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The Gospel Manifesto in the Book of Romans Pt. 2: The Bad News, Romans 1:18-3:20 By Louie Marsh, 5-4-2025 3 Cartoons,   And Finally…   Doctor: "I have good news and bad news."  Patient: "Go with the good news first."  Doctor: "You have 24 hours to live."  Patient: "What?! How about the bad news?"  Doctor: Um... I forgot to tell you yesterday."   1) God wrath (anger) is stirred when I REPRESS the truth.   18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19  For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20  For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21  For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22  Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23  and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Romans 1:18-23 (ESV)   2) God honors my free will by allowing me to SIN.   24  Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25  because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. Romans 1:24-25 (ESV)   26  For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; Romans 1:26 (ESV)   HOMOSEXUALITY IN ANCIENT ROME: The primary dichotomy of ancient Roman sexuality was active/dominant/masculine and passive/submissive/"feminized". In Roman society the freeborn male citizen possessed political liberty and the right to rule both himself and his household. "Virtue" was seen as an active quality through which a man defined himself. The conquest mentality and "cult of virility" shaped same-sex relations. Roman men were free to enjoy sex with other males without a perceived loss of masculinity or social status, as long as they took the dominant role. Acceptable male partners were slaves, prostitutes, and entertainers, Although Roman men in general seem to have preferred youths between the ages of 12 and 20 as sexual partners, freeborn male minors were strictly off-limits, and professional prostitutes and entertainers might be considerably older.   Same-sex relations among women are less documented. The Augustan poet Ovid takes an exceptionally keen interest, but advocates for a heterosexual lifestyle contrary to Roman sexual norms.   28  And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29  They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30  slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31  foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32  Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. Romans 1:28-32 (ESV)   Ways We Suppress the Truth:   ·  DENIAL · No one's PERFECT · I was BORN that way.   Dear Dr. Roach: I read your recent column regarding identical twins where one of the two was balding while his twin was not. Within my family, there are identical twin brothers, who also were almost impossible for family members to differentiate. If their DNA genes are “identical,” now that they are adults, how can one be homosexual, while his twin is married with children?   Studies have shown that in identical twins, if one twin is gay (the term “homosexual” is used in clinical studies but is considered offensive, so I won't use it further), then 30 per cent to 66 per cent of the identical twins also will be gay. As this is much higher than the overall rate in the population, this suggests some, but not absolute, genetic influence.   However, an adopted sibling of a gay person is also more likely to be gay (11 per cent in one study), suggesting that the familial environment also plays a significant role.   Some people who are attracted to the same gender can be so afraid of, or put off by, the social stigma against same-sex couples that they marry and have children with a person of the opposite sex despite being primarily or uniquely attracted to those of the same gender.   Some people have found that they may be attracted to a person of either gender; their choice of life partner depends more on the partner's personality and their unique situation than on his or her biological sex.   Sexual identity is not a choice. We cannot choose to whom we will be attracted. I'm afraid many people fundamentally misunderstand this point. *** Dramatic confirmation that the sea ice in the Arctic has been stable for nearly two decades is contained in a recently published science paper from a team led by Dr Mark England from the University of Exeter. The finding is of course obvious to anyone who studies the data but it will inconvenience the activist cranks who continue to promote supposed reductions in Arctic sea ice as an important sign of their imaginary ‘tipping points' and their fake climate crisis. Despite the data showing the ice has been stable over every month in the year since around 2007. ************ Living together before marriage increasing the changes of getting a divorce.   3) When I condemn others I'm really just condemning MYSELF.   1  Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things… 3  Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? 4  Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? Romans 2:1, 3-4 (ESV)   4) I must be PERFECT to be good enough for heaven.   12  For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13  For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. Romans 2:12-13 (ESV)   5) I'm just as much a sinner as EVERYONE ELSE.   9  What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10  as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; 11  no one understands; no one seeks for God…20  For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. Romans 3:9-11, 20 (ESV)   6) God's answer to sin is FAITH in Jesus.   16  yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. Galatians 2:16 (ESV)   11  Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” 12  But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” 13  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— 14  so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:11-14 (ESV)                  

Many times over the centuries, earnest Christians have run out into the world to aggressively and passionately share Jesus, and the world doesn't always want to hear it. John 15:19 says, “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own and as it is you don't belong to the world. But I have chosen you out of the world, and that is why the world hates you.” And this is a hard truth. It's discouraging to missionaries at home and in other countries who want nothing more than to see everyone saved. The Bible even tells us that God wants all people to be saved, and that's the goal. Yet we know that'll never be. Jesus brought life-giving truth to the masses in His day. Some of them tried to kill Him, and of course, some were eager to see Him crucified. His reminder to us is that if we have the mind of Christ and the modern world, things might get dicey for us. It's not like hoards of people are beating down the doors of churches so that they can hear and believe. In this fallen and sinful state, man runs from the things of God. Both the Bible and history document this. In Roman times, the empire hunted Christians. They were even fed to wild animals for sport, and it's been that way all through the modern era. Remember the photos in recent years of ISIS terrorists escorting captured Christians to their executions? Pagan mind fights against God. Knowing these things, we must resolve to ask God for courage to speak when opportunities present themselves. We also must keep in mind that boldness for Christ will cost us something. Maybe everything. God in His Word also assures us that some are being saved. Kingdom is being added to daily, and this reality is enough for us to continue to be salt and light in a dark world. Let's pray. Father God, we ask you earnestly—send your spirit to people who need to hear Your Word. Help us to be willing to share Christ even when it's dangerous or uncomfortable. 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.

Questions Covered:  04:35 – When Christ comes back will he reinstitute animal sacrifices?   07:00 – How can I speak on the rapture since it is not in the Bible?   15:17 – Where in the New Testament does Jesus establish the priesthood?   16:17 – In Roman 13, what authority is meant when it states to submit to the government? 22:24 – Why does the Our Father prayer differ from the biblical line “deliver us for the evil one”?   29:24 – I heard God does not do evil, so he doesn't harden people hearts. Does this conflict with the Old Testament when it say God will harden Pharaoh’s heart?    35:13 – What does the Bible say about civil litigation concerning priest abuse?  42:35 – How can you explain the teaching “turn the other cheek”?  49:49 – Why was the devil able to tempt Adam and Eve, but not Mary?   …

Jesus Tells Us …. Go In Peace, Your Sins are Forgiven Among the contribution of Pope Benedict 16th ‘s papacy was a rekindling in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. The Pope wrote several series / books on Jesus Christ. In one of the Pope's writings, he speaks of the Gospel. He explains when many read the Gospel, they look at it as ordinary words … as the Good News of Jesus Christ. In the Roman times, the words Good News meant that the Romans were victorious in battle and would share the Good News with Rome's king. St. Paul Defines The Term Good News Paul uses this term in the first reading. I bring you the Good News. For Paul, the Good News is that Jesus was nailed to The Cross, died and was Resurrected from the dead. This is the Good News for all mankind. The Resurrection of Jesus, and what it means, is why we have the Catholic Church. It is why we are Christians and worship the Lord at Mass. Why Does Paul Emphasize Our Lord's Death in Speaking of the Resurrection? Why does Paul emphasize the Resurrection after the death of Jesus? Indeed, why focus on death when discussing the Resurrection? Why? Because Our Lord's death was a brutal death . . . a death on The Cross. In Roman times, the cross was a symbol of power for the army … for Rome . . . for the secular world. Which means all the powers of the world have no power than that of God. The Resurrection shows us there is a more perfect world to come . . . the kingdom of God in Heaven! So, what is the lesson for us? We cannot live in this world as though this is the end. There is a resurrection and a new world to come; we will be in communion with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Gospel Story of the Anointing of Jesus Feet Today's Gospel is the story of Mary washing and anointing the feet of Jesus. Her life is perceived by the religious leader . . . she is a sinner. Jesus says she loves Him and He knows of her sins. He forgives her sins. In the Homily we hear more about this story. The Gospel today tells us God is merciful. The end of the Gospel . . . we hear the same words we hear within the sacrament of Reconciliation. Listen to this Meditation Media. Listen to: Jesus Tells Us …. Go In Peace, Your Sins are Forgiven --------------------------------- Image: The Anointing of Jesus' Feet: French Painter: James Tissot: 1900 This painting resides at The Brooklyn Museum. --------------------------------- Gospel Reading: Luke: 7: 36-50 First Reading: 1 COR: 15: 1-11

In Roman times it was easy to get married and also easy to get divorced. The Romans persecuted Christians. It is easy to lose your focus on Jesus with everything that is going on in the world. God does not call on us to have lots of relationships, you become a slave to sin. Finding the One is Jesus. Just to reiterate Jesus is the One!

In Roman times. Filled w idols. Thank you for listening! Please leave a 5 star review, share and subscribe!

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 14, 2024 is: Cupid • KYOO-pid • noun Cupid is the Roman god of erotic love. The word cupid in lowercase refers to a figure that represents Cupid as a naked usually winged boy often holding a bow and arrow. // She purchased a large Valentine's Day card decorated with hearts and cupids. See the entry > Examples: "Michelangelo's talent as a sculptor first drew attention after a failed attempt at art fraud. The cardinal who purchased his fake antique cupid statue was so impressed with Michelangelo's work that he invited the artist to Rome for a meeting." — The Williston (North Dakota) Daily Herald, 4 Mar. 2022 Did you know? According to Roman mythology, Cupid was the son of Mercury, the messenger god, and Venus, the goddess of love. In Roman times, the winged "messenger of love" was sometimes depicted in armor, but no one is sure if that was intended as a sarcastic comment on the similarities between warfare and romance, or a reminder that love conquers all. Cupid was generally seen as a good spirit who brought happiness to all, but his matchmaking could cause mischief. Venus wasn't above using her son's power to get revenge on her rivals, and she once plotted to have the beautiful mortal Psyche fall in love with a despicable man. But the plan backfired: Cupid fell in love with Psyche, and she eventually became his immortal wife.

Join us on a journey through the dynamic history of Greg Roman, the esteemed offensive coordinator, and his transformative strategies in the NFL. From his groundbreaking innovations to his remarkable adaptability, Roman's legacy has shaped the landscape of modern football. As the Los Angeles Chargers welcome Greg Roman to their coaching staff, anticipation brews for the electrifying changes he's set to bring to their offense. With a proven track record of success, Roman's strategic brilliance promises to elevate the Chargers' gameplay to unprecedented heights. From his early days with the San Francisco 49ers to his pivotal role in the Baltimore Ravens' offensive resurgence, Roman's playbook reflects a fusion of innovation and tradition. His knack for maximizing player potential and capitalizing on unique skill sets has consistently propelled his teams to offensive dominance. In Roman, the Chargers find not just a coordinator, but a visionary architect poised to revitalize their offense. #gregroman #ChargersOffense #NFLCoordinator #FootballStrategy #OffensiveInnovation and #GameChanger, this video dives deep into Roman's journey and the seismic impact he's poised to make in Los Angeles. Don't miss out on this exclusive insight into the evolution of one of football's brightest minds and the promising future he brings to the Los Angeles Chargers. If you enjoyed this video Tackle that Like button and Subscribe for more of the best Chargers content from the Legenday Bolt Bros. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ87YkBeHPdChl2JYwbGfjg?sub_confirmation=1 The most legendary brothers you know so well return for another video about the Los Angeles Chargers! Be sure to like and subscribe for more content for the Chargers! Social Media Links: https://www.Beacons.ai/boltbros https://discord.gg/mrGhTaybzd https://www.riverslake.org/ Bolt Bros Merch! https://nflshop.k77v.net/Ry9ymX https://www.boltbros.live/merch https://forms.gle/vp8sJeDkNr2XpdKW8 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bolt-bros-podcast/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bolt-bros-podcast/support

Many times over the centuries, earnest Christians have run out into the world to aggressively and passionately share Jesus, and the world doesn't always want to hear it.    John 15:19 says, “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own and as it is you don't belong to the world. But I have chosen you out of the world, and that is why the world hates you.”    And this is a hard truth. It's discouraging to missionaries at home and in other countries who want nothing more than to see everyone saved. The Bible even tells us that God wants all people to be saved, and that's the goal. Yet we know that'll never be.    Jesus brought life-giving truth to the masses in His day. Some of them tried to kill Him, and of course, some were eager to see Him crucified. His reminder to us was that if we have the mind of Christ and the modern world, things might get dicey for us. It's not like hoards of people are beating down the doors of churches so that they can hear and believe.    In this fallen and sinful state, man runs from the things of God. Both the Bible and history document this. In Roman times, the empire hunted Christians. They were even fed to wild animals for sport, and it's been that way all through the modern era. Remember the photos in recent years of ISIS terrorists escorting captured Christians to their executions? Pagan mind fights against God.    Knowing these things, we must resolve to ask God for courage to speak when opportunities present themselves. We also must keep in mind that boldness for Christ will cost us something. Maybe everything.    God and His Word also assures us that some are being saved. Kingdom is being added to daily, and this reality is enough for us to continue to be salt and light in a dark world.    Let's pray.    Father God, we ask you earnestly—send your spirit to people who need to hear Your Word. Help us to be willing to share Christ even when it's dangerous or uncomfortable. In Jesus' name, amen. 

