will do this. If you raise up your children in the way they will go, they will not depart when they are older. But we also learn in the Book of Job and the Book of Ecclesiastes that those proverbial sayings, although generally true, it's not a magic formula. And so we have this tendency to read Old Testament literature as though it was this sort of like equation, that God punishes us when we're bad. He, uh, He relents from His punishment when we say we're sorry, and we have to be careful about that. If we understand what I'm about to teach from the next section here, that this is not a strict sequence of events, that Jonah began praying before he was swallowed by the whale, and this is simply recording the prayer that was actually within the whale. It helps protect us from seeing Jonah in this sort of quid pro quo, this for that kind of thing. I think we should simply understand this as saying Jonah was in the water, he got swallowed by the whale, and then when he was in the whale, he prayed. It doesn't say anything about whether he was overly stubborn or whether his stubbornness held out. It simply tells us that he was in the pray-- in the whale when this prayer occurred [00:14:23] Sheol and Descent [00:14:23] Tony Arsenal: He says in verse two, he calls out to the Lord out of his distress. He, and God answers him. Out of the belly of Sheol, Jonah cries, and God hears his voice This here tells us that he began praying, right? He was in the water, he was in the deep. All of this descriptive language we're gonna see later on about how deep he was, how quickly the current took him. He was wrapped up in seaweed, his life was fading from him. It was in the midst of all of that that he cries out in his distress. It's a pretty distressing situation. And Jonah, like all of us would, like even most atheists would, cries out to the Lord, even just out of instinct. I think it's kind of crazy for us to think that this man who's now been cast overboard and is being swept to the bottom of the ocean is sure he's gonna die. Somehow, he overrides all of his instinct and his entire life teaching and refuses to pray to the Lord. It just doesn't make sense, and it doesn't make sense of what the text presents here Jonah was in the belly of Sheol. He was in the very, the very womb of Sheol. And there is this interesting contrast that he goes from the belly of Sheol into the belly of the whale. This phrase, the belly of Sheol, is probably roughly equivalent to our phrase about being at death's door, right? It, it may or may not come from some sort of Mesopotamian, um, mythology. It may be a phrase of sort of co-opted into Hebrew, kinda like our phrase at death's door is actually co-opted in from Greek mythology, where there were actually literal doors to the underworld, and people would go there and when they were about to die. Jonah's point is that this was not a small thing. When we watch VeggieTales, he gets thrown in the water, and, like, 13 seconds later, the, the whale comes up and takes him. Jonah was swept down into the water almost supernaturally quick. He was drawn down to the very bottom of the ocean. We talk about the miracle of him surviving in the whale, and it was miraculous for sure, but the miracle of him being swept to the bottom of the ocean and not being crushed by the weight of the water, by the pressure, is equally miraculous. It's no more difficult for God to do that than it is for Him to preserve him in the whale or to raise Jesus from the dead or to create everything from nothing He finally starts to catch up with the pagan sailors. A theme in Jonah is that everyone around Jonah who shouldn't know any better somehow gets to the right conclusion before he does, right? The sailors begin to worship the Lord. They recognize this is divine wrath while Jonah is still asleep in the hold. Later, we'll see that, uh, the, the Ninevites recognize God's mercy and grace and thank Him for it, and Jonah is still mad because the plant he was sitting on d- uh, dies, right? Jonah is constantly behind the curve, but for this little moment, for this glimpse in the very center of the book, the pinnacle of the book is Jonah finally catching up to the sailors. [00:17:34] Sovereignty Explained [00:17:34] Tony Arsenal: He recognizes that it was God who cast him into the depths. This teaches us something about the doctrine of sovereignty and how it relates to human freedom, right? We, we often ask the question, what, what causes rain? Well, you can answer that by saying tiny particles of dust collect water in the air, and once they have enough weight, they fall out of the sky 'cause the air can't hold them up anymore. That's true, and it's good, and that's what nature teaches us. It's also equally true that God causes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust alike, and those two things are not contradictory. So when Jonah says, "You cast me into the sea," he's recognizing, like Joseph does in the Book of Genesis, that what the sailors in this case meant for good but what the brothers meant for evil, God purposed and caused for good. What the sailors did by their own volition, their own free will, they exercised their own, uh, autonomy in the, the horizontal sense to cast Jonah into the sea, God also cast him into the sea As I said, the text here uses language that we may not catch in our English translations to indicate that it's not just the sea here that's the problem. God's sovereignty continues to affect and act on Jonah. The word that we read here as the, the water or the flood, other places refers to the current of a river. The, um, the Euphrates itself is sometimes referred to this, the large- sort of the largest river apart from the Nile that the Egyptian or the, um, Israelite mind would have is the Euphrates, right? This underwater river, this underwater current, the undertow sucks him to the bottom of the ocean. It's like if you're swimming at the beach at the ocean and you get caught in the undercurrent. There's not a lot you can do about it. Y- sometimes even the strongest swimmers can't overcome this, and Jonah in all of his Middle Eastern robes, all of this stuff, probably with all of his baggage, his, his own equipment, things he had on him, is caught in this undercurrent that sucks him to the bottom of the ocean. And it's not just below the surface of the water. He's dropped down into the heart of the sea, the very core. We're seeing this language of him being pulled to the depths. In, in chapter one he goes down, down, down, and now he's being drawn into the belly of the ocean, into the pit of Sheol, into the heart of the waters The picture here is that Jonah doesn't just get thrown in the water and sink. He is actively pulled down to the bottom. This is not just a judgment where perhaps he can swim to the top. Just as the mariners hopelessly tried to reach land, Jonah would've been hopelessly trying to swim against this. We don't actually have any indication he tried, but had he tried, there would've been no chance He goes on to say that the God's breakers and his waves roll him. This is the picture we see if you ever watch surfing competitions on the ocean, where a surfer will get hit by the wave and he just gets rolled over and rolled over and rolled over, and it can be incredibly dangerous. That's why they have like the little lifeguards on the jet skis that zip out there to get them. Because when you get caught in that breaker, you just get rolled over and rolled over and rolled over, and soon you lose track of which direction is up, and even if you did, you couldn't get out This process is not just the forces of nature doing what they do. This is, again, the Lord weaponizing the forces of nature to execute judgment on Jonah This tumultuous and supernatural rapid descent showed Jonah that this is not only the moment in which God wanted to take his life, but was actively casting him away from the g- from the presence of the Lord [00:21:47] Yet I Will See [00:21:47] Tony Arsenal: It says here, um, in verse four, Jonah says, "I am driven away from your sight If you do a word study on this, you start to see that Jonah is pulling language from the creation account. He's pulling language from the fall. He's pulling a lot of language from Genesis itself. He's also pulling from the Psalms, which are pulling from the Genesis account. This word driven away could also be tran- translated as banished. He's cast out of the presence of the Lord. Just as in Genesis 3, we read, "God drove the man out at the east of the