Scripture Reading: Acts 6:8-7:53 Now Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. 9 But some men from the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, as well as some from Cilicia and the province of Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. 10 Yet they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. 11 Then they secretly instigated some men to say, “We have heard this man speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.” 12 They incited the people, the elders, and the experts in the law; then they approached Stephen, seized him, and brought him before the council. 13 They brought forward false witnesses who said, “This man does not stop saying things against this holy place and the law. 14 For we have heard him saying that Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.” 15 All who were sitting in the council looked intently at Stephen and saw his face was like the face of an angel.1 Then the high priest said, “Are these things true?” 2 So he replied, “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. The God of glory appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, 3 and said to him, ‘Go out from your country and from your relatives, and come to the land I will show you.' 4 Then he went out from the country of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, God made him move to this country where you now live. 5 He did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground, yet God promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him, even though Abraham as yet had no child. 6 But God spoke as follows: ‘Your descendants will be foreigners in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for 400 years. 7 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' said God, ‘and after these things they will come out of there and worship me in this place.' 8 Then God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him when he was eight days old, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the 12 patriarchs. 9 The patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt. But God was with him, 10 and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. 11 Then a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan, causing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. 12 So when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there the first time. 13 On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh. 14 So Joseph sent a message and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people in all. 15 So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, along with our ancestors, 16 and their bones were later moved to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a certain sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.17 “But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, the people increased greatly in number in Egypt, 18 until another king who did not know about Joseph ruled over Egypt. 19 This was the one who exploited our people and was cruel to our ancestors, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die. 20 At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful to God. For three months he was brought up in his father's house, 21 and when he had been abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. 22 So Moses was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds. 23 But when he was about forty years old, it entered his mind to visit his fellow countrymen the Israelites. 24 When he saw one of them being hurt unfairly, Moses came to his defense and avenged the person who was mistreated by striking down the Egyptian. 25 He thought his own people would understand that God was delivering them through him, but they did not understand. 26 The next day Moses saw two men fighting and tried to make peace between them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why are you hurting one another?' 27 But the man who was unfairly hurting his neighbor pushed Moses aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us? 28 You don't want to kill me the way you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you?' 29 When the man said this, Moses fled and became a foreigner in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.30 “After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and when he approached to investigate, there came the voice of the Lord, 32 ‘I am the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses began to tremble and did not dare to look more closely. 33 But the Lord said to him, ‘Take the sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have certainly seen the suffering of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.' 35 This same Moses they had rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge?' God sent as both ruler and deliverer through the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and miraculous signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years. 37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.' 38 This is the man who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors, and he received living oracles to give to you. 39 Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him, but pushed him aside and turned back to Egypt in their hearts, 40 saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go in front of us, for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt —we do not know what has happened to him!' 41 At that time they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away from them and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, house of Israel? 43 But you took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship, but I will deport you beyond Babylon.' 44 Our ancestors had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as God who spoke to Moses ordered him to make it according to the design he had seen. 45 Our ancestors received possession of it and brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our ancestors, until the time of David. 46 He found favor with God and asked that he could find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob. 47 But Solomon built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands, as the prophet says,49 ‘Heaven is my throne,and earth is the footstool for my feet.What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,or what is my resting place?50 Did my hand not make all these things?'51 “You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did! 52 Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They killed those who foretold long ago the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become! 53 You received the law by decrees given by angels, but you did not obey it.”Main ThemesStephenThe second half of chapter 6 focuses on one of the new leaders: Stephen. “Stephen” was a very common Greek name, but it was rare in Israel. (We have no evidence of any non-Hellenist Jews with that name.) Therefore, we have good reason to suspect Stephen belongs to the immigrant Hellenists.We are told that Stephen “full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and miraculous signs among the people” (Acts 6:8). For how long? That is unclear. The summary statements in the book of Acts (which were required to keep the length of the book short enough to fit in one scroll) can give a modern reader the impression that the action moves quicker than it really did.We have discussed the terms grace (meaning favor, empowerment, or both); power (empowerment through divine gift; in relation to proclamation, boldness); and the phrase “signs and wonders” (it evokes the miracles God performed in the exodus through Moses). So, I will not discuss those again. However, we should note that Stephen performing miraculous signs demonstrates that signs were not limited to the Twelve. Also, the language describing Stephen as performing signs among “the people,” conveys the idea of performing signs before Israel as a whole. The phrase “the people” was an expression referring to historic Israel. This is reminiscent of Old Testament prophets.Some Argued with StephenStephen faces resistance. From whom? His own people! Recall last week's discussion of Hebrews and Hellenists. The Hellenist widows complained that they were overlooked in the church's charity ministry—implying favoritism. In response, the church appointed seven leaders, including Stephen—all of them Hellenists. In this week's text, the resistance against Stephen comes from the Synagogue of the Freedmen, a synagogue of Hellenists. Perhaps the Hellenists felt responsible for disciplining members of their own community in Jerusalem. Perhaps the Hellenists felt threatened because many of their own were being converted.Quite possibly, Hellenists were a distinct community within Jerusalem, overseeing some of their own affairs. They may have lived in their own area of the city, seeking intervention from the general authorities only when escalating a matter.Synagogues and FreedmenSynagogues probably started outside Israel. We have records of synagogues in Egypt as early as the third century B.C. Synagogues were similar to, but in a sense much more than, modern churches. The term synagogue refers to local gatherings, formal or informal, that usually met in the same place. In the Diaspora the places of gathering were called “places of prayer.” Many synagogues were small and simple. Like a small country church, it was the activity that defined the synagogue and not the structure.Why do I say synagogues were more than churches? I do not mean this in a moral or spiritual sense but in a practical sense. Certainly they functioned religiously, but they also functioned as community courts, gathering sites for charity, collection points for funds for the temple, hostels, and banquet halls.The synagogue mentioned in Acts 6 is the Synagogue of the Freedmen. Freedmen were former slaves that had been manumitted (freed) and had become Roman citizens. The synagogue probably contained the children of freedmen as well. In Roman society, freedmen remained a distinct social group. They received lower seating in banquets, could not marry higher-class women, and could not serve in Roman legions. Many Jews brought to Rome as slaves under Pompey were soon freed, possibly through the financial help of other Jews.Stephen Punches BackThe members of the synagogue start the argument; Stephen ends it. We are told that “they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which [Stephen] spoke” (Acts 6:10).Presumably, that language means that Stephen was able to maintain the upper hand due to the miraculous signs that validated his message and due to his intellectually superior arguments as a result of his divinely given wisdom. (As I have discussed before, Judaism recognized God as the source of wisdom.)This scene is a fulfillment of Jesus' words.But when they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, do not worry about how you should make your defense or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you must say. Luke 12:11-12But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you, handing you over to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and governors because of my name. This will be a time for you to serve as witnesses. Therefore be resolved not to rehearse ahead of time how to make your defense. For I will give you the words along with the wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will have some of you put to death. You will be hated by everyone because of my name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives. Luke 21:12-19False Witnesses and False ChargesWhen the church needed leaders (earlier in chapter 6), they sought men of good reputation. The enemies of the church sought (“instigated,” in fact) the exact opposite, “false witnesses.” The witnesses attempt not only to have Stephen convicted but also to turn the people against him and, by extension, the Jesus movement. Notice the accusations:“We have heard this man speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.” Acts 6:11b“This man does not stop saying things against this holy place and the law. 14 For we have heard him saying that Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.” Acts 6:13b-14We will discuss the accusations at more length later, be we should note that they involve the temple. Stephen and the Jesus followers wished the temple destroyed—or so they were accused of. If true, this is a religiously shocking statement, but sometimes we forget more practical reasons why the masses may have been infuriated by such heresy. As Craig Keener writes:Much of Jerusalem's economy depended on the temple, in ways that sometimes would have applied to immigrant as well as native citizens. The temple establishment “required bakers, weavers, goldsmiths, washers, merchants of ointments and money changers.” Because it was still under construction, it required also stonemasons and carpenters; its completion (in 62– 64 C.E.) would create an estimated eighteen thousand unemployed workers (Jos. Ant. 20.219).To oppose the temple in first century Jerusalem was to preach against slavery in early 19th century Virginia; to preach against tobacco in 20th century North Carolina; or to preach against oil and gas in modern day Alaska. Nothing incites rage quite like advocating for a total economic collapse. Add the religious dimension to the mix and this is a lynching in the making. We should be aware that, sadly, the tale of Stephen and his accusers has similar precedent in the Old Testament. In the book of Kings we read of Jezebel and how she uses false witnesses against the pious man Ahab. The story is quoted below. I point this out to show that Stephen's accusers knew their behavior was wicked.She wrote out orders, signed Ahab's name to them, and sealed them with his seal. She then sent the orders to the leaders and to the nobles who lived in Naboth's city. This is what she wrote: “Observe a time of fasting and seat Naboth in front of the people. Also seat two villains opposite him and have them testify, ‘You cursed God and the king.' Then take him out and stone him to death.”The men of the city, the leaders, and the nobles who lived there followed the written orders Jezebel had sent them. They observed a time of fasting and put Naboth in front of the people. The two villains arrived and sat opposite him. Then the villains testified against Naboth right before the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they dragged him outside the city and stoned him to death. Then they reported to Jezebel, “Naboth has been stoned to death.” 1 Kings 21:8-14The ChargesLet's focus on the charges brought against Stephen. Albeit with slightly different wording each time, Stephen is thrice charged with opposing Moses (phrased as either Moses, the law, or the customs, all referring to one idea). He is twice charged with opposing the temple. He is once charged with opposing God. Perhaps the charge of opposing God was a broader way of restating the first two charges (opposing God's law and His temple).Both the temple and the law were central to first-century Judaism. The law contained what was most fundamental to Jewish heritage and practice and hence to the Jews' identity as a people. A challenge to the law was thus a challenge to their very understanding of their existence as a people, as well as a challenge to God the lawgiver and to what God required. Violation of the law's main tenets was grounds for conviction and terrible punishment.Profaning or even denouncing the temple might be viewed as worthy of death, especially to the Sadducees who controlled the temple. For example, a generation later, one Jesus ben Ananias prophesied the temple's demise, and this led to his arrest by the authorities and being handed over to the governor for a brutal flogging. Moreover, like I mentioned above, the temple was central to the city's identity and livelihood. Destroying the temple could have left nearly 20,000 people without jobs—in a city with a population somewhere between 60,000 and 100,000. It would have been devastating.The final version of the temple charge specifies Jesus as the temple's destroyer. Did Jesus say he would destroy the temple? No! This was a false claim in Jesus' trial as well.Many gave false testimony against him, but their testimony did not agree. Some stood up and gave this false testimony against him: “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands and in three days build another not made with hands.'” Yet even on this point their testimony did not agree. Mark 14:56-59Jesus said something similar yet entirely different.Jesus replied, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up again.” Then the Jewish leaders said to him, “This temple has been under construction for 46 years, and are you going to raise it up in three days?” But Jesus was speaking about the temple of his body. So after he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the saying that Jesus had spoken. John 2:19-22As we will see in Stephen's response, Stephen does argue for a certain antilocalization of God—that is, God's presence is more far reaching than the temple. Yet, Stephen is never anti-temple per se, so he probably did not preach against the temple either. Similarly, Jesus was not anti-law, so there is no reason to think Stephen was. Face Like and AngelChapter 6 ends on a powerful note. As Stephen's adversaries close in, his face looks like that of an angel. This statement hardly makes sense without a bit of Old and New Testament context. Let's begin with Moses seeing and then reflecting the glory of God.The LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the LORD by name. The LORD passed by before him and proclaimed: “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abounding in loyal love and faithfulness, keeping loyal love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. But he by no means leaves the guilty unpunished, responding to the transgression of fathers by dealing with children and children's children, to the third and fourth generation.” Exodus 34:5-7Now when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand—when he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to approach him. But Moses called to them, so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and Moses spoke to them. After this all the Israelites approached, and he commanded them all that the LORD had spoken to him on Mount Sinai. When Moses finished speaking with them, he would put a veil on his face. But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would remove the veil until he came out. Then he would come out and tell the Israelites what he had been commanded. When the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone, Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with the Lord. Exodus 34:29-35We must also recall the transfiguration of Jesus in the gospels.Now about eight days after these sayings, Jesus took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up the mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face was transformed, and his clothes became very bright, a brilliant white. Then two men, Moses and Elijah, began talking with him. They appeared in glorious splendor and spoke about his departure that he was about to carry out at Jerusalem. Now Peter and those with him were quite sleepy, but as they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. Then as the men were starting to leave, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three shelters, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he was saying. As he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. Then a voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One. Listen to him!” After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. So they kept silent and told no one at that time anything of what they had seen. Luke 9:28-36We should notice a few things. First, Moses' face really did shine. Exodus clearly means that description literally. In the case of Jesus' transfiguration, although the scene is more ethereal such that its description may be less literal, the witnessing apostles can still clearly see what is happening. The phenomenon described is real. So, in the case of Stephen's transfiguration (as is sometimes referred to by scholars), I think we should also take the event literally if perhaps ambiguously. I mention ambiguity because the text itself makes use of a figure of speech (face like an angel). This is entirely sensible; some events are hard to describe technically or precisely. Also notice the timing of Stephen's transfiguration. He becomes like Moses, reflecting the glory of God, as he is accused of opposing Moses. This seems like divine verification that Stephen is on God's side, and therefore on Moses' side as well.The TrialIntroductionThe narrative of the trial does not repeat the charges brought against Stephen. Nevertheless, as we read Stephen's response, we must keep the charges in mind. They are the proper framing of Stephen's long speech. In short, the two charges are that Stephen opposes the temple and the law.Stephen's death is a turning point in the narrative. The church passes from a phase of popularity in Jerusalem to one of persecution and scattering. Other Jewish sects kept their distance from the authorities, creating their own somewhat isolated communities. Jesus' followers, on the other hand, challenged the temple authorities claiming that Jesus was the true priest and his followers preached the true words of God. Conflict was inevitable.This is an important observation—that Christ's followers saw themselves as the truly pious Jews and not as a separate religion. Otherwise, we might be tempted to understand Stephen's speech anachronistically: as a Christian anti-Jewish message. Stephen does not oppose the temple; he argues that there is more to God's plan. Stephen does not even oppose the law. Much the opposite, he argues from the law! Jesus is the fulfillment of all the stories of old—the finale. Not a new and different story.In the ancient world, orators would often used quotations as proofs. In Stephen's case, his quotations are granted by all present as God's word. They carry significant weight in the argument. Almost the entire speech consists of retellings of sacred stories about the heroes of the faith.The Old Testament also used historical retrospectives to powerfully move God's people to repentance, sacrifice, and faithfulness. Consider, for example:When your children ask you later on, “What are the stipulations, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God commanded you?” you must say to them, “We were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt in a powerful way. And he brought signs and great, devastating wonders on Egypt, on Pharaoh, and on his whole family before our very eyes. He delivered us from there so that he could give us the land he had promised our ancestors. The Lord commanded us to obey all these statutes and to revere him so that it may always go well for us and he may preserve us, as he has to this day. We will be innocent if we carefully keep all these commandments before the Lord our God, just as he demands.” Exodus 6:20-25There are two axioms that are essential to understanding Stephen's speech. First, if one believes that these biblical stories are true, then one believes that the present times are a continuation of those stories. So, one may apply the patterns and lessons from those stories to the present day. Second, if one reads Scripture as Scripture, one will seek to emulate the good examples in it. Scripture becomes a model for life and even an interpretive grid—one understands life in light of biblical lessons.So, we should consider both of those axioms in relation to the charges brought against Stephen. After each tale told by Stephen, let's ask question like:(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled? AbrahamThe God of glory appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, and said to him, ‘Go out from your country and from your relatives, and come to the land I will show you.' Then he went out from the country of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, God made him move to this country where you now live. He did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground, yet God promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him, even though Abraham as yet had no child. But God spoke as follows: ‘Your descendants will be foreigners in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for 400 years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' said God, ‘and after these things they will come out of there and worship me in this place.' Then God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him when he was eight days old, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the 12 patriarchs. Acts 7:2b-8(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?Where did God appear to Abraham? In Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran. God did not act because Abraham was on or possessed the Holy Land. God can act anywhere. He is not restricted to the land. When did God appear to Abraham? Before the law was ever given. Neither possessing the Torah nor keeping it is what set Abraham apart.(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?At least in Stephen's summary of Abraham's life, Abraham is not persecuted by others. Of course, if we read his entire story in Genesis, Abraham did confront strong opposition and serious threats. However, Stephen makes clear that Abraham's story begins with him leaving his country. Leaving both kin and his land to follow God's plan. Following God may lead one to do such things.(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled?God promised Abraham the land as his possession and to his descendants after him. One would expect Abraham to own all the promised land by the end of his life. Is this what happens? “[God] did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground.” And if that is not surprising enough, God does not give Abraham a child until long after Abraham and his wife could hope for one. But wait, there's more! Abraham's descendants will not inherit the land until after they have moved to a foreign nation and been slaves for 400 years! Only after all that will they worship God “in this place”—that is, the land of Israel and the holy temple. However, God's promise did not fail, and to remind Abraham of God's faithfulness—of the “deal” they made—God gave Abraham a covenant sign: circumcision.JosephThe patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt. But God was with him, and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. Then a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan, causing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. So when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there the first time. On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh. So Joseph sent a message and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people in all. So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, along with our ancestors, and their bones were later moved to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a certain sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem. Acts 7:9-16(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?Joseph is taken to a foreign land, and God meant it for good!As for you, you meant to harm me, but God intended it for a good purpose, so he could preserve the lives of many people, as you can see this day. So now, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your little children.” Then he consoled them and spoke kindly to them. Genesis 50:20-21Not only does God take Joseph toa foreign land, then all of “their” ancestors (the ancestors of the Jewish people) must go to a foreign land seeking food. They would up remaining there for centuries. Joseph died there. Jacob died there. In fact all their ancestors (presumably referring to the 75 mentioned in the passage) died there. God's story is not restricted to the land of Israel.Nevertheless, the bones of the ancestors were taken to Shechem—to the land. Recall Joseph's words as he neared death.Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die. But God will surely come to you and lead you up from this land to the land he swore on oath to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath. He said, “God will surely come to you. Then you must carry my bones up from this place.” So Joseph died at the age of 110. After they embalmed him, his body was placed in a coffin in Egypt. Genesis 50:24-26Those are the last verses of the book of Genesis. Why would the bones of the Israelite ancestors be taken to the land? That's a key point of recounting Joseph's story. God is a god of promise. The fact that neither Joseph nor the other ancestors possessed the land does not mean that God's promises failed. Joseph certainly did not believe that. It meant that God's plan is larger in scope and history than a single generation can conceive.(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?In Stephen's retelling of Joseph's story, the action begins with Joseph leaving his kin and his land. Unlike Abraham who did so willingly, Joseph does so by force. He is sold into slavery and taken to Egypt. By whom? The patriarchs! Some of the most venerated figures in Jewish history cause the hero to be exiled. And, how is this hero regarded by the patriarchs? They are jealous of him and wish him harm. Again, exile from country and kin is a means used by God to accomplish his plans.(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled?In the land of Canaan—that is, the promised land—the patriarchs could not find food. How did God preserve them in the land, the very land God promised to them? Did God reverse the famine? No, God had already put a plan into to motion,, and it involved foreign lands. The patriarchs would find food and shelter in Egypt, which would take them out of the land for hundreds of years. This is neither how nor when (in the sense of timing) one would expect God to deliver on his promise.MosesStephen's section is lengthy, and we may not have time to reread it. That is why I bolded certain statement to “hit the high points.”“But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, the people increased greatly in number in Egypt, until another king who did not know about Joseph ruled over Egypt. This was the one who exploited our people and was cruel to our ancestors, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die. At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful to God. For three months he was brought up in his father's house, and when he had been abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. So Moses was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds. But when he was about forty years old, it entered his mind to visit his fellow countrymen the Israelites. When he saw one of them being hurt unfairly, Moses came to his defense and avenged the person who was mistreated by striking down the Egyptian. He thought his own people would understand that God was delivering them through him, but they did not understand. The next day Moses saw two men fighting and tried to make peace between them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why are you hurting one another?' But the man who was unfairly hurting his neighbor pushed Moses aside, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us? You don't want to kill me the way you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you?' When the man said this, Moses fled and became a foreigner in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.“After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and when he approached to investigate, there came the voice of the Lord, ‘I am the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses began to tremble and did not dare to look more closely. But the Lord said to him, ‘Take the sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. I have certainly seen the suffering of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.' This same Moses they had rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge?' God sent as both ruler and deliverer through the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. This man led them out, performing wonders and miraculous signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years. This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.' This is the man who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors, and he received living oracles to give to you. Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him, but pushed him aside and turned back to Egypt in their hearts, saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go in front of us, for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt —we do not know what has happened to him!' At that time they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands. But God turned away from them and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, house of Israel? But you took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship, but I will deport you beyond Babylon.' Acts 7:27-43(1) What is the pattern of God's actions particularly in relation to the land of Israel, the temple, the Torah, and the law?God chooses a man in a foreign land (Egypt), raised by foreigners (Pharaoh's daughter)! This is the man that was “beautiful to God.” Not only that, but Moses is doubly exiled. From Egypt he goes to Midian. Moses is selected and considered “beautiful” by God before God has given him the Torah or the law.(2) Must the hero suffer? How is the hero regarded by others? Is he rewarded for his piety?How is Moses treated by others? The Egyptians forced his mother to abandon him. The Israelites did not treat him much better. Moses defends the Israelites from the Egyptians. Do the Israelites see this as any kind of deliverance? Not at all. They “did not understand.” Moses tries to “make peace between” fellow Israelites, but they will not accept that either. Instead, they ask, “Who made you a ruler and judge over us?” In the story, Moses is their proper ruler and deliverer, but the people reject him.The story only gets worse. At the first opportunity, the Israelites abandon Moses and God. They claim they do not know what has happened to him and demand a calf to worship. Most shockingly, Stephen applies a prophecy from the book of Amos to imply that Israel continued in their idolatry permanently. Even in the wilderness, as they obeyed God, their hearts were directed at another.(3) Does God act in predictable ways? Are God's promises fulfilled how people expect them to be fulfilled? Are God's promises fulfilled when people expect them to be fulfilled?God chooses an unlikely hero. As I said above, a man in a foreign land, raised by a foreign people, and rejected by the Israelites. Yet, he is favored by God before he enters the land, before he receives the law, and before he obeys the law.Perhaps more surprising than God delivering his people through Moses is the response of God's people. If one were simply guessing at the story of God and the deliverance of his people, one would think that when salvation finally arrives the people would be joyful, grateful, and ultimately obedient. Yet one would be mistaken. The people turn from both their human deliverer and their divine deliverer at every turn. After God's great miracles in Egypt, the people are ready to worship a calf. Even after the law is given, the people obey hypocritically and wish for other gods.And more surprising still, the great deliverance of God's people from Egypt is not the final fulfillment of God's promise to “Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” No, this man “who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai” speaks of someone else. Another prophet like him will come. The surprises are not over.Preliminary ConclusionsWe will discuss the end of the chapter next week. I wish we had more time because everything we discussed today builds up to the mention of David—their greatest king—and the temple—the House of the Lord.But perhaps there is something good about pausing for a minute. We need to ask: what are the points that Stephen is trying to make by retelling the stories of Abraham, Joseph, and Moses?Truly, the main point goes beyond any particular parallel between Jesus and either Abraham, Joseph, or Moses (although those are important). The core of Stephen's argument is about God and his redemptive plan.Is God restricted to the land of Israel? No! God often acts outside of Israel. In His plans, God has disposed of any land as he saw fit.Is God restricted to the Torah and the law? No! God does not need to show exclusive favor to or act exclusively through those who have the Torah or follow his law. God has been acting in history and choosing people well before the Torah or the law had been delivered.Is God's plan of redemption narrow and mechanical? Is it about the Jews and the land of Israel? Is that where God resides in a special and exclusive way? As we will see in the last few verses of chapter 7: no! God was just as present in Egypt and Midian as he was in Israel. If it fits God's plan, God himself will take his people out of the promised land for centuries at a time.Put differently, Stephen's main point is that the Jews of his day place the wrong interpretive grid on the Old Testament. If perhaps simplistically, one could summarize the Jews' perspective as being that God's plan was to establish the Jews in Israel, given the the Torah, teach them to obey the law within it, and reside in the temple. Stephen, representative of Jesus' followers, is trying to show that the correct interpretive grid is quite different. God is a god of promise. He has been acting in history for thousands of years (if we start counting merely from the time of Abraham) towards a redemptive goal. Whenever his promises seemed to fail, they didn't. They were part of a grander plan. Whenever his promises seemed to be fulfilled, they weren't. The people of God still rejected him. But this too was part of a grander plan. Moses himself, this man who spoke with God, spoke of it. Another prophet would come. If the people of God misunderstood every other prophet, should we expect them to recognize that final prophet? No.Stephen's argument is neither against the law nor the temple. It is about whether those things are the fulfillment of God's promise or a step towards a greater fulfillment. It is in this sense that Christians today and Stephen in ancient Israel say that all the Old Testament is about Jesus.

词汇提示1.invincible 不可战胜的2.evergreen 常青树3.mistletoe 槲寄生4.ceiling 天花板5.dowries 嫁妆6.chimney 烟囱7.reindeer 驯鹿8.carols 圣诞颂歌原文Christmas HolidaysIn many ways, Christmas is the most important holiday in North America.It is the most important commercial festival.Most retail stores do half of their annual business in the six weeks or so before Christmas.Christmas is an important holiday from work and school.Many workers take the whole week off between Christmas and New Year's Day.It is the biggest time of the year for parties gift-giving, home decorations and visiting.Many homeowners compete to see who can have the best display of lights.It is also an important time for the entertainment industry.Many Christmas movies, TV shows, recordings, concerts and plays are produced every year for the Christmas season.It is also the time of year when the largest number of people attend church, because Christmas is a religious festival too.It celebrates the birthday of Jesus.How all these different things came together to become Christmas is a long story.Why,for example, is Jesus' birthday celebrated on December 25th?No one knows the exact day that Jesus was born.But,Jesus was born during the Roman Empire and, for the Romans, December 25th was a very important day.The Romans had many gods and many religions.Two religions, both of which had one main god, were the worship of the Invincible Sun and of Mithras.These gods were both honored on December 25th.Because December 25th was just after the shortest day of the year, it was a natural time to worship the sun.December was also a time to celebrate the end of the agriculture year.The Romans held one of their main festivals, the Saturnalia, beginning on December 17th.It lasted for a week.The Romans also began the custom of celebrating New Year's Day on January 1st.So the last half of December and the beginning of January was a wonderful time for partying and games.The early Christians didn't know what day Jesus was born.At first, they celebrated his birthday on January 6th.However,as most of the people in the Roman Empire were becoming Christians, it was decided to move the date to December 25th.The celebration lasted twelve days until January 6th, and took the place of all other festivals.That way, people who were used to celebrating on December 25th would feel more comfortable.As different peoples became Christian, they brought their own customs to be part of Christmas.The people of northern Europe used evergreen trees and mistletoe as symbols of spring and eternal life.The evergreen tree became the Christmas tree.The mistletoe is hung from the ceiling at Christmas for couples to kiss under it.It was also in northern Europe where the idea of Santa Claus, or Father Christmas,began.In Roman times, there was a man who became known as Saint Nicholas.He is said to have given gifts to the poor and provided dowries for poor girls who wouldn't otherwise be able to marry.The idea of the gift-giving Saint became joined with the northern idea of Spirit of Christmas festivities.It was a poem written in 1831 by the American writer, Clement Moore,which popularized Santa Claus throughout the world."Twas the night before Christmas..."told the story of how Santa visits every house in the world on Christmas Eve and brings toys for good girls and boys.Since that time, parents have secretly bought toys for their children at Christmas.When the children awake on Christmas Day, they find toys by the chimney, or under the Christmas tree.They are told that Santa Claus and his reindeer brought them.Adults also give gifts to each other at Christmas time.No wonder that the stores sell so many things then! It is often said that Christmas is becoming too commercialized.In the rush to get everything ready--to buy the gifts, decorate the house and tree, give parties, visit family and friends, and attend special Christmas events the original reason for celebrating is sometimes forgotten.Only when people go to church, or sing Christmas carols, or attend musical performances about Jesus' birth,do they remember that Christmas is the birthday of Christ.翻译圣诞假期在许多方面，圣诞节是北美最重要的节日。它是最重要的商业节日。大多数零售商店在圣诞节前的六周左右完成了一半的年度业务。圣诞节是一个远离工作和学校的重要节日。许多工人在圣诞节和新年之间休整整一周的假。这是一年中聚会、赠送礼物、装饰家庭和参观的最大时刻。许多房主竞相看谁能拥有最好的灯光。对于娱乐业来说，这也是一个重要的时期。每年都会为圣诞节制作许多圣诞电影、电视节目、唱片、音乐会和戏剧。这也是一年中去教堂的人最多的时候，因为圣诞节也是一个宗教节日。它庆祝耶稣的生日。所有这些不同的东西是如何结合在一起成为圣诞节的，这是一个很长的故事。例如，为什么耶稣的生日是在12月25日?没有人知道耶稣出生的确切日期。但是，耶稣出生在罗马帝国时期，对罗马人来说，12月25日是一个非常重要的日子。罗马人有许多神和许多宗教。两种宗教，都有一个主神，是对无敌太阳和密特拉的崇拜。这些神都在12月25日受到尊崇。因为12月25日是一年中白天最短的一天，所以这是一个崇拜太阳的自然时间。12月也是庆祝农业年结束的时候。罗马人从12月17日开始举行他们的主要节日之一农神节。它持续了一个星期。罗马人还开始了在1月1日庆祝新年的习俗。因此，12月的下半月和1月初是聚会和游戏的美好时光。早期的基督徒不知道耶稣是哪一天出生的。起初，他们在1月6日庆祝他的生日。然而，由于罗马帝国的大多数人都成为基督徒，于是决定将日期改为12月25日。庆祝活动持续了12天，直到1月6日，并取代了所有其他节日。这样，习惯在12月25日庆祝的人们会感觉更舒服。随着不同的民族成为基督徒，他们带来了自己的习俗，成为圣诞节的一部分。北欧人用常青树和槲寄生作为春天和永恒生命的象征。常青树变成了圣诞树。圣诞节时，人们会把槲寄生挂在天花板上，让情侣们在它下面接吻。圣诞老人或圣诞老人的想法也是在北欧开始的。在罗马时代，有一个人被称为圣尼古拉斯。据说他给穷人送礼物，并为那些无法结婚的贫穷女孩提供嫁妆。送礼物的圣人的想法与北方的圣诞节庆祝活动的精神结合在一起。1831年，美国作家克莱门特·摩尔写了一首诗，这首诗使圣诞老人在全世界家喻户晓。“这是圣诞节的前一夜……”讲述了圣诞老人如何在圣诞夜拜访世界上的每户人家，并为乖孩子们带来玩具的故事。从那时起，父母们就会在圣诞节偷偷地给孩子们买玩具。当孩子们在圣诞节醒来时，他们在烟囱旁或圣诞树下找到玩具。他们被告知是圣诞老人和他的驯鹿带来的。成年人也会在圣诞节互赠礼物。难怪商店那时卖这么多东西!人们常说圣诞节变得太商业化了。在匆忙准备一切的时候——买礼物，装饰房子和圣诞树，举办聚会，拜访家人和朋友，参加特别的圣诞活动——庆祝的最初原因有时被遗忘了。只有当人们去教堂，或唱圣诞颂歌，或参加有关耶稣诞生的音乐表演时，他们才会记得圣诞节是基督的生日。

In dieser Radioreise nimmt Sie Alexander Tauscher mit nach Frankreich in die Region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Diesen Urlaub verbringen wir also wir sind im Südosten der Grande Nation. Dabei verbringen wir einen großen Teil der Zeit in der Metropole Lyon. Die drittgrößte Stadt des Landes nach Paris und Marseille gilt als kulinarisches Zentrum Frankreichs. Beim Besuch in einem Bouchon erleben wir die Lyoner Küche und sprechen über die reichhaltigen Zutaten, die rund um die Metropole gedeien. Natürlich darf der Beaujolais dabei nicht fehlen. Claire Wicart zeigt uns die schönsten Orte dieser Stadt an der Saône und Rhône. Von Lyon reisen wir weiter nach Valence, wo wir unter anderen über Anne-Sophie Pic, eine der besten Köchinnen Frankreichs, sprechen. Stephane Fortier beschreibt uns all die Vorzüge von Valence als Stadt zwischen dem Norden und dem Süden Frankreichs, fast schon als Tor zur Provence. In Roman-sur-Isère führt uns Sophie Duclot durch das Schuhmuseum. Später führt uns Barbara Schmidt-Borja in Tain-l'Hermitage durch den berühmten Garten ihres Neffen Erik Borja. Ein-Märchen-Palais des Postbooten Ferdinand Cheval besuchen wir in der kleinen Gemeinde Hauterives im Department Drôme. Dort erzählt uns Museumsleiter Fréderic le Gros die Geschichte eines Briefträgers, dessen Gedanken um die ganze Welt kreisten. Und Irène Tronchet von der Tourismusregion Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes nennt uns am Ende noch viele weitere Gründe, um diesen Teil Frankreichs zu besuchen. Wir wünschen ganz viel Spaß beim Urlaub im Land der Trikolore!

In Roman times are a marvel of architecture. Thanks for listening! Please share, subscribe, and leave a 5 star review!

In Roman times, Diana was known as the goddess of the hunt — but nowadays, Queen Camilla is the British aristocrat most associated with the countryside past-time. In episode four of Windsors & Losers's "The Camilla Season," hosts Eva and Allie revisit Camilla's long association with the world of ponies and, eventually, hunting. It's a passion she shared with husband King Charles III — that is, until it was ruled illegal and the royals had to stop terrorizing foxes on horseback. We take a look back at Camilla's inherited love of all things horse, and — for better or worse — try to unpack the psychological connection between hunting and... yes... sex.