Garden of Eden. He placed cherubim and flaming swords." He drove the man out. Genesis 4:14, Cain says, "You have driven me away from the ground." And in Jonah 1:3, we see that Jonah was trying to get away from the presence of the Lord. And I wonder if there was this moment where he goes, "Ooh, I guess I got what I was looking for." Now, the second half of Jonah f- 2:4 here does something a little bit weird, and it's hard to translate. I think we should be honest at times. Hebrew is a language that in some senses is mysterious to us at times. There are still parts of the Hebrew Bible that we're not always 100% sure of. This verse here could be translated... In, in Hebrew it's just a statement. It's, "I, um, I shall again see the holy temple, or your holy temple." How that fits into the text itself is tricky. Some read it as, uh, as a question. "How shall I see your holy temple?" It's actually a statement kind of reaffirming the doubt and the fear and the idea that God was banishing him Most translations translate it as sort of a contrast. He says, "I was driven away from your sight, yet I shall again look on your holy temple." The force of this is even though you're driving me away, even though you're casting me out of your presence, I have faith, I have confidence that I will again see your holy temple The question here, and this is where I think Jonah becomes our example It's certainly possible that Jonah was asserting his belief that he would be rescued from this calamity and he would make his way back to Jerusalem and he would return to the holy temple. I think that what he says in the rest of this, he's recounting what he was praying. What he was praying in this context is not that he would return to the temple. He was confident God was taking his life. He says in verse five, "The waters closed in over me to take my life. The deep surrounded me. Weeds were wrapped around my head." The other way that the phrase holy temple is used in the Old Testament is to refer to the place that God lives in heaven. Jonah was asserting faith that even though he was being cast out of the presence of the Lord in this life, even though he was being justly punished for his sin, even though he was about to enter the belly of Sheol and to enter the pit, the very abyss, that he would see God again in His holy temple. This is a statement of Jonah's belief in his own destiny as one of God's people, destined to be saved by faith in God. In this moment, Jonah trusts the Lord despite all of the appearances that God was out to get him It's not all that different than when we read in Mark chapter 9, where this father brings his, uh, demon-possessed child to Jesus, and Jesus says, "I can heal him." And he says, "If you can do anything, Lord," I'm paraphrasing here. He says, "If you can do it, please, Lord." And he says, "If? All things are possible for me." And the father desperately cries out, "Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief." It's this raw, unfiltered statement of just the human condition on this side of glory, right? I believe in the Lord, but there's always that little part in the back of my head that isn't sure, because we're never going to be perfect. Now, I've said before, and, and this is becoming my new catchphrase, I think, I'm not here to rob you of your assurance of faith. Our, our confession, the Bible, this church, our Reform, broader Reform tradition, the assurance of faith of the Christian is the rightful possession inheritance of every person in this room who trusts the Lord. But it is a reality that at times that assurance is shaken. And if there's ever a time for your assurance to be shaken, it's when you're being dragged to the bottom of the ocean, right? One of the words in here, I don't have it-- I don't actually have it in my notes for some reason, but one of the note, words here, uh, s- about the roots of the mountain, I believe, in the next verse. It's not just that he was dragged to the bottom of the ocean. This word root of the mountain is like the word that's used to cut. He's not just being dragged to the bottom of the sea, he's being dragged to the bottom of a deep sea crevasse. He's literally being pulled into the pit, right? Many, uh, in the ancient Semitic world would have seen these underwater pits. They would have theorized or thought about these underwater crevasses as the actual entry into Sheol. And Jonah sees himself being drawn down into these things. Yet, he believes he will see the good presence of the Lord We read a similar statement, I won't, uh, I won't make us go there for time. We read a similar statement in Job. Job goes through this long speech about all the things that God has done to him, and at the very end of it, he says, "Yet I will see the Lord with my eyes, and he will stand up next to me on, on the earth." Right? Even though Job was going through this unimaginable grief, and we know that Job didn't deserve it in the strict sense, he still was saying, "I'm gonna be destroyed. God is shooting arrows at me," right? "His sword is in my side. He's targeting me. He's sending hornets after me." All of these terrible, vibrant images that he's using to show what God is doing to him, and yet he still trusts. I would say that he trusts that he would see the Lord in the flesh. This is not only Jonah's faith, it's a-- or Job's faith, it's a prophecy of Christ This is alien to our modern mindset. We've been talking about this in the Psalms. Weston's been leading us through the, the lament Psalms We often think that suffering and trials and difficulties are the opposite of blessing and favor. And we might recognize that in some sort of way that in God's economy, one thing leads to another. And again, there's an element of truth to that. James says, "Count it all joy when you face trials of every kind." He's not saying that the trials you're facing are in themselves joyful. You don't have to love when you get sick. You don't have to, you don't have to man up and put a smile on or s- pull yourself up by your bootstraps or whatever analogy you wanna use. It's okay to be sad when bad things happen. It's actually good, right? If we're to weep with those who weep, there's an element of sadness that must come with that, not to mention the one who's weeping is not chastised. But the idea that that only leads to this, that that's just one step in the chain, that's not really the mindset the Bible has. All across the Psalms, in the lament Psalms, all across the prophetic literature, the Book of Lamentations, Habakkuk has this long prayer at the end that's very similar, the entire Book of Job, suffering and sanctification, trials and joy and restoration, they're all sandwiched right there, and there is usually this statement in the middle of it that God will do what is right This is Jonah's example for us, and what an example it is. We'll talk in a little bit about all the ways that this whole scenario is typological of Christ. We'll, we'll get to that. But just for a minute in the middle of this book, Jonah is not such a bad guy. And it's because he still has all his faults that he can be this example for us [00:30:26] Genesis Deep Imagery [00:30:26] Tony Arsenal: As though it wasn't clear enough, Jonah in verse five says that the purpose of the waters closing over him was explicitly to take his life. He's now in the belly of the sea. He's being dragged down to the very roots of the mountain, to the very core of the earth in his mind. He, he thinks he's going to hell in the, the Hebrew mind. There's both this idea that God is dragging him to hell in a very real sense. The Hebrew mind, Sheol was a physical place that people went to, and we learn more about it and that becomes clarified as revelation is progressive, not contradictory, but as, as it's clarified But he uses this word deep, and this is where he's drawing again from Genesis. Genesis 1:2, he says, "The earth was without form and void. The darkness was over the face of the deep." The deep is this sort of like unformed chaotic water. It's what exists before God makes everything orderly and good. And in the fall, and especially in the flood in chapter seven, uh, chapter seven verse 11, the f- the flood itself is a sort of undoing of the order. God opens the floods from beneath, from the bottom of the earth, from the wellspring of the deep, as well as the chaotic waters from outside the firmament, and it all pours back in together and the entire world becomes again this deep, primordial, chaotic water And just as in Genesis God separates the land, in, in Genesis 7 or in Genesis 8, he separates out the land by drying it up, drying up the water. We also see that Jonah has this trust that he will return to the dry land. Again, he's the God of heaven and sea and dry earth. We could even read this phrase, depending on the context, as the abyss, which is this, a- again, is some borrowed language from Greek here that the Hebrews use. But it's this deep, watery, murky place th- full of shadows and darkness. Sounds familiar, I think, right? Christ says that those who are apart from him who refuse to obey will be cast into the outer darkness. This is the imagery that Jonah is seeing. All outside visible indicators was that he was gonna die and he was going to hell. Yet he trusted in the Lord that he would see his holy temple again Apart from God's gracious intervention, Jonah was right. So although God is the one that's bringing him to the depth, bringing him to the pit, dragging him down, using the very currents of the sea, weaponizing these underwater currents that only thousands of years later do we understand, and even then only this much, he also graciously rescues him from this by miraculously appointing a whale or a great fish who comes and swallows Jonah, takes him whole, and keeps him there in his own belly, keeps him there in her own womb when we get to chapter 2. In chapter six, or in verse six, Jonah makes this pivot. Again, he says he's brought to the very bottom of the sea, to the roots of the mountain, which is these deep underwater trenches. He conceptualizes himself now in this locked city behind bars. Again, this jail imagery, this pit imagery, it's all meant to evoke this idea of the final punishment of the wicked. This place of murky, gross water, this place of darkness and, uh, limitations of freedom, he's being taken there. This is the section here where people would actually argue that Jonah dies. He actually dies and is resurrected when he's swallowed by the whale. This comes from language where it says God does not prevent him from going to the pit. God actually draws him to the pit and then raises his life up from the pit. Now, I'm not convinced, um, that we should think that Jonah actually died. I don't, I don't think that the text fully supports that. But it certainly is using this imagery [00:34:45] Christ Typology [00:34:45] Tony Arsenal: This is where we get to some typology about Christ. This is where Jonah really shines as a prophet. Sometimes people wonder why the Book of Jonah is considered a prophetic book, and this along with it is part of that. Jonah, although the sign of Jonah in Matthew and in the other Gospels refers to the belly of the whale, that just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights, so also Christ will be in the heart of the earth, the pit, for three days and three nights. When we're talking about typology, we can't get too tripped up on the details. We're not talking about strict allegory where this figure is that person and this signpost represents that thing. This isn't Pilgrim's Progress or Chronicles of Narnia, which is not allegory, but it's similar. Topology functions often on sort of these big picture concepts, right? Although there are some typological references that are super detailed, there are also some that are just sort of evocative The idea that Jonah died and was raised to life and sort of incubated in the earth, in- incubated in the whale and sort of reborn into the world, that certainly sounds a lot like a picture of the resurrection And I think we should see it that way. When Christ says that the sign of Jonah is roughly His resurrection, He is tying it to the three days and three nights, but He's not limiting to that Jonah comes to this pivot, and now he starts to reflect on the context of his deliverance. This whole s- this whole prayer should be seen sort of in the light of the thanksgiving psalms. There's a situation in which Jonah is in, and then God rescues him, and he begins to praise him for it. There's elements of lament, but it's really a thanksgiving psalm that he's drawing on here or that he's, he's writing In 2:7, Jonah is either dead or he's actively dying. I don't know about you, but if you've ever, uh, dove into a pool and got a little deeper than you thought you were, and you-- there's that, like, two seconds before you get to the top where you're sure the lights are going out and you've really only been underwater for, like, 45 seconds, but everything in you tells you if you don't get there, you're gonna die. Every instinct you have is to scramble for the surface. Think about how long it took Jonah to be dragged to the bottom of the ocean. Even at this accelerated pace, we're talking about a long time. And we have no reason to believe, and lots of reasons to think otherwise, Jonah was not preserved from the pain and the terror and the difficulty of feeling like you're drowning because he was drowning. He was without oxygen. His life was fading away. And it is in this context of him being on the brink of death, at death's door, in the belly of Sheol, being drawn into the very pit itself, that his prayer reaches the Lord in His holy temple. Right? This gives further evidence to the thought that Jonah is not talking about the temple in Jerusalem. There was, there was theology, and I, I think it's fine theology, that God lived in the temple in a special way. This is the reason that Daniel faces Jerusalem when he prays. There is a sense in the Old Testament that God's special place of presence is the temple in Jerusalem, and that the prayers of the people physically go to that place to be received by God. But Jonah doesn't know which direction the temple is. He's underwater. He's been tossed around by breakers. He has no sense of geography at this point He knows that his prayers are reaching the Lord in his heavenly temple. And they reach him in his heavenly temple just as his life is being lost in the pit. And it is from this moment that God raises him to life, or preserves his life, depending how you read it, and appoints the well to come reach him And some read this next verse as a little bit of a step back for Jonah, and it may be.  [00:39:02] Vows and Idols [00:39:02] Tony Arsenal: He reads, "Those who pay vain regard to i- regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. But I, with the voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. And what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord." Jonah didn't see the sailors on the ship vow their vows and offer their sacrifices. That happened after they threw him into the pit and the current sucked him under So we may read this with a little bit of a, "Thank God I'm not like that tax collector," kind of a lens. And there's probably some wisdom for us in that, to recognize that Jonah still hasn't quite gotten there. But it's also very common in the Old Testament to recognize that God treats His people differently because they are different. God brings people to a place of sanctification, and through that process of sanctification, they cease to worship vain idols. And it is absolutely true that those who worship vain idols forfeit their hope of steadfast love from the Lord. That's straight out of the Ten Commandments, right? He visits the iniquity of, specifically of idolatry. He visits the iniquity unto the children to the third and fourth generation. But for those who love the Lord, He loves them with a steadfast love unto thousands We can recognize in Jonah that although he had made great progress in faith, that he still wasn't there yet. And we can recognize that in him because we can recognize that in ourselves. Jonah is the example in this because he is not perfect, because he has not arrived, 'cause he doesn't do a 180 about-face and get everything right going forward We can read this in light of Jonah in chapter four, where he takes big steps back Or we can read this as the regular up and down progress of sanctification in the life of all believers everywhere It is also ironic again, we're back now to Jonah being a little bit behind the curve. He was sent to Nineveh to evangelize the heathens, some of the worst enemies that Israel was going to face, and he ignores that call. And he, instead of going to Nineveh, he goes to Tarshish. He goes the opposite direction, and he does something that would be unthinkable to most Israelites. He goes out on the open ocean. That's just insanity to someone living in the ancient world He should have recognized that the sailors were