AcknowledgementThank you to my colleague, Mr. Sean Maddigan, M.Ed., for his assistance in the research and formulation of many of the finer points of the atonement of Christ in this episode. Thanks, Sean!Perception of Serious Problems - Selling Indulgences?If you say the word “indulgences” to most people today, they would bring up Martin Luther. However, indulgences have been explicitly preached in Catholic theology since the 11th Century, and there have been reductions of penalties since at least the 9th Century. So, where and when does Martin Luther enter the scene?On October 31, 1517, Fr. Martin Luther an Augustinian monk and lecturer at the University in Wittenberg, Germany, issued his propositions for debate concerning the question of indulgences. The proposed debate was intended to be with Fr. Johann Tetzel, a German Dominican friar and preacher. Fr. Tetzel was an appointed papel commissioner for indulgences and was sent to his native Germany to make money to help build St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.From 1503 to 1510, Tetzel preached on indulgences and was effective in doing so. There are countless modern sources which say that Pope Julius II authorized the sale of indulgences, and that, likewise, Pope Leo X sold indulgences too and used the money to build the magnificent St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. However, the claim that indulgences, as such, were sold seems to be a myth. At one time, one of the spiritual acts that you could receive an indulgence for is contributing to a charitable cause, such as the building of a church. Charitable organizations offer incentives today to increase donations. In the 16th Century, the building fund of St. Peter's Basilica did increase as the result of Tetzel preaching indulgences. There were absolutely abuses in the practice of indulgences, to be sure! But it is important to understand what they actually are. One of the main contributing factors to knowledge of the controversy was Martin Luther's “95 Theses.” In Luther's time, and especially now, there is no end to the horribly wrong interpretations of the Catholic teaching on indulgences. I have also had a few friends ask if I'd be willing to do an episode on indulgences. So, here you go, gents!Catholic Understanding of AtonementAfter the Fall of Adam and Eve, it was fitting that the atonement or reconciliation of mankind be made by a man. However, what mere man could stand in place of all of humanity? When Jesus Christ died on the Cross, He did so as fully God and fully man. Thus, His death and resurrection were offered in our place, in His humanity, and offered perfectly, in His divinity. In the sixth Session of the Council of Trent, chapter ii, we hear:“Whence it came to pass, that the Heavenly Father, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort (2 Corinthians 1, 3), when that blessed fullness of the time was come (Galatians 4:4) sent unto men Jesus Christ, His own Son who had been, both before the Law and during the time of the Law, to many of the holy fathers announced and promised, that He might both redeem the Jews, who were under the Law and that the Gentiles who followed not after justice might attain to justice and that all men might receive the adoption of sons. Him God had proposed as a propitiator, through faith in His blood (Romans 3:25), for our sins, and not for our sins only, but also for those of the whole world (I John ii, 2).”There are a lot of things to unpack here. God the Father sent His Son, who was foretold, to redeem the Jews and the Gentiles. This redemption brought with it adoption of each of us by God the Father, in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit. The reconciliation or atonement (literally meaning to become “at one” with), comes through the propitiation of sins merited by Jesus' death on the Cross. The just wrath of God earned by our sin was turned away by the self-offering (the sacrifice and oblation) of our Lord Jesus on the Cross. By His wounds, we are healed, quoting the Prophet Isaiah. The Nicene Creed we profess each Sunday at Mass reminds us of this reality:“who for us men and for our salvation, came down, took flesh, was made man; and suffered…”Jesus did not come for Himself, He came to give His life as a ransom for many. We say “many” because not everyone will accept this gift, sad to say. However, this does not diminish that the gift of Christ's atonement was won for all mankind, without exception. But what is this ransom? Who was holding the souls of the fallen men? It is the Enemy, Satan.In his commentary on Psalm 95, St. Augustine puts it this way:“Men were held captive under the devil and served the demons, but they were redeemed from captivity. For they could sell themselves. The Redeemer came, and gave the price; He poured forth his blood and bought the whole world. Do you ask what He bought? See what He gave, and find what He bought. The blood of Christ is the price. How much is it worth? What but the whole world? What but all nations? (Enarration on Psalm 95, no. 5).”He goes on to explain, in a figure of speech that the Cross was like a trap for the Enemy:"The Redeemer came and the deceiver was overcome. What did our Redeemer do to our Captor? In payment for us He set the trap, His Cross, with His blood for bait. He [Satan] could indeed shed that blood; but he deserved not to drink it. By shedding the blood of One who was not his debtor, he was forced to release his debtors (Serm. cxxx, part 2).”The debt owed to Divine Justice was paid in full by Jesus Christ. Divine Justice was satisfied. But not everyone agreed with St. Augustine's reasoning. St. Anselm and Peter Abelard, for example, rejected the notion that Satan had some sort of right over man. St. Anselm held that an equal satisfaction for sin was necessary to pay the debt to Divine Justice. Abelard, though, did not hold to this strict notion of satisfaction and he argued that God could have pardoned us without requiring satisfaction. So, the Incarnation and the death of Chirst was the pure love of God. And Abelard was condemned by St. Bernard for this view because he argued the effect of the atonement was only moral influence and not any objective payment of a debt.St. Thomas Aquinas, later, agreed with Abelard in rejecting the notion that full satisfaction was necessary. He agrees with Abelard in so far as the atonement was the greatest demonstration of love, but still holds that under God's economy of salvation, the sacrifice of Christ objectively paid the debt of justice (which Abelard denied). Restoring mankind to grace was a work of God's mercy and goodness. It was fitting that Christ should die on the Cross to show the depths of God's love for us, but not absolutely necessary. Along the ages, Blessed Duns Scotus and St. Bernard of Clairvaux had differing opinions than Abelard and Aquinas.Though there is disagreement among theologians throughout the ages, what is shared among them is this. The Atonement is essentially a sacrifice and an act of love. The outward Sacrifice is the sacrament of the invisible sacrifice which comes from the heart of God. As the Catholic Encyclopedia puts it so well:“It was by this inward sacrifice of obedience unto death, by this perfect love with which He laid down his life for His friends, that Christ paid the debt to justice, and taught us by His example, and drew all things to Himself; it was by this that He wrought our Atonement and Reconciliation with God, ‘making peace through the blood of His Cross.'”Imperfect in the Old, Perfect in the NewIn the Old Covenants, the Jewish people would offer “sin-offerings” in which a cereal offering or animal was immolated, offered to God in worship, and then consumed by the priest. Likewise, we get the word scapegoat from the ancient practice of placing, so to speak, all of the sins of the town onto a goat and then releasing the goat to wander into the wilderness, presumably to die. This ancient notion of atonement was no clearer than on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The Day of Atonement is centered upon repentance, fasting, asceticism, and the confession of sins. However, the annual nature of this event shows that it is an incomplete and imperfect atonement. Atonement is made perfect in Jesus Christ, who died once for the sins of man and then rose from the dead, to die no more. In the Holy Mass, Christ does not die again. Instead, the Cross of Christ, a propitiatory Sacrifice is renewed daily in a bloodless manner on the altar. What Is An Indulgence?What does any of this have to do with indulgences? Well, everything, really. An indulgence is classically the remission of a debt. In Roman law, it meant to be release from imprisonment or punishment. The Catholic Encyclopedia defines an indulgence as “a remission of the temporal punishment due to sin, the guilt of which has been forgiven.”So, an indulgence is not permission to sin, it is not stockpiling forgiveness for a future action, nor does it forgive sin or the guilt of sin. An indulgence presumes that God has already forgiven the person receiving it! What is being remitted is the temporal punishment due to sin.Our sins affect us, our relationship with God, and our relationship with others. Particularly egregious sins, like rape and murder, have lasting effects which cannot be put right this side of Heaven. And putting things right is in the nature of justice. God will always set things right, one way or another, though we might not see it until the end of things. Nonetheless, once someone experiences contrition, there is a deep desire, rooted in justice, to make restitution. Imagine that you are a kid playing baseball in the street. Of course, this is a bad idea. Mistakes will happen. You know this, and, yet, you wrongly believe that you are special. So, nothing bad will happen. You will hit the ball perfectly and everything will be just fine. Then… you hit the ball and it goes sailing through Mrs. Johnson's bay window. Immediately, you feel terrible about it. You did not mean for anything to be broken. You experience contrition for the wrong you have done. You knew, of course, that you should not be playing baseball in the street. What did you expect to happen?! Now, you have a choice: run away and hide or go and fess up to what you have done. You decide to go and ask for forgiveness. You ring the doorbell and Mrs. Johnson answers. You immediately apologize for breaking the window and tell her that you are truly sorry. And she forgives you! … That's it, right? That's the end of the story?... No way! You still have to make restitution. You have to pay for the window. In this example, we can see analogously, how we can be forgiven for something, but justice still demands restitution, satisfaction, and even punishment. This distinction between forgiveness and the temporal punishment due to sin seems to have gone by the wayside in Protestant theology over the last five hundred years. Really, if we look at it with fresh eyes, hopefully we can see that it is basic common sense that a wrong done demands restitution. So, why can Protestants not go there? The answer really has to do with Martin Luther. In Luther's view, we can do nothing to merit our salvation and Catholics agree we cannot merit the gift of initial justification; it is completely a gratuitous gift from God whereby we are covered by Jesus Christ. Nothing in the Lutheran view demands cooperation with grace or even the internal change brought about by Baptism, which Catholicism has always held. How, Theologically, Does an Indulgence Work?But with Baptism there is a true change, right down to the core of our being. And grace is given, but our free cooperation is necessary. God's love does not force itself upon us. This means that our good actions, united with Christ, are meritorious. Our sinful actions require restitution. The Atonement won by Jesus Christ on the Cross is superabundantly meritorious, to use the language of the Church. When we unite our actions with the Cross, they do not add to the merits of Jesus Christ, but they come into communion with them. Likewise, the forgiveness of sins is a communion with the Cross of Jesus Christ! But, in justice, our bad actions still require temporal punishment and restitution. As the 14th Session of the Council of Trent puts it:“Add to these things, that, whilst we thus, by making satisfaction, suffer for our sins, we are made conformable to Jesus Christ, who satisfied for our sins, from whom all our sufficiency is; having also thereby a most sure pledge, that if we suffer with him, we shall also be glorified with him. But neither is this satisfaction, which we discharge for our sins, so our own, as not to be through Jesus Christ. For we who can do nothing of ourselves, as of ourselves, can do all things, He cooperating, who strengthens us. Thus, man has not wherein to glory, but all our glorying is in Christ: in whom we live; in whom we merit; in whom we satisfy; bringing forth fruits worthy of penance, which from him have their efficacy; by him are offered to the Father; and through him are accepted by the Father (The Council of Trent: On the necessity and on the fruit of Satisfaction).”Some Protestants hold to the erroneous view of “penal substitution” which is a theory of the atonement that holds that God punished Jesus on the Cross. But there is one glaringly huge problem: an innocent person cannot be justly punished. Jesus took upon Himself the sufferings and death that were due to our sins, but He did not take on the just punishment for our sins.Understanding How Christ Took on Our Punishment (And What That Means)Jesus Christ took our punishment upon Himself. As St. Thomas teaches:“Now by Christ's Passion we have been delivered not only from the common sin of the whole human race, both as to its guilt and as to the debt of punishment, for which He paid the penalty on our behalf (ST III, q. 49, a. 5, co.).”When discussing the fittingness of the death of Christ, St. Thomas also mentions:“... in this way Christ by His death brought us back to life, when by His death He destroyed our death; just as he who bears another's punishment takes such punishment away (ST III, q. 50, a. 1, ad. 3).”Satisfaction means taking up a penalty voluntarily in order to restore justice. St. Thomas Aquinas speaks of taking up this voluntary penalty as someone experiencing something against the will out of charity. In the case of sin and justice, in charity this action makes up for sin because sin is voluntarily doing one's own will at the expense of charity. In other words, satisfaction derives its power from the strength of the charity of the one offering it. There is no need for Jesus to suffer the pains of Hell to save us because even one drop of His Precious Blood could have satisfied the wrath of God. The payment of Jesus, who is sinless and perfect in charity, merits not only release from punishment. By the Cross, He merits for us eternal life!When a debt is to be paid, the punishment is measured. In merit, the root of charity is measured. When one merits for another, he merits more for himself. Yet, when one satisfies for another, he does not also satisfy for himself, because the measure of punishment still covers both him and the one on whose behalf he is satisfying. In the case of Jesus, who is without sin, He has no debt to pay. He is satisfying for sinful men out of perfect charity. The punishment He bore made satisfaction for the sins of all mankind and merited more than any man is capable of: eternal life!Back to IndulgencesTemporal punishment acknowledges that the eternal punishment for sin has been taken away on the Cross, but the temporal consequences of sin still remain. These temporal effects of sin require restitution, to the ability that we are able. We ought to make amends for wrongs done. Expiation, satisfaction, amends, and reparation all mean the same thing when referring to the temporal consequences and punishment due to sin.Going back to this notion of the superabundant merits of Christ on the Cross, we can also add all of the meritorious actions of the Baptized faithful through the ages, most notably the saints. The Treasury of Merit, as it is called, is the collection of the perfect, infinite, and superabundant merits of our Lord Jesus Christ, the expansive merits of our Blessed Mother and St. Joseph, and the merits of all the just. Our Lord gave to St. Peter, and to the Apostles and their successors, the authority to apply the fruits of these merits at their discretion when He said: “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Mt. 16:18-19).”Likewise, in St. John's Gospel, Jesus says to the Apostles, and their successors by extension:“And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld (Jn. 20:22-24).”When a confessor gives absolution to a penitent in the Sacrament of Penance, he is applying this forgiveness of sins which comes from God alone, through the instrument of the priest and the Church. Our guilt for sin and eternal punishment for sin are absolved, but the temporal punishment for sin remains. An indulgence is outside of the sacraments and it does not forgive sins. Instead, it applies the satisfaction of the Treasury of Merit to an individual thereby remitting their temporal punishment due to sin. In other words, by the merits of Christ and the saints, the debt of temporal restitution has been paid in full. The superabundant merits belong to God's mercy and justice, not to the Church absolutely. So, these concessions or diminishments of punishment are administered by the Church but they come from God as a free gift. There is value in what Christ has done for us. But there is also value in what Christ does through us. Either way, the primary action is God. But with our cooperation, we unite ourselves with the Sacred Action of Jesus. As St. Paul said:"Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church (Col. 1:24).”What could possibly be lacking in the sufferings of Christ, except for our cooperation with His grace and our own meritorious actions? Not only do our good actions possess the value or merit, they also certainly possess the value of satisfaction.Luther Had a Couple Good Points, But a Lot of ErrorsIt must be said that Martin Luther had some great points in his 95 Theses. In fact, only 41 propositions of Luther's from the 95 Theses and his other writings up to that point, were rejected as heretical, scandalous, erroneous, seductive of simple minds, in opposition to Catholic truth, or offensive to pious ears by Pope Leo X in 1520. Let us look at the first three of the 95 Theses:* “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, ‘Repent'' (Mt 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.* This word cannot be understood as referring to the sacrament of penance, that is, confession and satisfaction, as administered by the clergy.* Yet it does not mean solely inner repentance; such inner repentance is worthless unless it produces various outward mortification of the flesh.”All three of these are true. Interior repentance is a reorienting of one's entire life, not just a momentary “I'll try a bit harder.” This call of our Lord to repentance does not refer to the Sacrament of Penance because it is a call which is first addressed to those who do not yet know Christ and the Gospel. And finally, interior conversion should find expression in visible signs, gestures, and penitential actions. It does seem, though, that Luther is presupposing that indulgences were being sold, with official authorization. This myth is prevalent today and it appears it was in Luther's day as well. Indulgences are drawn from the Treasury of Merit and applied freely when those seeking them fulfill the requirements with proper disposition. Luther's 95 Theses presents many theological errors in this regard. These errors are still being repeated today. For example, this 2009 article from “The New York Times” which gets it wrong from the title (the content of the article only goes from wrong to worse, by the way): “For Catholics, a Door to Absolution is Reopened.”By the way, to show just how seriously the Church took these abuses, Pope St. Pius V, in 1567, issued a decree which canceled all grants of indulgences involving any fees or other financial transactions.Seeking an IndulgenceMany Catholics think that indulgences, per se, were an abuse. They are not. And though it was a focal point in the Protestant Reformation, indulgences did not go anywhere. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church stated in the 1990s:"An indulgence is obtained through the Church who, by virtue of the power of binding and loosing granted her by Christ Jesus, intervenes in favor of individual Christians and opens for them the treasury of the merits of Christ and the saints to obtain from the Father of mercies the remission of the temporal punishment due for their sins… to spur them to works of devotion, penance, and charity" (CCC 1478).Everything that I have presented about indulgences belongs to the infallible teachings of the Church. We are not at liberty to dismiss them, diminish them, or disbelieve in them. The Council of Trent's anathema makes this clear:The Council of Trent "condemns with anathema those who say that indulgences are useless or that the Church does not have the power to grant them."The Church does not remit temporal punishment due to sin with magic or the wave of a pen. The person who suffers those temporal punishments must be disposed to repentance and faith. As Pope St. Paul VI said:"Indulgences cannot be gained without a sincere conversion of outlook and unity with God (Indulgentarium Doctrina, 11).”Before the Second Vatican Council, indulgences were said to remove a certain number of “days” from punishment. Instead, this was to show that indulgences have two types: plenary and partial. Plenary, meaning full, means that all temporal punishment due to sin that a person owed is being remitted. Whereas, a partial indulgence remits part of the temporal punishment due to sin. In order to make this clearer, Pope St. Paul VI revised the handbook of indulgences (called the Enchiridion).As we have covered, satisfaction and temporal punishment for sin are ordered towards justice on the one hand and purification on the other hand. So, the actions for which one might receive an indulgence should likewise be ordered to justice, charity, and purification. Because the justice of God has been satisfied through the merits of Christ and the saints, applied to our lives, then the “time,” so to speak, needed for purification in charity after death has been lessened. Just as a checkpoint or reminder: indulgences remit the temporal punishment due to sin, not eternal punishment. Eternal punishment is remitted fully by the Cross of Jesus Christ, the merits of which we receive in the Sacrament of Baptism. Knowing rightly what an indulgence is, how can we receive this great gift? Please forgive the following lengthy quotation, but Jimmy Akin put it concisely and excellently in his Primer on Indulgences for EWTN:“To gain any indulgence you must be a Catholic in a state of grace. You must be a Catholic in order to be under the Church's jurisdiction, and you must be in a state of grace because apart from God's grace none of your actions are fundamentally pleasing to God (meritorious). You also must have at least the habitual intention of gaining an indulgence by the act performed.To gain a partial indulgence, you must perform with a contrite heart the act to which the indulgence is attached.To gain a plenary indulgence you must perform the act with a contrite heart plus you must go to confession (one confession may suffice for several plenary indulgences), receive Holy Communion, and pray for the pope's intentions. (An Our Father and a Hail Mary said for the pope's intentions are sufficient, although you are free to substitute other prayers of your own choosing.) The final condition is that you must be free from all attachment to sin, including venial sin.Because of the extreme difficulty in meeting the final condition, plenary indulgences are rarely obtained. If you attempt to receive a plenary indulgence, but are unable to meet the last condition, a partial indulgence is received instead.”The Church offers us special indulgences, both plenary and partial, for all sorts of things. But there are a couple of partial indulgences worth mentioning here. Partial indulgences are given by the Church for: * Devoutly spending time in mental prayer, * Reading Sacred Scripture with veneration as a form of spiritual reading (this one is plenary if done for at least 30 minutes), * Devoutly signing oneself with the Sign of the Cross and saying the customary formula: “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”ConclusionIndulgences are not magic. They are a part of the infallible teaching of the Church. And they are for our spiritual well-being. We should not be wary of officially promulgated indulgences. We should be grateful to God for His superabundant mercy and His justice. Recognizing that we are sinners in need of His grace, we approach the Sacrament of Penance. Then, we do penance to seek temporal satisfaction and restitution for the consequences of our sins. All the while, we ought to seek out indulgences, because they are nothing more than being union and communion with Almighty God and striving to be more in love with Him who loved us first.Will Wright Catholic Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Will Wright Catholic Podcast at www.willwrightcatholic.com/subscribe