fearing the Lord when they refused to throw him overboard. I think we all have a sort of innate sense when someone's behavior suddenly changes, and I think most of us, and not in some sort of strange, kooky, charismatic sense, but I think most of us can sort of go, "I think I know why that is." Right, when you, when you see someone at work that suddenly stops lying about everything and stops backbiting and stops taking credit for other people's work, and then you find out a little while linger- longer that they've come to faith in Christ, if we're being honest, we're not all that surprised. But Jonah doesn't get it. Jonah here promises the same things that the sailors already did, so now we're again back behind the curve [00:42:37] Sanctification Confession [00:42:37] Tony Arsenal: To wrap this out, I, I wanna, um, I wanna ground this in something that I think is really vital for us to understand. As I said, Jonah is an example to us because he demonstrates the limited nature of sanctification, but he also demonstrates in a certain sense the fact that sanctification is real and has real effects. So this is a little out of the ordinary, but grab your Trinity Hymnal from the pew in front of you. If you happen to have a copy of the Confession, you could use that if you'd prefer. But open with me to page 927 I have, um, I've been, uh, broadly Reformed most of my Christian life and didn't realize it until I got to seminary. And since I discovered the Westminster Confession of Faith a decade ago, it's not new, uh, not new to me, um, I realized how valuable this resource was. This is essentially a search engine without the internet. And so I wanna just read a little bit out of chapter 13 here, which is our Confessions chapter on sanctification. I'm not gonna read the whole thing, but the, the first, uh, the first section here essentially says that sanctification is real, and it happens throughout the whole person. We talk about total depravity, and there is a sense in which the Christian remains totally depraved after regeneration, in that there still is, there still is corruption within our entire being, uh, that is depraved. There's also an equal sense in which we can say we are totally sanctified in Christ because sanctification is throughout the whole man in which we are renewed after the image of God. So that's section one. And then section two says, "This sanctification is throughout," again, throughout the whole man, "in the whole man, yet imperfect in this life. There abiding still some remnant of corruption in every part, whence ariseth a continual and irre- irreconcilable war, the flesh left lusting after the spirit, and the spirit lusting after the flesh." Now, that may feel like just a crushing burden if you stop reading there, but it lines up with our experience, right? This is Paul in Romans 7, "The good things I wanna do, I do not, and the bad things that I, I kn- I do not want to do, I somehow do. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." We shouldn't read that as though somehow our spirits are purified entirely and our bodies are what's really causing us to sin. This is a picture of the spirit being, uh, our, our spiritual part of us. The part of us that's regenerated is willing, but the part of us that remains corrupt is our flesh And our confession goes on to say, "In which war, although the remaining corruption for a time may much prevail, yet through the continual supply of strength from the sanctification- sanctifying spirit of Christ, the regenerate part doth overcome." And so the saints grow in grace, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. This is revolutionary in our broader evangelical world. The storybook Bible, Jonah did a bad thing and he gets punished, and he did a good thing and so he gets better, cannot understand this concept. This is why I think we have to be so careful when we choose what books to give to our little ones, right? I, I make jokes about VeggieTales. I loved VeggieTales when I was in VeggieTales age range. I probably would sit down and watch VeggieTales with Augie when he gets old enough. But we have to be so careful not to let those messages come to our children, or to ourselves for that matter, uninterpreted by the scriptures first and foremost, and our Reformed tradition that we all believe. Amen.  [00:46:49] Assurance in the Pit [00:46:49] Tony Arsenal: This is vital for us When all is said and done, salvation, whether we're talking about justification, sanctification, glorification, resurrection, all of the different stages and phases of our salvation, it is entirely of the Lord. And it's for this reason that Jonah says, "I, with a voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will pay." Salvation belongs to the Lord So this is the application of the sermon, loved ones. No matter how close to or actually into the pit itself we have fallen The, the chapter on assurance of faith, I won't go there, but the chapter in our confession on assurance of faith is very honest with us that our assurance will be shaken, and at times we may not feel as though we have any assurance at all But even when we have fallen that deep into the pit of despair, even when we feel as though we are in the very depths of hell No matter how much our spiritual or physical life is fainting away as we starve for spiritual breath, as we feel that impulse in us that recognizes we're moments away from losing the faith entirely. No matter how much the remnants of corruption in every part swirl around our heads like seaweed, how often do we feel wrapped up in sin? Whatever it is, I don't need to get specific 'cause I'm sure all of you are thinking of something in your head right now that has been swirling around you for years. Maybe it's months, maybe it's years. Maybe you've never felt, since coming to Christ, you've never felt like it wasn't wrapped up around you like seaweed. Besetting sin is something that we need to be serious about, and it's a good cause for us to think hard and deep about our status as Christians, and to go to our pastor and seek the elders' assistance in this. But besetting sin is not, is not a mark that excludes you from, from Christianity. Right? We're justified by faith alone, in Christ alone, by His grace alone. Not because we've overcome our besetting sin alone, right? That's not one of the five solas God redeems our life from the pit. From the very depths of hell itself, he snatched us like brands from the fire And though it is the case that we often are shaken, and at times God, just as he let Jonah, he let Jonah go to Tarshish. God had every ability to stop him from doing a stupid thing, and sometimes he does that, right? I'm sure there's plenty of times we can think about in our lives where we were heading towards sin and God just pulled a U-turn on us, and we are thankful for that. But there are times that he does not, and he lets us, he lets us do that. He lets us suffer the consequences, and he does that to chastise us and bring us back to him And even in the context of that, it is through this continual supply of the sanctifying Spirit of Christ, right?  [00:50:19] God Beautifies His Bride [00:50:19] Tony Arsenal: Christ was anointed by the Holy Spirit from the womb beyond measure. That's in the Book of John. There was never a time where Christ did not have the totality of the infinite sanctifying Spirit of the God, of God. We do not have the totality of the sanctifying Spirit of God. Now, we can get into a discussion after the service about divine simplicity and all the complexity of that, but the reality is that God sanctifies us more and more and more, and He does it by giving us the Spirit more and more. Might be more accurate to say He gives more of us to the Spirit. He gives us to the Spirit more and more. He gives us to Jesus more and more. We are Christ's inheritance. We are His bride. And just as the bride, as they're approaching the wedding, is made more and more beautiful, they start their, their beauty treatments weeks and months ahead of time, right? They're already making their hair appointments. They're already doing what they need to do to feel as beautiful as they can and to be as beautiful as they can on their wedding day. If that's the way we treat human weddings; guys do it too, just not as much. If that's the way we treat human weddings, how much more does God treat the heavenly wedding of His Son to His beloved bride? He's beautifying us, Church. Doesn't always feel like it. Doesn't always look like it, but He is. 

It's Friday, June 26th, A.D. 2026. 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 250,000 British girls sexually assaulted by Pakistani Muslims Last week, a group called Restore Britain released a summary report of an inquiry into the widespread and systematic sexual exploitation of vulnerable working-class women and children across the nation, reports Breakpoint. At least 250,000 girls were sexually assaulted, trafficked, tortured, and even killed, mostly by gangs of Pakistani Muslims. The details in the report are so horrifying, it's difficult to believe they are true.   Evidence of the abuse and reports by victims were downplayed and ignored.  To his shame, when atheist British Prime Minister Kier Starmer, who resigned Monday, was Director of Public Prosecutions and the head of the Crown Prosecution Service, he shockingly dismissed 13,000 cases of suspected child sexual offenders with a warning letter rather than attempt to prosecute. British citizens who spoke out about the abuse or expressed criticism of mass migration were often prosecuted, especially if the criticisms were directed at Pakistani or Muslim communities.  The gangs that have been operating in Britain have deep ideological and cultural roots shaped by Islam, including Sharia law. Also ignored is the difficult truth that Islam, on its own terms, allows child sexual exploitation and trafficking.   Many of the young Muslim men responsible for these atrocities believe they are answerable to Sharia law, rather than to British law. They believe their devious assaults are approved by Islam's false god Allah, especially when done to an enemy who is oppressing them.  Send a 2-3 sentence letter urging that British authorities prosecute the rapists. Christian Turner, British Ambassador, British Embassy, 3100 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008. Twin earthquakes in Venezuela killed 164, injured 1,000 At least 164 people have been killed and 971 injured in Venezuela after powerful back-to-back earthquakes rocked the country on Wednesday night, June 24th, reports Yahoo News. Thousands more are feared dead after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake hit about 100 miles west of the capital, Caracas, followed less than a minute later by a magnitude 7.5 tremor, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. In a Truth Social post, President Donald Trump said, "The U.S.A. stands ready, willing, and able to help! I have instructed all agencies of our government to get ready to move quickly. We will be there for our new and great friends." Supreme Court delivers major win to Trump On June 25th, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Trump administration's decision to end Temporary Protected Status for immigrants from Syria and Haiti, reports TownHall.com. In a 6-3 decision, the justices found that the statute bars judicial review of non-constitutional claims. After the Department of Homeland Security moved to terminate Temporary Protected Status for people from Syria and Haiti, it was hit with a deluge of lawsuits challenging the move. Congress created Temporary Protected Status back in 1990 to grant short-term humanitarian relief to foreigners who cannot safely return home due to armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extreme conditions. Syrians were able to take advantage of the program in 2012 because of the brutality of the Bashar al-Assad regime. Haiti received it in 2010 after a devastating earthquake. However, both designations went on for longer than the “temporary” label suggested. Alarm over Abortion Pills & dead babies in U.S. water supply Based on an alarming 86-page report entitled “Abortion in Our Water,” 14 state attorneys general sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency warning about a “growing threat to the country's waterways as a result of the pharmaceutical abortion drug mifepristone,” reports Liberty Counsel. They're asking the EPA to place mifepristone and its generics on the federal list of drinking water contaminants that need further investigation. The abortion industry has moved from clinics to toilets. Chemical abortions now account for 63% of all U.S. abortions in the formal health care system in 2023 — up from 31% in 2014 and 14% in 2005. Women are told to take the Abortion Kill Pills and flush everything directly into our water supply. About 700,000 chemical abortions each year send long-lasting abortion drugs and human remains into America's wastewater systems. Mifepristone blocks progesterone, thus starving the baby. This drug has long-lasting metabolites that remain in the water because the water treatment plants are generally not capable of filtering out these chemicals. In addition to these chemicals, the water systems were never designed for the resulting 30-40 tons of human remains which becomes hazardous medical waste! By contrast, hospitals and abortion mills are not allowed to flush medical waste down the drain for good reason. Through a special link in our transcript today at www.TheWorldview.com, you can send faxes to Congress and demand they take action to stop this public health threat. Court blocks California “gender secrecy law”, affirms parental rights California parents scored a big victory as a court blocked a law that kept school districts from reporting a child's “sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression” to parents, reports the Daily Citizen. America First Legal announced the decision on behalf of the City of Huntington Beach and parents.  “The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit entered a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of key provisions of California's AB 1955 – a law that prohibits schools from disclosing information to parents about a child's sexual orientation, ‘gender identity,' or gender expression, unless the child consents.” In other words, the State of California sought to prevent parents from obtaining information about “gender transitions” of their own children without the child's so-called consent. Democrat California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1955 which, as California Family Council explained, prohibited schools from notifying parents if their gender-confused children asked to be referred to with a biologically incorrect pronoun and a new name. In Matthew 19:4, Jesus said, “Surely you have read in the Scriptures: When God made the world, 'He made them male and female.'” Singer Forrest Frank unashamedly affirms exclusive truth about Jesus And finally, Christian hip-hop musician Forrest Frank is playing in sold out arenas and boldly declaring the exclusive truth about Christianity. Listen to a portion of his hit song "Jesus Is Alive" which was released on May 8th. By the time of its release, the song already had 19 million views on social media. FRANK: “Muhammad is still in his tomb. Joseph Smith is still in his tomb. Buddha is still in his tomb. Confucius is still in his tomb. “But there is one man who was not found in the tomb. I've been there. The tomb is empty. He was seen alive by over 500 eyewitnesses who wrote down accurate accounts that we saw the man who hung on the cross, and we touched the scars. “Watch this word: Alive. Jesus is the King, and He's alive. Jesus is alive.” Matthew 28:5-6 records, “The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay.'” Close And that's The Worldview on this Friday, June 26th, in the year of our Lord 2026. Subscribe for free by Spotify, Amazon Music, or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com.  Plus, 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.