The ninth day of the challenge is all about the divine feminine – healing the inner goddess within each of us. We often forget to nurture and love ourselves, and this day is a reminder to do just that.Venus is the goddess of love, beauty, and pleasure. She is associated with the principles of harmony, elegance, and grace. In art and literature, she is often depicted as the ideal of feminine beauty. In Roman mythology, she was the forerunner of the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite.The Venus gong is a powerful tool for healing the divine feminine within us. It helps us to connect with our goddess energy, and to cultivate qualities of love, beauty, and pleasure in our lives.This day's challenge is to write a poem or piece of prose about the divine feminine. Use the Venus gong to connect with your inner goddess, and allow her to guide your words. Let the goddess energy flow through you, and use your words to heal your own heart. Divine Feminine Within Me The divine feminine within me Is a force of love and grace, She shines like the brightest star And her beauty lights up this place. She dances with the wind And sings with the ocean's song, She is the essence of love And her spirit is ever strong. She is the nurturer of life And the keeper of the earth, She is the goddess of fertility And the symbol of new birth. She heals with her touch And nurtures with her care, She is the embodiment of love And the beauty beyond compare. I honor the divine feminine And the goddess within me, May she always guide me Towards love, beauty, and harmony. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/julie-jewelssmoot0/message

“The term rape originates from the Latin rapere (supine stem raptum), "to snatch, to grab, to carry off".[13][14] In Roman law, the carrying off of a woman by force, with or without intercourse, constituted "raptus".[14] In Medieval English law the same term could refer to either kidnapping or rape in the modern sense of "sexual violation".[13][15] The original meaning of "carry off by force" is still found in some phrases, such as "rape and pillage", or in titles, such as the stories of the Rape of the Sabine Women and The Rape of Europa or the poem The Rape of the Lock, which is about the theft of a lock of hair.” That's the etymology of the word rape. Registered sex offenders, unregistered sex offenders, registered violent offenders, and unregistered violent offenders violated me as a child. Some of “the customers” that I was forced to sell drugs to as a child were married and single pastors and preachers and parishioners. Some were parents and some were not parents. Some of the people that I (as a child) saw receiving paid sexual services from the sex workers (sex work scandals) and relieving free sexual services (sex scandals) were married and single pastors and preachers and parishioners. Again, some were parents and some were not parents. In the organized crime, adults and children committed all types of crime together and separately and adults and children committed all types of crime against each other. I don't want to be a member of the cloth (clergy person) because I'm not religious. I enjoy being unchurched, non-churched, and de-churched. God is more of a mystery than of certainty. Jesus is the ultimate complexity. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/support

Series: All! Jesus has all authority, So that all nationsMight pledge all allegiance to him.Title: “What does Jesus say about Marriage, Divorce & Singleness?” (Darien Gabriel)Scripture: Matthew 19:1-12 NIV cf. Deut. 24:1-4 NIV Heavily indebted to Douglas Sean O'Donnell's commentary for this message. (See below)Bottom line: Jesus calls us to submit our already high view of marriage and singleness to our highest aim or devotion: Kingdom First.DISCUSSION QUESTIONSSERMON OUTLINE & NOTESMAIN REFERENCES USEDDISCUSSION QUESTIONSDiscussion questions for group and personal study. Reflect and Discuss1. List some ways that our culture's view of marriage is unbiblical (think TV, radio, advertising, etc.).2. Why is it crucial to begin our discussion on marriage with God's design in Genesis? Discuss the idea that divorce is fundamentally an offense against God.3. What wrong messages about Christ and His redemption are communicated to the world when Christians don't obey God's Word concerning marriage and divorce?4. How can churches show both tenderness and courage in confronting the issue of divorce?5. Why was the Pharisees' questioning misguided and wronglymotivated?6. If a friend asked, "When is it OK to get a divorce?" how would you answer?7. Why is it so crucial for Christians to take the approach that we ought to be looking for every opportunity to reconcile?8. What are practical steps to strengthen an existing marriage?9. What does it mean practically for a single person to maximize his singleness?10. What counsel would you give to someone who had been divorced and who thought their usefulness in God's kingdom had ended?How would you counsel someone who had abandoned a spouse?11. How might a wrong view of marriage and divorce be a precursor to other issues in society such as homosexuality, abortion, etc.?Final Questions (optional or in place of above)What is God saying to you right now? What are you going to do about it?Find our sermons, podcasts, discussion questions and notes at https://www.gracetoday.net/podcastWeekly questions I answer in preparation for the sermon:Q. What do I want you to know? A. That marriage, divorce, and singleness are all to be viewed in light of our highest pursuit: the kingdom of God.Q. Why? A. Because in God's economy, the kingdom is most valuable. (Treasure hidden in a field; “Seek first…”)Q. What do I want you to do? A. Submit our highest view of marriage and singleness to the ultimate agenda of the kingdom of God.Q. Why? A. Because God's agenda should be his followers agenda. “All!”OUTLINE & NOTESIntroductionNot long ago, several of the elders and our wives were together and it came up that this passage on marriage and divorce was coming soon. One of the wives gave a quick sermon outline that I loved:Wives' Sermon outline in 3 steps:Select wellStay together Say your sorryBottom line: Jesus calls us to embrace his already high view of marriage and singleness making it our highest devotion: to King & Kingdom First.Pharisees ask 2 questions:Question 1: Is it lawful to divorce one's wife for any cause? (3)Nerve—ContextJesus just taught about forgiveness at the end of Matthew 18Jesus leaves Galilee marking the end of his significant Galilean ministry which began in 4:12 to “the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.” He's moving towards Jerusalem. (16:21; cf. 20:17) He's moving towards the cross and ultimate act of forgiveness.But first he stops and heals the crowds. Multiple crowds. That's crowds plural!It's after all of this healing that the Pharisees show up. Blind men with deaf and dumb question.Finally, his context is our highest devotion is for our king and his kingdom; even his high view of marriage and singleness fall behind that.Do you see the nerve of this question?Instead of asking, “Where do your miraculous powers come from?” They ask about divorce.Instead of asking, “Tell us more about this death and resurrection business.” They ask about divorce.Instead of asking, “Are you the Messiah, the promised one?” They ask about divorce.These were audacious, wicked questions. Nature—These men were trying to test, tempt and trap Jesus. Tricky question. They were inviting Jesus to pick a side and then pay the consequences.Debate centered on interpretation of Deut. 24:1 and “some indecency” or “anything indecent” or “Any and every reason”Conservative view (Shammai): taught that God required divorce for sexual unfaithfulness (adultery) focused on the word “indecent” or “reason”Liberal view (Hillel): taught that God required divorce for “anything” or “any and every reason” in his wife. This could include any trivial reason like burning toast. They know he's on the conservative side of things on this issue based on Matt 5:31-32 in the sermon on the mount where he taught that lust = spiritual adultery. And that's what they want.. ScenariosBest case: if he sides with the conservatives perhaps he will suffer the fate of John the Baptist. (Remember his beheading and why? Conservative views on marriage and divorce)Worst case: (still good for them) is that he falls into the next trap, their follow-up question about Deut. Ah, he's a lawbreaker then! He disregards Moses. Either way, they think they have him. He either angers the powerful or the pious, or both the power and the pious.Answer 1: “Haven't you read…” (4-6) 2 Observations:Jesus goes to the Bible for his answer. He goes to Genesis—not the last word on marriage but the most foundational.He challenges their basic Bible knowledge on the A, B, C's of marriage. Letter A: God intended marriage between man and woman for life. There was no provision for divorce in paradise. His brief commentary on Genesis emphasizing God-ordained unity: “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”In 4-6 “Jesus could have emphasized the equal image of the sexes, that both man and woman are made in the image of God. That's true, but that's not the issue at hand.”Or he could have emphasized the concept of heterosexual monogamy (one man and one woman)—that these texts teach against both polygamy and homosexuality. That's true, but again that's not the issue at hand here. Neither fits in God's original intent for marriage.“Rather, he emphasizes God-ordained unity.“be united to his wife” (5)“One flesh” (5)“No longer two,” (6)“but one flesh” (6)“Let no one separate” (6)Unity, unity, unity, unity, and unity—obvious theme.Not so obvious, God is the focus here.While Genesis speaks of man's action “a man will leave his father and mother…”Jesus speaks of God's action “Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”It is God who brings people together into holy wedlock.EHarmony at it's best—E is for Elohim:-) (Hebrew for God)God brings them together and doesn't want man to separate what God has brought together—a physical and metaphysical new creation—one man/woman/flesh.That's God's math: 1 + 1 + 1 = 1 (Trinity)Marriage: 1 + 1 = 1 (Marriage)Jesus gives a divinely inspired purpose statement on marriage.Question 2 & Answer 2Question: “Why then did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?” They're trying to prove their point that Jesus' view of divorce is not Moses' view.Jesus responds offering 2 corrections and 1 command.First correction: Moses didn't command divorce, but rather he allowed it. (7-8)NT Wright illustration: “Just as a car is made to drive safely on the road, not to skid around colliding with other cards, so marriage was made to be a partnership of one woman and one man for life, not something that could be split up and reassembled whenever one person wanted it…Moses didn't say, as it were, ‘when you drive your car, this is how to have an accident'; rather, ‘when you drive a card, take care not to have an accident; but if, tragically, and accident occurs, this is how to deal with it.'”Moses didn't command, “go wreck your car and get a new one.” Rather, he saw all the car wrecks and felt compelled to write some rules of the road. He tried to regulate the wrecks. Specific law: “If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man, and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies, then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the Lord. Do not bring sin upon the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.” Deut 24:1-4 NIVSecond correction: “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard.” (8)Two wills of God:God's idea will—the original intention of marriage advocated in Genesis “from the beginning” andGod's allowed (permissive) will—the necessary regulations due to human sin.Notice Jesus' use of “You” and “Your”He doesn't say “our” like a preacher would say—“it's due to our sin”He doesn't say “their” referring only to the men of Moses' day.He says “your,” excluding himself (sinless savior) and including these Pharisees in the sins of their forefathers. Their hard-heartedness runs in the family.Marriage is not the problem.Hard-hearted men (and let's add women, to be fair) are the problem. You and I are the problem. Not marriage.Take away hard-heartedness and you can take away all divorce laws, attorneys, courts and settlements.Oh that we would think first of Genesis and not Deuteronomy!One Command: “I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.” (9)What's surprising about this? Surprise 1: That, after vv. 4-6 & 8, Jesus allows for divorce at all.He seems to balance the 2 wills of God. He hates divorce—it's never desirable. (Malachi)But, he allows divorce.Surprise 2: Jesus' authority. “The Bible says…” (4-5)“The Bible says…” (8)“I tell you” (9)—Remember, Jesus has “All” authority. (28:18-20)Jesus is the greater Moses, greater Bible/word, greater authority!Exception clause: First, let's read the command without the exception, “Anyone who divorces his wife…and marries another commits adultery.” (9)Jesus is clear: To divorce your spouse (for any reason you can come up with) and marry another is to commit adultery. That behavior, so common in our culture, is clearly against Christ's command.But—adding the exception clause back in—if your spouse has been sexually immoral, you can get a divorce. It's not required but it is permitted.4 Questions:Question 1: What is meant by “sexually immorality” (porneia)?Answer: “Sexual intercourse that is contrary to the moral standards of OT law—e.g. incest, bestiality, homosexuality, fornication, and adultery. In our context it primarily but not exclusively refers to adultery—that is, having sexual relations with someone who is not your spouse.”Question 2: Why is adultery the one exception?Answer: “Because adultery is the one sin that tears apart the “one flesh” Jesus talked about in 5-6. According to the OT law, the punishment for adultery was death (Deut 22:22). Death—that's the end of the marriage. In Roman culture (and Jewish culture) at that time of Jesus, this punishment was not in place. So Jesus puts something similar in place: adultery = (in some cases and in many cases) death, the death of the marriage via divorce.”Question 3: Is adultery the only exception?Answer: It is here. However, in 1 Cor 7:15 Paul adds another exception in a very different context. He allows divorce for abandonment often called “willful desertion.” Question 4: Does the sin of adultery (or any other grave sin) necessitate divorce?Answer: Certainly not. Why not?The lesson of Matthew 18 just prior is to forgive (70x7) because God forgave you for much more.If adultery occurs, you have 2 choices:Divorce. He/she has broken the “one flesh” covenant. It's the death penalty.Forgive. “To re-embrace the repentant, to offer anew the gospel of forgiveness—70x7 forgiveness for a zillion-dollar debt.”For all your questions not answered hereThink Genesis: Be united as one flesh. Hold fast to one another. Think Gospel: Forgive one another. Think Goal: What God has joined together, let no one separate.Higher View of the KingdomPharisees seem to disappear.Disciples step up and say, “If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry.”Chauvinists? “If I can't get rid of this woman whenever and for whatever, then why marry in the first place?” PerhapsRealists? “What marriage is so great that it lasts a lifetime? Come on, Jesus, lighten up.” PerhapsClueless? Their track record on the teachings of Jesus is pretty clear.What's unexpected is how Jesus shifts the conversation from marriage to singleness. He doesn't reply to their comment.“Instead, he gives a eulogy for eunuchs, a tribute to single-minded singles:”A eunuch is someone who is single and not sexually active for one of 3 reasons:Natural (born that way)Unnatural (someone made that way), or this new category Jesus has introduced, which we'll callWillfully or Volitionally (someone who desires to be that way or stay that way) for the gospel/kingdom.But his point is grander than “Esteem and embrace the gift of singleness.” “His point is this: The kingdom of heaven is so important that it should seem perfectly normal if someone would want to give up marriage for it.” P. 543Context: “Jesus teaches that you can't have too high a view of marriage. It is so high the disciples are taken aback by it.”“But in vv. 11-12 he adds that however high your view of marriage is, your view of the kingdom ought to be far higher.”“The Church misses the point when we make marriage the point.” -543Marriage & Singleness from a Kingdom Perspective (God's perspective)16: self denial and cross bearing18:21-35 Forgiveness 19:1-9 Marriage19:10-12 Singleness, but more on single-minded devotion to the king and his kingdom gospel missionFirst focus: Always the Gospel. Not against focusing on the family. He started there in v. 1“But he is against focusing on the family or marriage or work or money or house or land or anything else ahead of the kingdom. Gospel first; everything else second—that's his motto, and that's his model.”That's how he livedDenied himself marriage and the pleasures of marriageCompanionshipPhysical intimacyChildren“For the spread of the kingdom of heaven on earth. He was a eunuch for the kingdom.”And He calls those who can to do the same.And He calls those who can't do the same to want the same “for the sake of the kingdom.” “Seek first…”ConclusionBottom line: Jesus calls us to embrace his already high view of marriage and singleness making it our highest devotion: to King & Kingdom First.Raise your view of marriage to God's original design and intent.Raise your view of singleness to God's original purpose.Raise your devotion for what matters most to God: His kingdom mission.Find forgiveness and freedom from guilt in these words either byRecognizing that you may not be guilty of anything, orConfessing, repenting and receiving his merciful forgiveness for your sin of an unbiblical divorce.MAIN REFERENCES USED“Preaching the Word” Commentary, Douglas Sean O'Donnell, Edited by Kent Hughes“Matthew” by RC Sproul“The Bible Knowledge Commentary” by Walvoord, Zuck (BKC)“The Bible Exposition Commentary” by Warren Wiersbe (BEC)“Exalting Jesus in Matthew” by David Platt (CCE)Outline Bible, D WillmingtonNIV Study Bible (NIVSB)ESV Study Bible (ESVSB)

In Roman mythology, the god Janus was the god of transitions – of beginnings and endings. He was often depicted having two faces, one looking back and one looking forward. It's where we get our month January from. On this episode, we'll take a Janus posture and look back on the year and look forward to the new one by asking 23 questions to help you be prepared for 2023.. . .If you haven't signed up for my every other week FREE newsletter 5 Things in 5 Minutes (5 valuable nuggets that can be read in 5 minutes or less), check out www.kairospartnerships.org/5t5m. . .If you're an aspiring writer, or you are already writing and want to improve your writing skills, The Writing Life online master class course is now available for you at www.kairoscourses.com. . .I'd love to hear from you. Drop me a line at jrbriggs@kairospartnerships.orgKairos Partnerships: www.kairospartnerships.orgContact: www.kairospartnerships.org/contactConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kairospartnerships**Resilient Leaders is produced by the incredibly gifted Joel Limbauan. Check out his great video and podcast work at On a Limb Productions: www.onalimbproductions.com

What you'll learn in this episode:   How Beatriz discovered and catalogued the 2,600 rings in the Alice and Louis Koch Ring Collection at the Swiss National Museum How Covid lockdown changed how people wear jewelry Beatriz's tricks for making a jewelry exhibit more engaging What it's like to work with jewels uncovered from shipwrecks How global trade has influenced how jewelry is designed and made   About Beatriz Chadour-Sampson   Beatriz Chadour-Sampson studied art history, classical archaeology and Italian philology at the University of East Anglia, and at the University of Münster, Germany. Her doctoral thesis was on the Italian Renaissance goldsmith Antonio Gentili da Faenza. In 1985 she published the jewelry collection of the Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Cologne. Since 1988 she has worked freelance as a jewelry historian, curator of exhibitions and academic writer in Britain. Her numerous publications on jewelry, ranging from antiquity to the present day, include the The Gold Treasure from the Nuestra Señora de la Concepción (1991), and 2000 Finger Rings from the Alice and Louis Koch Collection, Switzerland (1994). She was the consultant curator in the re-designing of the William and Judith Bollinger Jewelry Gallery at the Victoria & Albert Museum (opened in 2008), London and was guest curator of the ‘Pearl' exhibition (2013-14). She is an Associate Member of the Goldsmiths' Company, London. Today Beatriz Chadour-Sampson works as a freelance international and jewelry historian and scholarly author. Her extensive publications range from Antiquity to the present day.    Additional Resources: Instagram Museum Jewellery Curators - Goldsmiths' Fair Photos available on TheJeweleryJourney.com Transcript:   Working in jewelry sometimes means being a detective. As a freelance jewelry historian and curator of the Alice and Louis Koch Ring Collection at the Swiss National Museum, Beatriz Chadour-Sampson draws on her wealth of knowledge to find jewelry clues—even when a piece has no hallmark or known designer. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about how she creates jewelry exhibits that engage viewers; how she found her way into the niche of shipwreck jewelry; and what it was like to catalogue 2,600 rings. Read the episode transcript here.  Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the second part of a two-part episode. If you haven't heard part one, please head to TheJewelryJourney.com. My guest is Beatriz Chadour-Sampson. She's been the curator of the Alice and Louis Koch Ring Collection at the Swiss National Museum for almost 35 years. Welcome back.   Beatriz: You asked about the catalogue. We didn't know if the exhibition was going ahead at one point, but I was asked by V&A Publishing to do a book on pearls, which I did. So, yes, we did a book which was for sale during the exhibition. That was in 2013. We redesigned the jewelry gallery, and 2008 was the end of that. The pearls exhibition was in 2013, the beginning of 2014.   Sharon: Why was it redesigned, the gallery?   Beatriz: The jewelry gallery. With all galleries, there comes a point where they need to be refreshed and renewed, and the previous design needed it. You even had gates you had to get through, and if you weren't quite as slim as myself, you would have problems getting through the gates. When it was redesigned, it was a completely different aesthetic. As I said, the boards have to tell the story, so when the visitor walks in, they have to understand the story and go from one to the other. Some people say the gallery is very full, but it is a study collection. We asked the education department artists to do certain things.    I was very keen on going “from cradle to grave.” The gallery is chronological, so you want a display before you start to know why you wear jewelry. A child wears jewelry or a mother wears jewelry to protect them at childbirth, or they wear it for status or religion or whatever it is. Jewelry is multitasking, multifunctional. Today we think of jewelry as decorative, but that is not the case. Jewelry was made for an occasion and a reason. With status, you always have the big diamonds and the big stones. That has always existed, in recently centuries definitely. But there are so many more reasons for jewelry, for mourning and birth and good luck. That sort of exists today, probably with charms. So, jewelry is multifunctional.    Then we have a screen with pictures from different centuries showing portraits because, at a jewelry gallery, you can't see the pieces on someone. They need the body, but they don't have the body. So, it's good to have a screen showing how the jewelry was worn through the centuries, which is very important. Also in the display, each board—let's say you had earrings, a necklace and a bracelet. The concept was that what you wear on the top of the head goes on top. What you wear around your neck comes next and then the base, so you have a feeling of an abstract body in a way. It's not always obvious, but I try to think of it logically.    Of course, with the contemporary, we couldn't do that. It is all chronological until you get to about the 1950s, and that's it. You have to find a completely different concept. So, we decided to do it by materials. Good chronology at the beginning, but then it comes into materials. Natural materials, new metals, techniques. You couldn't do decades. That couldn't work. So, we did it by materials, which is an interesting aspect because you have all the different materials they use in comparison to all the gold and silver you see throughout the gallery. Suddenly, you're seeing a whole wall of completely different materials.   Sharon: What is your role as co-curator? You're curator and co-curator of so many places. What's your role as a co-curator? What do you do? What do they call in you for?   Beatriz: It's an advisory role. The Victoria and Albert Museum is a bit more than just an advisory role. You're working with the team, with the architect. It's a team procedure, but as I say, everybody has their own role to play. It intermingles, of course.    Sharon: At other times, you've talked about a different museum in Switzerland where you came, and it looked just—was it at eye level? Was it low? Was it too high?   Beatriz: Oh, that one, no. You remembered that detail. The eye level, that was the Victoria and Albert Museum. That is in the center of the gallery because we did a display for a tourist who goes to the museum and only has 10 minutes to look at jewelry history. So, in the center you've got these curved glass cases. The jewelry is on special mounts. You remember that. I asked my colleagues of different heights, from four foot something to six foot something. In the storage room, we had glass doors where there was a lot of storage space with artifacts in it, and I used Post-it Notes to put the different heights of people to see what a good eye level is. So, if you're looking at a broach or a tiara or something, you want it on the level where you more or less visualize it on your body so you can see it well. So, yes, that's the Post-it Notes. I used not only double-sided tape and pieces of paper, but also Post-it Notes, trying to find the right height for the pieces.    Eye level is hugely important, but the other museum you're thinking of may be something I'm current advising on. This is really an advisory role. It is a museum that will open next year, the Dubedeen, a German museum. Of course, there are gemologists there that are very specialized, but their museum experience is missing. So, I'm giving a little bit of advice on the background of things. Don't put a plinth that you can fall over. Don't make drawers that a child can get their fingers caught in. You learn these things from places like the Victoria and Albert Museum. There's health and safety. There's also the height of displays, the attention span of visitors. Text shouldn't be too long. It's more of an advisory role than an active role.   Sharon: I'm thinking about attention span. You must have seen that really go down. It seems nobody has more than two seconds for attention anymore.   Beatriz: There is an element of that. I think the Koch Collection of rings in the Jewelry Gallery is one of the most visited in the England museums. When you get to sparkle and glitter, there's more attention span, but not so much on the text.   Sharon: Yeah, that's probably true. You've also done a lot of work on shipwrecks. That's very interesting.   Beatriz: That goes back to 1989. By sheer coincidence, I came to work on shipwrecks. I was in New York when I was working on the Concepción Collection. I met Priscilla Muller of the Hispanic Society of America in New York, and I helped her with some Spanish and Portuguese jewelry. When she was asked, she just didn't have the time to work on the shipwrecks. She thought with my Spanish and Portuguese knowledge, I would be suited for that, so I was asked by Pacific Sea Resources in 1989 to work on an incredible shipwreck called the Nuestra Señora de la Concepción from 1638 that sank. It was the usual thing, mutiny and the wrong person taking care of the ship. That's a private story, not a jewelry story, but the interesting thing is that the jewelry was basically made for Spaniards in the Philippines. The jewelry was made in the Philippines, the majority of it for Spaniards. It was a Spanish colony at the time.   When I was first went through it, I thought, “It looks quite European. It looks O.K.” I signed the contract, and little did I know how much research was involved for the material, which I hardly knew. It was because of the influence. The Spaniards definitely had European design books they brought with them. By then, you had printed books with designs in them, and they must have had them there. Chinese craftsmen were working for them in the Philippines, and of course the Chinese had great skills with outside countries. Some of it looks very European, and some of it is Indian influences, Siamese influences, and influences from Java, Sumatra. The chains, heavy gold chains, were certainly Chinese filigree. In fact, I told the Ashmolean Museum it belonged to Sir Elias Ashmole, whose portrait and chains still exist in the Ashmolean Museum, and I told them that one of the gold chains he had was Chinese. It was given by the Kuffners from Brandenburg, and I happened to find out that the Kuffners from Brandenburg travelled to China. So, that all fit. That was a little like detective work. That was published in 1990.   I've recently been working again on shipwrecks, just a few pieces of absolutely fascinating jewelry found off the shore of the Bahamas, which has now been in the Maritime Museum on the Bahamas for only a few months. I also worked on the Atocha in Key West. I organized an exhibition in Hanover for them, where we did a display of the Atocha and Santa Margarita events. But what's so fascinating about shipwrecks is that we see so many portraits of beautiful jewelry from the Renaissance, the 16th, 17th centuries, where they really documented beautifully painted jewelry in paintings. Thanks to that we can study them in detail. All this jewelry doesn't exist anymore, especially gold chains, because gold chains were the easiest thing to melt and reuse for more modern jewelry. As I have said, I have a smile when somebody talks to me about recycled gold being something new. Well, it's nothing new. Recycling gold goes back centuries.    Sharon: I'm surprised because in the pictures, you always think it's a straightforward gold chain with no Chinese engraving or anything. You think of it as a gold chain.   Beatriz: Some of it is simple, what they called a P-chain. You saw loads of it, especially on Dutch paintings. But in the Atocha there was a spiral. You can see they're very tidy on the portraits, but it looks as if they had a spiral at the back holding the chain so they flowed down properly. Some of those chains we had were definitely Chinese filigree because those chains are filigree. In the 1655 shipwreck from the Bahamas, there's a chain like that, and that's mainly why they asked me to look at it. That certainly reminded me of some of the Concepción work, which was Chinese craftsmanship.    The trade was amazing. You had trade happening in the Philippines. Even the Dutch were trading with the Spaniards. The Dutch were trading silks and spices from China and so on. These big galleons went from the Philippines to Acapulco and Vera Cruz and then to Havana. They went on a route around South America, loading and offloading things from Europe. It's interesting because in Seville, there's the Archivo General de Indias, and there they have all the books on the shipping material. Like with the Atocha, they found out which ship it was because the gold bars have a text mark on them, and that coincided with the documents they have in Seville. It's fascinating. It's a fascinating field.   Sharon: It seems like it.   Beatriz: It's a mystery and it's global, of course. Made in Asia; there's nothing new. It's hundreds of years. There would not be any porcelain in 18th century Europe the other way around.   Sharon: Do you get to see the ship right away? When it comes up, do you see it when they pull it from the ocean?   Beatriz: No. When I was asked to work on the Concepción, I had to travel to Singapore where it was being cleaned and conserved. In one instance I had to say, “Stop cleaning because I think there's enamel underneath, black and white enamel. Stop.” You have to be careful because you have to get rid of the marine dirt. No, I got to see it after it was cleaned or while it was being cleaned.    Sharon: Wow! And then what? It goes to the museum? What happens afterwards?   Beatriz: It nearly got split up and sold at auction. I'm glad it didn't because it's a historical find, but unfortunately you have to go the Mariana Islands to see it. You can't see it always. The material is put together, and it was published in a black and white archaeological report. It was published in 1990, so at least it's documented. National Geographic did a beautiful spread with color, so you know what it's like.   Sharon: What have you learned from parsing these shipwrecks, from researching the shipwrecks?   Beatriz: The extent of influence in Europe of some motifs and how far they went. It was made in the Philippines and sold in Europe because everything that was made and transported on this galleon, the Atocha, at some point went to Seville and then it was traded on. We definitely know that the emeralds the emperors were after came from Colombia and then went through Havana to Seville. It's a fascinating trade, but the trade is something we never think about. In Roman times, the Roman emperor wanted pearls, so they traveled to southern India to get pearls. History does amaze one.    Sharon: It does. You're working on many projects now. What can you tell us about some of them?   Beatriz: I can tell you what's half-finished and what's coming. I've had a year of three books. I co-edited a book with Sandra Hindman, founder of Les Enluminures. I need to add Les Enluminures because for many years, I've been their jewelry consultant. They're based in Chicago, New York and Paris and are specialized mainly in Medieval and Renaissance jewelry, but this has nothing to do with the book we did. It just happened to be that we worked together again. Sandra and myself did something called a liber amicorum in honor of Diana Scarisbrick, a leading jewelry historian. It was for her 94th birthday, and we kept it a secret until her birthday. It had 20 authors in three languages all writing in her honor. That has come out. It's now available. It was published by Paul Holberton. It's on varied topics, from archaeology to today, really. 20 authors contributed towards that.    Today I received my copy of a book I worked on for the Schmuckmuseum, so it's now published. The launch is on Sunday, but I won't be traveling to Germany for that, unfortunately. It has to be a Zoom celebration for me. It's to do with the humanist Johann Reuchlin. He was from Pforzheim. He lived in the late 15th to the 16th century, and it's about script and jewelry from varying periods. It's a lot of contemporary jewelry as well. The cover doesn't really tell you that because it was the 500th anniversary of, I think, his death date. So, he was honored in this book, which has just come out, with essays from many people. Lots and lots of jewelry. That was published by Arnoldsche, and it's called—I have to think of it—German sounds so much easier in this case. It means script and pictures worn on the finger. I worked on rings with script on them.   Sharon: With writing you mean?   Beatriz: Yeah, writing, that's it. There are a lot of other topics in the book as well, but jewelry is certainly the dominant. Yes, they are rings. Mary Queen of Scotts is somebody who wrote her inscription inside the ring and was loyal to the queen. Had that been seen, her head would have gone to the chop. It's rings with prayers on them or rings with some sort of amuletic inscriptions. It's all inscriptions on rings in my case, and it's about Josiah Wedgwood who gave this ring to John Flaxman. You've got a whole history behind it. It's rings with script on them, highly visible on the bezel, either visible on the bezel or inside the hoop.   Sharon: In English or German?   Beatriz: It's basically German, I'm afraid to say, but with lots of good pictures with excellent captions, which are international. I am bilingual in German and English, but I haven't written German for a long time.    I've actually written a third book that's coming out, but that won't come out until January. That was a huge task. It's on jewelry from Bossard from Lucerne. It started in the early 19th century, but the two I worked on were a father and son from 1869 until 1934. That was the period of historicism. It was also a time of fakes of Renaissance jewelry being made, because there were so many collectors who wanted Renaissance but couldn't afford the real Renaissance jewelry. So, it was very tempting for fakers to make fake jewelry. When I started, I didn't know what I was in for, but I have come to the conclusion that it's pure historicism, what Bossard made. I had very little jewelry to go on, just a few pieces in private hands, but I did find by sheer coincidence a drawing, and I found the bishop who it belonged to. You have a hundred drawings by the Bossard Company over this whole period, and it's very interesting material to see their designs they were making. In some instances, it's real Renaissance. I don't know if they were Renaissance or if it was actually made later. Then it gets critical. It's a very complex period, but a very interesting archive in the Swiss National Museum in Zurich.   Sharon: For next year, do you have other projects going on?   Beatriz: Yes, the coming projects. I mentioned the gem museum, which is opening next year. I'm in the midst of advising. I'm going to be working very shortly—I've already started a bit—on the jeweler Eileen Coyne from London. She's been working on jewelry since the 1970s and continues to make jewelry very, very different to anything I've worked on before. What I find so fascinating is that her imagination and inspiration come from the material. It comes with the material and the tools. She also uses interesting gemstones and beads that come from ethnic backgrounds. She uses the most amazing materials. Also jades, carnelians, all kinds of things. So, we're going to do a book. She had a shop in the 80s and into the 90s. Her jewelry was displayed in Harvey Nichols in London, and she had a shop where all the celebrities and royals went shopping. It was quite an interesting clientele. We'll see if we get photographs or if they allow us to show some of the things they bought. It's very much about discretion in such cases. So, that's interesting, a completely different type of jewelry.    I'm really excited about it, but at the same time, I've also been involved, and am more involved now, in an artificial intelligence project. That is a ring that has been designed by Sylvia Reidenbach and John Emeny in England. Sylvia Reidenbach is German, but she teaches in Glasgow and London and all over Europe as well. She has created, with John Emeny, a ring with artificial intelligence based on one or two rings from the archaeological museum in Munich, a few rings from the  Germanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremburg, and 150 rings from the Koch Collection. There's one design. The machine makes the design, mixes it all and combines it into one design. The ring is now being made. The stone is labradorite. It's been on display since Wednesday last week in the Germanisches Nationalmuseum but will be coming to Zurich afterwards. So, I'll be learning a lot about AI and design. That is completely different from anything. I like the natural materials and history, and then the contrast is the AI.   Sharon: The AI is the dimensions of all these hundreds of rings?   Beatriz: Yes, the images are put into the machine, the AI. Don't ask me the technology of it because I haven't got a clue about AI technology. I'm at the beginning of it all. I'm learning, but I have seen how it develops. The images are fed into the machine, like the 150 rings from the Koch Collection and the others, and the machine designs one ring out of that.   Sharon: Wow! So, it's already made and in the museum.   Beatriz: Only just now. It's hot off the press, but there's more to come on that. There will be more to come on that, yes.   Sharon: You've written several other books. You wrote “A Life in Jewels.”   Beatriz: That is the book we did for Diana Scarisbrick, honoring her. I've written books since 1981, so it's added up quite a bit. Sometime I can give you a list.    Sharon: How about the influence of women on 20th century jewelry? Has it changed jewelry? Has it made it more feminine?    Beatriz: It's an extremely complex story, the role of women in design. You have to see it from the role of the woman in history. Just recently by coincidence, I've seen some material on women painters from the 16th and 17th centuries. In Bologna, for example, there were quite a few, and it's only now coming to the fore. You also have to see high jewelers' workshops in the field of jewelry. You don't have a Renaissance piece of jewelry and know, “So-and-so made it.” That didn't exist. It's only in the 19th century that we start that. The hallmarking system in England goes back to the 13th century, but jewelry was considered smallware, so they didn't consider putting a hallmark on it.    That changed later on, the but the name of the designer is something that we very often don't know. The high jewelers of the 19th century, when you knew the name of who made it in Paris or New York, you never know the name of the designer. That is something that came in in the 20th century. You have some classical examples. With Cartier, it was Jeanne Toussaint. She designed some of the iconic pieces for Cartier and the Duchess of Windsor. She worked for I don't know how many decades designing jewelry. She was a very important female designer. Then you've got Coco Chanel. She designed jewelry, mostly costume jewelry, but she also designed diamond jewelry. Not that she wanted to, but it was for the nation and probably the economy that she did it. Elsa Schiaparelli, with her fantastic surrealist jewelry, made that incredible neckpiece with beetles in plastic. If you had to date that as a jewelry store and you didn't know the background, you'd easily say 1970s or 80s. It's so amazing. In that period, you also had Suzanne Belperron with her really unique designs in jewelry.    Of course, the role of the woman changed after the First World War. You had millions of widows, and they had to work. The whole society was changing. After the Second World War, it became even more evident that women were working. I was very cheeky. I did a lecture. It was in the British Museum, and I was talking about the changing role of men and women buying jewelry. You can imagine the shock of some of them. I said, “Women go out and buy their own jewelry.” Before it was classical: the husband bought the jewelry for the wife. They were the earners, so they bought it. There were a few examples in the early 1900s, like the Duchess of Manchester, whose tiaras are in the Victoria and Albert Museum. She was one of these Dollar Princesses and quite a character. She liked smoking cigars and all. She went off with the family diamonds to Cartier and said, “Make me a tiara, and use up the garments.” You have Lady Mountbatten, who, after the birth of her daughter, Pamela, decided to go to Cartier and buy herself a nice bracelet that she could also wear in her hair in the 1920s.    There are a few examples. On the whole, it was always the husband buying the jewelry, but past that, you have women earning money and buying their own jewelry. The 60s sets off in that direction, and then it becomes jewelry that's more affordable. Jewelry has never been so diverse as in the last decades. It's never been so diverse in all its history. If you look at the Royal College of Art, I think you'll find that, in general, there are a lot more women in training to become jewelers. You find so many names of women designers, now one doesn't even talk about it. Whether it's a man or a woman, it's just become a norm.    Sharon: That's interesting. If you stop to think about it, I don't even know if there are that many male designers. I'm thinking about when I go to studios. You see more women than you do men.   Beatriz: It's more and more, yes. There are more and more women, absolutely.   Sharon: What would you advise? What piece of advice would you give emerging jewelers or people who want to follow in your steps?   Beatriz: Remember that if you're a jewelry historian, you're an academic. Remember that. You have to really enjoy what you're doing. In my case, I was very lucky. I've worked for so many different projects and so many different jewelers internationally. I've specialized in that, but it's very difficult. Maybe, depending on the economic situation, people can volunteer in a museum to learn the trade. I think what you really have to know is do you want to work in a gallery, or do you want to work in an auction? Do you want to work in a museum? They don't always mingle, so you have to learn where you want to go. It depends on what your interests are. If you have anybody, send them to me privately. I'm happy to talk it through.   Sharon: Thank you for being with us.   Beatriz: My pleasure.   Sharon: Well will have photos posted on the website. Please head to TheJewelryJourney.com to check them out.   Thank you again for listening. Please leave us a rating and review so we can help others start their own jewelry journey.