Identifying where our problems originate is one thing, but locating the Divine Healer is key in getting clear of obstacles in our lives. At each mile marker in our life journeys, God is standing alongside the road, smiling at us, and holding out His strong hand to guide us. And from the indispensable wisdom of scripture to stories of human triumphs over tragedies, He is always there reminding us we're never truly alone. His grace and mercies begin to overshadow and overwhelm those forces that want to harm us, and it's then that we see God for who He truly is. 1 Peter 5:10 says, “And after you've suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” And that is Good News! Let's pray. Lord, it's important to see who our enemy is, but it's more important to look past that and concentrate our focus on you who brings us that peace that passes all understanding, the kind that gets down deep in us and calms us from the inside out. In Jesus' name, amen.  Change your shirt, and you can change the world! Save 15% Off your entire purchase of faith-based apparel + gifts at Kerusso.com with code KDD15.

You begin your Christian life by grace, through faith. And you grow in your Christian walk by grace through faith. And that faith always includes action. Christianity is a belief system. It begins in the mind and heart, but it shouldn't end there. We prove what we believe by what we do. Coming up next, Ron kicks off a brand new teaching series, “James: A Faith That Works.” 

This is the message from our Thursday night service on 6/25/2026 with Chet Lowe.

Find out what you do well, and do it. God has given us gifts and withheld others. The post I Hate Golf appeared first on Key Life.

Fr. Mike explains why all of us are called to listen to the prophets of the Old Testament, and why their role is so important in salvation history. Each of us is building some kind of life and picture of eternity: the question we must ask ourselves is are we building it with God or against him? Today's readings are 2 Kings 8, Hosea 8-10, and Psalm 108. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

In this conversation, Andy Byrd challenges us to rethink what it means to follow Jesus and why reaching people with the gospel isn't an optional part of Christianity - it's at the very heart of it.Andy shares stories of what God is doing among Gen Z around the world, why young people are responding to missions in unprecedented numbers, and how global movements like The Send are helping turn inspiration into action. Together, he and Jennie talk about revival, the unreached, the future of missions, and why they believe this generation could play a significant role in seeing the gospel reach every nation.Follow AndyOrder Jennie's Book - The Lie You Don't Know You BelieveSponsor a Child with CompassionCheck out Boll and BranchMore episodes: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTubeFollow Jennie: Instagram | FacebookSubscribe for more content each weekGet a daily devo straight to your Instagram DM'sLEARN MORE

Segment 1 • James Talarico calls himself "a Christian who hates Christianity." • Can you redefine Christianity and still call it biblical? • Why progressive theology is far more dangerous than progressive politics. Segment 2 • Can politics actually save America? • The surprising reason America is losing its shared identity. • Why the answer isn't legislation—it's something far deeper. Segment 3 • What declining support for Israel reveals about America's spiritual condition. • If you could rebuild a nation from scratch, where would you start? • Why Christians may be fighting the wrong battle. Segment 4 • What falling birth rates, marijuana, and homeschooling all have in common. • Why changing laws will never change hearts. • The one mission Jesus gave the Church that still changes cultures today. ___ Thanks for listening! Wretched Radio would not be possible without the financial support of our Gospel Partners. If you would like to support Wretched Radio we would be extremely grateful. VISIT https://fortisinstitute.org/donate/ If you are already a Gospel Partner we couldn't be more thankful for you if we tried!

A spectator mindset has quietly crept into modern Christianity, leaving many believers watching the mission instead of participating. Ray, E.Z., Mark, and Oscar challenge listeners to examine whether they have become passive observers rather than active followers of Christ. The guys explain that there is no such thing as a spectator Christian because every believer has been called to make disciples, serve the church, and engage in the work of the gospel. Too often, Christians excuse themselves from evangelism or ministry, believing those responsibilities belong to someone else. The conversation emphasizes that following Jesus requires action, obedience, and a willingness to step onto the front lines of spiritual battle.The guys then explore how consumerism has shaped the way many people view the local church. Rather than seeing the church as a covenant community where believers serve one another, many approach it with the mindset of a customer evaluating a product. This perspective turns worship, fellowship, and discipleship into something to consume rather than something to contribute to. The guys explain that believers have been freed by the gospel not merely to attend church but to actively participate in God's unfolding story of grace.The conversation also addresses practical barriers that keep believers from engaging in ministry. Fear, social anxiety, comparison, and distraction often prevent Christians from sharing the gospel or using their gifts. The guys discuss how technology has weakened many everyday interactions that help people build confidence and form meaningful relationships. Yet God has uniquely equipped every believer with gifts and opportunities to serve. Rather than comparing themselves to others, Christians are called to faithfully use whatever gifts God has provided and to trust that every member of the body plays a necessary role.Finally, the guys focus on the Holy Spirit's empowering work and the practical steps believers can take to become more active in their faith. The same Spirit who empowered the early church continues to guide, strengthen, and equip believers today. The guys encourage listeners to put down distractions, invest their time intentionally, arrive ready to serve, and look for opportunities to share the gospel. In the end, the Christian life is not about watching others live for Christ but about actively participating in His mission, trusting that God uses ordinary obedience to accomplish extraordinary things.Send us Fan MailThanks for listening! If you've been helped by this podcast, we'd be grateful if you'd consider subscribing, sharing, and leaving us a comment and 5-star rating! Visit the Living Waters website to learn more and to access helpful resources!You can find helpful counseling resources at biblicalcounseling.com.Check out The Evidence Study Bible and the Basic Training Course.You can connect with us at podcast@livingwaters.com. We're thankful for your input!Learn more about the hosts of this podcast.Ray ComfortEmeal (“E.Z.”) ZwayneMark SpenceOscar Navarro

“Is Catholicism a false church?” This question opens a discussion on the validity of Catholicism compared to Eastern Orthodoxy, particularly regarding changes in liturgy and fasting rules. The conversation also addresses whether first-century Christians prayed to saints and explores what Catholics believe about salvation in contrast to the “once saved, always saved” perspective. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 04:35 – Considering Catholicism or Eastern Orthodoxy. If the majority of bishops left the RCC, is that a sign they are a false church? Also, if Catholics changed liturgy/fasting rules while EO have been consistent, is that a sign they are a false church? 20:30 – How to Respond to the claim. Did first-century Christians pray to the saints? My protestant friend says it started in the third century. 31:05 – What do Catholics believe they have to do to be saved, and how do I respond to the once saved always saved belief? What are simple verses to refute that? 42:22 – Agnostic Brother Asked thinks Christianity is too Anthropocentric. He has a hard time believing that the universe was made for human beings primarily. 47:20 – Best Friend and brother want to convert to EO because of the filioque. How can I respond?

All Scripture was written for our admonition and learning (1 Cor. 10:11 and Rom. 15:4). Join Andrew Wommack as he explores the life of David, a man after God's own heart (1 Sam. 13:14). Learn lessons from David's life that you can apply directly to your own.

Join Jim and Greg for the Thursday 3 Martini Lunch as they discuss the anti-American sentiments of a socialist New York Democratic primary winner and whether she should be allowed to serve in Congress, James Talarico's illogical comments on Christianity, Gavin Newsom's strategy for the 2028 Democratic presidential race, and the latest controversy involving Diana Russini, former reporter for The Athletic.First, Jim and Greg blast Mamdani-backed socialist New York congressional nominee Darializa Avila Chevalier, who supported the “total eradication of Western civilization” as a member of an anti-Israel group, Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD). They also criticize Democrats for failing to condemn radicals on the left and question whether someone with views like Chevalier's should even be able to serve in Congress.Next, they groan over Texas Democrat Senate candidate James Talarico's absurd comments on Christianity and his politicization of the religion. Talarico said he “always” thinks of himself “as a Christian who hates Christianity.” Jim and Greg also bring up previous statements of Talarico's ridiculous beliefs on prison reform.Then, Jim and Greg break down California Gov. Gavin Newsom's plan to position himself as the frontrunner for the 2028 Democratic presidential nominee. Newson seems to be targeting Biden's coalition, while avoiding the party's socialist faction.Finally, they react to the recently revealed $800,000 salary of former sports reporter Dianna Russini, who allegedly had a relationship with the head coach of the New England Patriots. Jim and Greg also scrutinize reporters' boundaries with sources.Please visit our great sponsors:Noble GoldOwn the metal the future depends on. Visit https://NobleGoldInvestments.com/3MLDownload the free investor kit. No pressure. Just the information.AG1Visit https://DrinkAG1.com/3ML Get a FREE Morning Person Hat and a FREE AG1 Flavor Sampler in your Welcome Kit with your first AG1 subscription.QuoMoney is on the line. Always say hello with QUO. Try QUO for FREE, PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months when you go to https://Quo.com/3MLNew episodes every weekday. 