Publication date 2013-12-24 Saturnalia was an ancient Roman festival in honor of the deity, Saturn, held on December 17 of the Julian calendar and later expanded with festivities through December 23. The holiday was celebrated with a sacrifice at the Temple of Saturn, in the Roman Forum, and a public banquet, followed by private gift-giving, continual partying, and a carnival atmosphere that overturned Roman social norms: gambling was permitted, and masters provided table service for their slaves. The poet Catullus called it "the best of days." In Roman mythology, Saturn was an agricultural deity who was said to have reigned over the world in the Golden Age, when humans enjoyed the spontaneous bounty of the earth without labor in a state of social egalitarianism. The revelries of Saturnalia were supposed to reflect the conditions of the lost mythical age, not all of them desirable. The Greek equivalent was the Kronia. Although probably the best-known Roman holiday, Saturnalia as a whole is not described from beginning to end in any single ancient source. Modern understanding of the festival is pieced together from several accounts dealing with various aspects. The Saturnalia was the dramatic setting of the multivolume work of that name by Macrobius, a Latin writer from late antiquity who is the major source for information about the holiday. In one of the interpretations in Macrobius's work, Saturnalia is a festival of light leading to the winter solstice, with the abundant presence of candles symbolizing the quest for knowledge and truth. The renewal of light and the coming of the new year was celebrated in the later Roman Empire at the Dies Natalis of Sol Invictus, the "Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun," on December 25. Notes This material may be protected by copyright law (Title 17 U.S. Code). --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/3rdeyevizion/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/3rdeyevizion/support

There are two ways the Spirit leads. The Holy Spirit gave us the Bible and the first way is the Holy Spirit illuminates to our minds that Scripture.The second way is sanctification. Here is the idea that once He has shown us what it means, He then assists us in applying that in the progress of spiritual growth. The Holy Spirit not only illumines the mind, but He stirs the heart and the will.I believe the Spirit of God leads us by prompting the heart.               In Psalm 119:35, the psalmist says: "Make me to go in the path.” God, don't just show me the path, make me to go in it, shove me. And in Psalm 119:133 it says: "Order my steps in Thy word and let not any one iniquity have dominion over me." And so, the cry is not just, may I understand you with my mind? But may I act in response to my understanding with my will. So, the Spirit of God is illuminating the mind and activating the will. The second is sanctification, the process of spiritual response of separation unto God in acts of obedience.               It's a present tense, verse 14, as many as are being continually led by the Spirit of God through the illumination of the Word of God and the sanctification of obedience to it, prompted by the Spirit of God, they have the confidence in their hearts that they indeed are the children of God. when you have those times in your life that you're not in the Word and you're not walking in obedience, you will not have that confirmation. You will not have that affirmation. And that's why Christians will fall into times of doubt because they are not under that direct leading ministry of the Spirit of God. And that's why, you see, the New Testament is filled with exhortations. If we were always led by the Spirit of God all the time, we were always responding to illumination and sanctification, we wouldn't need any exhortations, would we? So, we say this. It is true that all Christians are led by the Spirit, but it's also true that we're not as good at following as we ought to be, right? If we're truly saved, we will follow, but we could follow better.It's a way of life. It's the constant thing.Ro 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father."V15 but you received the Spirit of adoptionPaul continued his discussion of the privileges that believers receive as full heirs of Abraham through faith in Christ. Paul used the family metaphor "adoption" of our salvation while John and Peter used the family metaphor "born again." The adoption metaphor was used primarily in two contexts in Roman culture. In Roman law, adoption was very difficult. A long, involved and expensive legal procedure, once enacted adoption afforded several special rights and privileges.1. All debts were cancelled2. All criminal charges were dropped3. They could not be legally put to death by their new father4. They could not be disinherited by their new fatherIn legal terms, they were a completely new person. Paul was alluding to the believers' security in Christ by using this Roman legal procedure (cf. Rom. 8:15, 23). When a father publicly adopted a son, he officially and permanently became his heir. Also, the metaphor was used in the official ceremony of a boy becoming a man, held on the 17th of March each year.               One of the most tender & loveliest adoption story of all of Scripture is found in 2 Samuel 9.                Here is an adoption, an adoption of grace, an adoption of mercy, an adoption of love. And as you read it through, we are struck at how similar it is to our adoption int

In Roman's last episode for a while, Travis Opelt joins the podcast to talk about golf, sports and, of course, safety. Travis is Roehl's Safety Supervisor, and Roehl Transport is one of North America's safest and most successful trucking companies. Listen to the end to hear an update from Roman, too. Want to know more about Roehl Transport? CEO Rick Roehl is also a driver, and that's why our company has so many benefits that directly impact our driving teammates - like profit sharing, address-to-address practical route mileage and our new sliding mileage pay scales that better compensate a driver for his or her time.Visit www.Roehl.Jobs to see of our trucking driving jobs near you and on-the-job cdl training, too.

Many times over the centuries, earnest Christians have run out into the world to aggressively and passionately share Jesus, and the world doesn't always want to hear it.    John 15:19 says, “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own and as it is you don't belong to the world. But I have chosen you out of the world, and that is why the world hates you.” And this is a hard truth. It's discouraging to missionaries at home and in other countries who want nothing more than to see everyone saved. The Bible even tells us that God wants all people to be saved, and that's the goal. Yet we know that'll never be.   Jesus brought life-giving truth to the masses in His day. Some of them tried to kill Him, and of course, some were eager to see Him crucified. His reminder to us is that if we have the mind of Christ in the modern world, things might get dicey for us. It's not like hoards of people are beating down the doors of churches so that they can hear and believe. In this fallen and sinful state, man runs from the things of God; both the Bible and history document this. In Roman times, the empire hunted Christians. They were even fed to wild animals for sport. It's been that way all through the modern era. Remember the photos in recent years of ISIS terrorists escorting captured Christians to their executions? Pagan minds fight against God.   Knowing these things, we must resolve to ask God for courage to speak when opportunities present themselves. We also must keep in mind that boldness for Christ will cost us something…maybe everything. God in His Word also assures us that some are being saved, kingdom is being added to daily, and this reality is enough for us to continue to be salt and light in a dark world.   Let's pray.    Father God, we ask you earnestly, send your spirit to people who need to hear your Word. Help us to be willing to share Christ, even when it's dangerous or uncomfortable. In Jesus' name. Amen.

In the Roman mythology, Mercury is regarded as the god of merchants and shopkeepers, as well as travellers and tricksters. He is often associated with the Greek messenger god Hermes. A wily trickster, he was also known for being able to communicate effectively. Apart from being the god of commerce, Mercury was also responsible for sending souls to the underworld. He was also the patron of merchants and thieves, and he was able to control the flow of information.Like the Greek god Hermes, Mercury was known for challenging the physical and moral boundaries of others. In Roman mythology, he was the only god that could freely cross the underworld. Although Mercury didn't join the Roman Pantheon until the 3rd century BCE, he eventually became a prominent figure in the mythology. Because of his likeness to other gods, such as those depicted in European and Mediterranean cultures, he was easily assimilated into the various cultures that were under the Romans.The god is often depicted with a caduceus, a wand that can be used to resolve conflicts, and winged sandals that can carry messages for the gods. In Greek mythology, the wand was given to him by Apollo. He was also known for wearing a wide-brimmed hat and carrying a purse, which symbolized his duties as the god of commerce.Although he was usually depicted in a naked form, Mercury was sometimes seen wearing a cloak and tunic. He wore winged shoes and a winged helm that was made by the god of fire and forge, known as Vulcan. This winged helm eventually became associated with the messenger god.Read more at https://mythlok.com/mercury/

Isaiah speaking of the Messiah Jesus to come with Israel being redeemed and Babylon being destroyed in near and far prophecy.  In Roman's 14 we are called not to judge our young brothers weakness with food and customs stumbling them but rather to love them.  If we live or die, we are the Lords.  