John talks about Trump's bizarre hostage situation surrounding a bipartisan housing bill. He dissects Trump's extortion tactics reminiscent of his first impeachment, revealing how the former president continues to manipulate Congress for his own gain. He also highlights how Trump's attempts to hold the housing bill hostage for his own political agenda reflect a troubling pattern of extortion that has become all too familiar. Then, listeners are treated to insights from Bob Cesca who joins the discussion to dissect the motivations behind Trump's behavior and the impact it has on the Republican Party. Next, the God Squad featuring tattooed theologian Dylan Nabor Cruz and pastor Desimber Rose, bring a fresh perspective on progressive Christianity and the intersection of faith and politics. Their candid discussions about religious hypocrisy add another layer of depth to the show, inviting listeners to reflect on the role of faith in contemporary social issues. Then finally, legal analyst Dr. Tracy Pearson is back once again to answer questions from listeners about Trump's legal woes. They also talk about the ongoing war in Ukraine, where John highlights the ingenuity of Ukrainian forces as they turn the tide against a much larger Russian military.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Fares Abraham is a Palestinian Christian and Daniel Klein is a Jewish Christian. Both Fares and Daniel grew up minutes from each other in the West Bank, and yet they were worlds apart—Fares lived in occupied Palestine and Daniel live in an Israeli settlement. Both of them share about their very different journies, which end up in similar places, culminating in a friendship, which offers a glimpse of what peace between Israelis and Palestinians could look like: not through politics or slogans, but through the reconciling power of Christ, honest truth-telling, mutual dignity, and a shared commitment to justice, mutual flourishing, and peace for all who call the Holy Land home. Daniel is the author of My Freedom from Zionism and Fares leads Levant Ministries.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Questions about what happened with Germany in World War II if the idea of intrinsic human value came from the Christian worldview, and how to explain the fact that Christians on both sides of World War II slaughtered each other while claiming to fight in the name of God.   If the idea of intrinsic human value came from the Christian worldview, then what happened with Germany in World War II? How do you explain the reality that World War II saw roughly 40 million Christians slaughtering other Christians—both sides claiming to fight in the name of God?

::Daily Radio Program

Fr. Mike emphasizes the importance of knowing God and knowing his love for us as we read about the devastation of war and the lack of faith displayed by Israel. Without a deeper knowledge of God, not only can we struggle for hope in God's plan, but we can also fall into the temptation of losing faith in him altogether. Today's readings are 2 Kings 6-7, Hosea 4-7, and Psalm 103. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

On Tuesday's Mark Levin Show, Ben Ferguson fills in for Mark. Democratic Texas Senate candidate James Talarico presents himself as a moderate, faith-based Christian pastor who rejects Christian nationalism. Talarico is actually a radical progressive activist who weaponizes Christianity for left-wing politics.  Talarico's radical positions - God is non-binary, there are more than two biological sexes, the Bible affirms abortion access, and poverty/pollution/prison equal violence. This man is not fit for the Senate. Later, President Trump selected Kash Patel to combat waste, fraud, and abuse, is proving to be an excellent choice as evidenced by a record-setting $6.5 billion healthcare fraud crackdown charging around 450 defendants, primarily in Medicaid and hospice schemes. Officials emphasized unprecedented state-federal cooperation across 45 states and attorneys general, building complete case files for swift law enforcement action—the first such unified effort in modern history. Afterward ,a Biden-appointed federal judge issued a 75-page opinion shutting down the Trump administration's modified SAVE system database, created via executive order to verify citizenship or immigration status of registered voters through DHS and SSA records. This activist decision promotes lawlessness and voter fraud by blocking checks on non-citizens, dead people, and illegal immigrants, especially ahead of midterms. The same judge also blocked an FTC antitrust probe into Media Matters and barred deportation of unaccompanied migrant minors for family reunification abroad. Meanwhile, Senator Mike Lee advances the SAVE America Act, requiring government-issued ID to vote—supported by over 80% of Americans across parties to make voting easy but cheating hard—though four anti-Trump Republicans hinder it in the Senate, where Trump is pushing for passage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Over the last decade, white evangelicals in the U.S. have lost their moral credibility. In response, Peter Wehner says the church should embrace a form of "Christian humanism." The Holy Post crew discusses his article, what he gets right, and why that label may be a barrier for some. Kaitlyn interviews biblical scholar Michael Rhodes about his book,"Reimagining Biblical Politics: What Scripture Says About Public Life and Why It Matters." Rather than looking to specific verses to define our political positions, Rhodes says we must allow all of Scripture to shape our imaginations and then use discernment as we engage our unique political context. Also this week—controversy over the design of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, how faith-based apps are gamifying Christianity, and the benefits of talking to dogs. Holy Post Plus: Ad-Free Version of this Episode: https://holypost.substack.com/p/726-reimagining-biblical-politics Bonus Interview: https://holypost.substack.com/p/how-christians-can-live-faithfully   0:00 - Show Starts 2:44 - Theme Song 3:08 - Sponsor - AG1 - Heavily researched, thoroughly purity-tested, and filled with stuff you need. Get the AG1 $76 Welcome Pack for free when you order from https://www.drinkag1.com/HOLYPOST   4:29 - Sponsor - Hiya Health - Go to https://www.hiyahealth.com/HOLYPOST to receive 50% off your first order   5:57 - Talking to Dogs Makes Ya Smart?   11:41 - Obama Presidential Center   23:56 - World Relief Update with Matthew Sorens   38:00 - Sponsor - Feeding America - Feeding America, led by neighbors! Give now to end hunger at https://www.feedingamerica.org   40:00  - Sponsor - World Challenge - Want to help people around the world? Get involved today at https://worldchallenge.org/HOLYPOST   57:22 - Interview   1:04:42 - What Do We Mean by "Politics?"   1:15:40 - The Ambiguity of Esther   1:23:30 - Scripture Transforms Politics   1:34:26 - End Credits   Links Mentioned in News Segment: The Commodification of Christianity: https://www.freyaindia.co.uk/p/the-commodification-of-christianity   American Christians Face a Choice: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/06/christian-humanism-trump-choice/687475/   Other Resources: crossRhodes: Reimagining Biblical Politics: https://pod.link/1888014284?view=apps&sort=popularity   Holy Post website: https://www.holypost.com/   Holy Post Plus: www.holypost.com/plus   Holy Post Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/holypost   Holy Post Merch Store: https://www.holypost.com/shop   The Holy Post is supported by our listeners. We may earn affiliate commissions through links listed here. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.  

Fr. Mike takes a break from 2 Chronicles to enter into the book of Hosea. We learn that Hosea was a prophet called to not only witness to God's words, but to his actions as well. Fr. Mike also touches on hope in times of intense healing, and how essential this virtue is when striving to live a life for Christ. Today's readings are 2 Kings 5, Hosea 1-3, and Psalm 101. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.