THE THESIS: The people who run Joe Biden are showing everyone he is irrelevant to them.   THE SCRIPTURE & SCRIPTURAL RESOURCES:  We have a senile Figurehead who babbles about issuing policy statements his supposed emplyees ignore and overrule. The Bible tells us the story of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who has driven by God into the fields where he grazed on grass like a cow for many years.  God Humbles Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4) THE NEWS & COMMENT: The State of collapse in our fallen world:  Here is a person who has [her] job because [she] somehow knows [she] is a woman, [she] identifies as black and is sexually attracted to [other] women; this person gets to go on TV and overrule the “President” for whom [she] works.  [AUDIO] -  WH @PressSec says Biden didn't actually mean the Covid pandemic is over despite saying it: "Just to step back for a second, when he made those comments, he was walking through the Detroit car show, the halls of the Detroit car show, he was looking around." This is hard an isolated incident. The Figurehead is of no consequence to the people who run the Country.  Do Biden's words even matter anymore? As his staff once again rushes in to clarify, it isn't clear who's running the country On the other end of the spectrum is Ron DeSantis. He is making The Party live in the world they are trying to create for us and their response are both hilarious and useful. If God affords DeSantis the opportunity to debate the Figurehead, the Governor will be able to show the emptiness of the Party's promises to the people. [AUDIO] -  WATCH: Gov. DeSantis after Rep. Jeffries compared him to a human trafficker: “When Biden is flying these people all over the fruited plain in the middle of the night, I didn't hear a peep out of those people!” The next thing Governor DeSantis should do is get copies of the pornographic books The Partry is shoving down the throats of parents and kids and have them always on hand to show to cameras when he is attacked as a book banner. [AUDIO] -  CNN's Jake Tapper helps PEN America touts its study of "book bans" in schools because the conservatives don't like LGBTQ/CRT themes. But guess what? CNN won't put the actual graphic images of oral sex et cetera from books on screen so people can understand the fuss. Curating books is not banning. THIS is banning  “GaysAgainstGrooming”: BREAKING: After being banned by @PayPal and @Venmo less than 24 hours ago, We have JUST been banned by @Google!  Big tech is coordinating a massive attack on our organization for trying to protect children. THIS IS INSANE. In case you have friends who have been conned into the belief that this “sex-ed” is about “good touch” and “bad touch”, show them this:  [VIDEO] - A teacher friend and I looked through some of the “sex-ed” curriculum in the separate Country of Washington. Watch and see what we discovered. WARNING: Language, images https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBrS4Dx8wtI THE LISTENERS: Edward I never watch Trump TV shows , I thought he was a crude inarticulate speaker and a number one A hole. I voted for him twice and his policies worked. The only way to explain it; is my what I learned in my 20 years in the Marine Corps: Jerks, nasty , uncouth people win wars . The good marines were mainly jerks. As General Chesty Puller said. “ Until you served brig time your not a true marine”. And during an inspection at Camp Pendleton .” I had enough of this, take me to brig where the real marines are”. All Chesty did was earn 6 Navy Crosses the second highest combat award. Now in 2022 I wish Donald Trump would just go away and play golf. He is to old. 75 to me is terminal for public office. I am 89. —- —- Janine: "Marketing with Terror"--Excellent points in both hours of the show. They brought to mind how much I try to get generations younger than mine to watch "Scrooged". The opening when Bill Murray's character runs his ad for the Christmas show. It shows the horror and speaks in frightful tones and sounds of Acid Rain, Drug Addiction, International terrorism, Freeway killers. Maybe Obama is actually consulting with Bill? Fear isn't new. And it works! Got George HW Bush, establishment member, in the White House. ---   ---   ---   --- Paul: I don't understand why this comparison isn't being made. Hotels could be forced to house the homeless.  https://radio.foxnews.com/2022/08/31/la-hotels-could-be-forced-to-house-the-homeless/ Shelter coordinator claims Martha's Vineyard has no housing for migrants https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/watch-shelter-coordinator-marthas-vineyard-no-housing-migrants Blessings,  Paul from Port Orchard ---   ---   ---   --- Mark Hello Todd it is 1230am and The Spirit is not letting me sleep so I must share this with you. I beg your forgiveness. I get confused when you talk about God, you talk about the trinity yet you separate them as different and it is so frustrating to where I want to find another podcast. I dont want to though, you try so hard and I have to respect that, so I need to share with you what The Spirit is saying to me.  First I dont agree with the term trinity, it is a word that Catholics used to describe God. I do not agree with anything Catholics teach. For instance, the bible says not to call any man father, it also tells us not to bow to any graven image, and most important, go before Jesus to repent of sins and nothing about moving beads in your hand praying to Mother Mary.  I believe in God The Spirit, and God The Flesh. If God is all Spirit, then it makes sense that The Holy Spirit is all God, and Jesus in the flesh is all God, and Spirit. In Roman times they believed in a whole mess o gods, these gods had children called demi gods. How do you explain to those who have such beliefs to where it makes sense.  God was born of the flesh and had all the power of Himself. There is only one God, His name is Jesus and He has adopted us into His family. We are His children, like Israel, He is also our brother, like Israel He brought them out of Egypt, now He brings us out of bondage from an everlasting fire. By the way satan does not control anything in Hell. Hell is his punishment.  Satan controls the Earth now, I am so amazed at all who follow him, even in the churches. So many strong healthy men bowing down to mandates. You think of Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednigo. ( im to tired to look up spelling) There were a lot of Israelites in the crowd of those bowing to the kings nebbys image for fear of burning, church today is no different. Cowards. ---   ----   ---- Tracy Todd!!! I tend to be long winded so I will do my very best to keep it short. Ha! 1. I did the 2 rounds at McD's!!!! Shamefully on my way home from small group (yikes) it was a long way from home. I swear I might have done it 3 times!!!! First in Graham, then Sumner and finally Auburn. Oh so scary. But I laughed when you stated it on your cast today!!!! Here's my double whammy for you brother…. Ready… 2. I signed up for Sota!!! Yay!!!! 3. Bought my Bonefrog today. Now in all fairness, I don't drink coffee so I buy it for those I love which reminds me… please give Mr. Crookshank an idea… Christmas pack???? 3 packs of 12 oz. Light dark and medium for $50???? BAM! Corporate Christmas presents done!!!! I'm just saying. Love you brother. PS. Auburn Green River basin is infested with those who refuse to work and get Riverfront RV/Camping for free while KC officials do nothing except spend our tax dollars. Can't wait until God says it's ok to leave the separate country of Washington. - Right girl on the wrong coast!!! ---   ---   ---   --- Tom Want to grow your show?? Todd I love you but todays show made want to cry. Yes you have great ideas but listening to you sometimes is like the joke of the coach that has a great half time speech and then the door to the field is locked. Where is the tea party? Where is the third party. Where is the list of companies that eschew woke and want to start the parallel economy?? Use your power and vast influence to let us all help. Publish and talk about non woke alternatives. Not just your sponsors. I would love to have a list of woke companies that we should all avoid. If you made such a list it would something all your listeners could get behind. Many would share your list and share your show. Secondly where is the tea party. All us “ patriots” are putting all our eggs in the Trump basket. But he is the only one. Where will america be if they finally get to trump. We all know that the republicans are worthless and feckless , but what and where is our alternative?? Use your power and influence to make and get a woke list generated . Talk about it and your listeners will share it with their friends. Talk about a third party and your listeners will share your ideas with their friends. Yes you have great ideas of what needs to be done but as my dad always said “ the steam that blows the whistle, never turns the wheel” . Please use your resources and influence to help us make the needed changes. Keep up the good work, Good job, Tom in Ellensburg.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Acts 5:26-33 ESV 26 Then the captain with the officers went and brought them, but not by force, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people. 27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” 33 When they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them. WE MUST OBEY GOD RATHER THAN MEN Again, the Sanhedrin were surprised that they were not inside the prison, had summoned the disciples for more threatening and intimidations. But, they were aware that the people could stone them if things would go wrong. The unnamed high priest had reprimanded them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.” There were two things he acknowledged. First, they had ‘filled Jerusalem with their teaching”. Apparently, their message had gone far and wide so that everyone in the city had heard about the crucified Jesus of Nazareth had risen from the dead. In other words, His name became viral so that everyone was talking about Him. Secondly, he with all the rest understood that the disciples' message had indicted them as responsible for Jesus' death. He said, “you intend to bring this man's blood upon us” Most probably, they were afraid the public would realize that they killed Jesus under false pretenses and could lose their power and influence. Or it may be a greater fear. In Roman law, if one wrongfully charge someone of a crime, he was legally liable to receive the punishment of that crime. Pilate knew they had no real reason to have Jesus be crucified. Should the truth comes out, the members of the Sanhedrin could be crucified. Instead of back-pedalling their message, Peter boldly declared, “We must obey God rather than men.” In no circumstance that not to preach Jesus was acceptable. Obedience to God had the primary importance rather than their comfort. How about us today? What is most important to us? Peter, instead, preached Christ unto them unapologetically, saying, “The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” The words Peter is using go far beyond the Sanhedrin's initial concern about resurrection and popularity. The title "Leader" comes from the original Greek root word translated as "prince," or "captain," or even "pioneer" or "founder." Some translations use "author" to translate this word in Hebrews 12:2. Sadly, instead of being ‘cut to the heart', these leaders had their hearts stirred to more anger. They thought of murdering them. Indeed, truth hurts and heals the humble heart. But, it hardens the proud and haughty. May, we won't have such hearts should the Lord speaks to us today.

When you were a kid, did you ever hear your mom or grandma or some other motherly figure in your life tell you not to leave the house without a hat in the winter?   And do you remember rolling your eyes

In Roman mythology, Venus is regarded as the goddess of beauty, fertility, sex, and love. She is the counterpart of the Greek goddess of love, sex, and beauty, known as the Greek goddess of Aphrodite. However, she has many abilities that are not related to the Greek goddess. In Roman mythology, Venus was created after the blood of her father, Uranus, fell into sea following his castration by his son Saturn.Another theory is that Venus rose from the sea in a clam. This is because the numerous artworks depicting her rising from the sea have made this a popular theory.In the third century BCE, Venus was officially incorporated into the Roman pantheon. During the Punic Wars, she was believed to have helped the Romans by helping them defeat the Carthaginians. Her importance continued to rise until the fourth century CE, when Christianity emerged. During this period, she was regarded as a significant figure of worship.Read more about Venus at https://mythlok.com/venus/

A New Series on the Book of Mark. Today, Pastor Michael is starting a series on the Book of Mark.  A series of fast past action stories, Mark is the ‘good stuff' in one book, even being the shortest of the Gospels.  In these first two verses of Mark, the Old Testament is being quoted (Malachi and Isaiah, respectively) and it's stating someone is going to come as an announcer for Jesus.  And that someone is John, as in John the Baptist.   So, if this book's about Jesus, why start with John?  In ancient times, when someone important was traveling, they sent an ambassador to ensure the roads were in good condition and to prepare the destination for their arrival.  Therefore, John was the herald for Jesus in these references. John himself is an interesting character; a straight-up ‘caveman' kinda guy!  Camelhair tunic, no haircuts, eating honey and locusts…the whole nine yards! Jesus choosing John as his forerunner tells us a lot about Jesus and how he chooses those that are exactly right for the job.  Mark doesn't give us a lot of background information on Jesus except that he came from Nazareth.  Mark first distributed this book amongst Romans.  The Romans were action-oriented; not talkers.  In Roman culture people could rise from obscurity to greatness.  That's a huge reason this Gospel is so ‘action-oriented'. Jesus was being baptized by John as an act of leadership.  To show an example of repentance.  Therefore John baptized Jesus in the Jordan river to show his followers he would submit to the Lord and it was a powerful symbol.  What could the baptism of Jesus foreshadow as a future event? The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus was the foreshadow of His baptism.  So after He was baptized a voice came from heaven and a dove floated down from heaven.  The voice that was heard was not for Jesus' benefit; it was for the others that were there and listening.  The Lord was exclaiming that Jesus was His son, the son of God. Verses can be found today in Mark 1: 1-11. Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

A few years ago I published a YouVersion reading plan entitled Buckling the belt of truth. In this podcast I'm reissuing the first episode of that reading plan. Here I am at 72. I'm beginning to not be so surprised at my own age. Being so very elderly, perhaps it is time to share some grandfatherly advice. Maybe I have some of you fooled. Some of you may think that an elder missionary like me has it all together and that I don't ever sin. You might think that I have conquered all weaknesses and no longer have episodes of sinful thoughts. You would be wrong. And I suspect that I don't fool everyone. People who really know me have seen my weaknesses. However, if I am working with the right information, a lot of you have struggles with sin the same way I do. So let me start by calling our attention again to these frequently quoted verses: 2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT'15 3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. 2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV: 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. Those are great verses, but they leave me asking, even crying out, “Which promises?! I don't think I have “escaped the world's corruption” yet! Have I been overlooking a key promise somewhere?!” Peter follows verses 3-4 by urging his readers to take steps for spiritual maturity found in verses 5-8. While Peter gives great advice in those verses (which I hope you will study), I still keep coming back to verses 3-4 and asking, “How do I put golden promises found somewhere in the Bible into effect?— so that through them, I can ‘share in God's divine nature' and truly ‘escape' from bondage to sinful desires. What are the practical steps to do that?” Where can I find the promises that unlock moral excellence and self-control? Just like any college curriculum, before you start advanced courses, you need to take the prerequisites. So also, for you to get the most from this study, here are the prerequisites. This study is for true believers in Christ who are mature enough in following Jesus to have experienced the frustration I just explained above. The 5-7 studies I am starting with this session won't be much help to you if you are living in gross disobedience to basic commands in God's Word. Using an extreme example, if you make your living by stealing packages, you need to get an honest job before taking this course. This course is for those seeking spiritual maturity. The first step in becoming a maturing follower of Jesus is for you to repent of all openly disobedient life-styles. Another foundational step toward maturity is being a member of a local Bible-believing church, being baptized, and taking part in the Lord's supper with your fellow believers. I can imagine some readers complaining about my saying this. I urge you to understand that membership in an organized fellowship of believers is a baked-in part of how God designed humans to live. The picture of community life starts in Genesis and goes through the whole Bible. You will not be successful in your quest for spiritual maturity if you are attempting to live as a Lone Ranger Christian. Other readers will say, “I don't want to be a lone ranger, but there isn't a Bible believing church near me.” I recognize that finding a church that is faithfully teaching the Bible will become increasingly difficult at this time— especially in some countries, but also anywhere in the increasingly post-Christian world. Look for a home fellowship that you can join. Finally, an important foundational prerequisite step is to cultivate a scheduled Bible reading habit. If you fit this profile, please continue to listen/read. 1. My first step to finding the golden promises Peter mentioned and escaping moral corruption is to Put on the belt of truth. This is one of seven parts to the Christian's armor found in Ephesians 6. But I suggest that we make this clarification: Buckle the belt of truth by believing what God says about you in the Bible. NLT'07 Ephesians 6:14: 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth … If you are a Christian, you believe a lot of true things already about Christ and the Bible. (You believe Christ came to earth to save us. You believe the Bible is God's message to us.) But do you reject believing other things the Bible says about you? If you do, it is like putting on a belt— putting it through your belt loops, but not buckling it. So let's learn how to buckle the belt of truth. In this lesson, I want to sensitize you to realize when you don't actually believe it when the Bible says incredibly awesome things about YOU as a believer in Christ. Having the realization is often the hardest part. After that, ask God to renew your mind to fully accept the new truth. Let's make one thing clear about believing. Believing isn't something that just sort of happens. Believing is an act of the will. You decide if you believe something or believe in Somebody, or not. This is why in Scripture we read that God commanded people to believe and do what He told them, and He punished them for a stubborn refusal to believe His commands. Just look at the people of Israel who followed Moses all the way from Egypt and through the wilderness. They got all the way to the border of the promised land, knowing all the time what they would have to do. But when the Lord, “Now it's time to enter and conquer that land,” they said, “Surely you couldn't mean us!” Let's go back to where we started. Peter said, “he (God) has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. Here's the basic principle I hope you will learn: When you encounter ‘great and precious promises' in your Bible reading, telling you about wonderful things God has done for you or given to you, ask God to make those things real to you. Ask him to open your mind to receive that truth about you, and help you live in the light of that truth. You will need to pray asking God for such help, because for your whole life, Satan and his friends have been feeding lies to you. ============== Now let's turn to Ephesians 1. You might want to follow the episode notes so that you can see the words I have highlighted. NLT'15 Ephesians 1:1-23: 1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God's holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. 2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. This letter written to the normal believers in Ephesus, is therefore written to us too. For now let's skip the idea that Paul called them ‘holy people', because Paul comes back to that idea more than once below. 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. This paragraph turns our normal understanding upside down. I think that most people think of God as the angry judge that will destroy us. But these verses have God as the actor doing all these wonderful things, which are too many for me to comment on now. Let me highlight just two of them: God loves us and called us in advance. Change what you think about God and yourself: Tell this truth to yourself: God loves even me. God called me long ago, before I was born (amazingly, before He made the world). Let's claim another truth here: As a believer in Christ, you are united with Christ. A literal translation will say, ‘in Christ'. Jesus spoke of this unity when He said, “I am the vine and you are the branches.” (John 15:5) NLT'07 John 15:4: 4 Remain in me (joined to me), and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. This idea of being ‘joined' to Christ (or ‘in Christ) is spoken of in many places in Paul's writing, and it becomes one of the themes of this letter. But, dear friend, it's time for you to start believing this idea about yourself! This is a key concept in believing that you are accepted as ‘holy' in God's sight. If you see yourself as separate from Christ, sadly, you will act like you are not connected to Christ. Now with this connection, we also have the reason we are holy. It's not that we are in any natural sense ‘saints', but we have been made holy by Christ. We have received his holiness. Out of the incredible richness of this paragraph, I want to pull out one more gem. God has adopted you and me into his family. In the Greek Paul used a legal term here which means you have been given ‘sonship' or ‘legally adopted as a son'. In Roman law, the adoption of a son could not be undone. It was permanent. (Ladies, in this spiritual reality, don't let the male gender of this term rob you from considering yourself permanently adopted.) Dear friend, it's time to revise how you think of yourself. You're not a nobody. You're not unloved. You are a permanent member of the most powerful royal family! Let's skip down to the middle of v.13. 9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ— which is to fulfill his own good plan. 10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ— everything in heaven and on earth. 11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan. 12 God's purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. 13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him. Think about this: God has given you a guarantee that he is going to give you a wonderful inheritance. Stop saying, “Well, as long as I get to heaven I don't need an inheritance.” God wants us to think about that inheritance. It is healthy for us to think longingly for our inheritance in heaven. Our guarantee is not some flimsy card that we will misplace. Our guarantee is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts! Our text says, “when you believed in Christ, he (God) identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit,” It is crucial that you have a sense of belonging to God given by the Holy Spirit. Think of how personal and intimate is this bond we now have with God. I think you will find that this intimate bond is something you want to keep. This is one of our main motivations in seeking to live a holy life in God's sight. NLT'07 Romans 8:9: 9 … (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) It's no wonder that in the John 15 passage we quoted about Jesus being the vine and we the branches, He mentions prayer: NLT'07 John 15:7: 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! If we aren't praying, then we aren't believing the truths I just listed for you. 15 Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God's people everywhere, 16 I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, 17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. 18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called— his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. 19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power 20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms. 21 Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else— not only in this world but also in the world to come. 22 God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. 23 And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. Power points: God is for us and loves us. God is the actor for most of this chapter. This love from God the Father is counter-intuitive for us. We won't believe it unless we realize our lack of belief and pray to God asking Him to make it real to us. God went to great lengths to put his plan into action. This gives us great confidence that we have really been called by Him. We are one with Him, joined to Him. We are united to Christ, so much so that He considers us actually part of his body. We have a powerful guarantee, the Holy Spirit, which is not an external thing, but an inward witness that we are joined to Christ. We are God's holy people, not because we have the power to be holy. But God has made us holy by our unity with Christ. This is our identity! Take this identity. Believe and preserve this identity by taking care of the unity you have with the Holy Spirit. Paul wants us to understand all these things so that we understand that God will use his power to help us.   Homework: 2PE.1.3-4 EPH.6.10-18 EPH.1 EPH.2.1-10   ===================== Actual YouVersion reading plan text: THEME: Buckle the belt of truth by fully believing WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT YOU. Verses like 2 Peter 1:3-4 often left me asking questions: Which promises? I don't think I have ‘escaped the world's corruption' yet! Have I been overlooking the key promise somewhere?! How do I put the promises into effect? How can be a ‘partaker of the divine nature and escape' …'? The verses that I am sharing in this reading plan are the best answers I have found to those questions. The verses in these readings include the Biblical term ‘flesh'— which might be translated in your Bible as ‘sinful desires', or ‘sinful human nature'. The ‘flesh' is basically the evil and selfish desires that spring from our bodies. We are all different in our ‘fleshly' weaknesses, but the Bible holds the keys to victory for everyone. First of all, it is important to remove a common excuse for sin. In Romans 7:24 Paul exclaims, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” Paul is NOT negating what he says in chapter 6 and 8 by that desperate cry. (The second half of chapter 7 is Paul's explanation of 7:5-6.) The burden of the whole passage is that we are to no longer to live as slaves of sin (6:6, 8:2). Let's take a look at all the spiritual armor that God gives us in Ephesians 6:10-18. I want to focus on the ‘belt of truth (6:14). But I want to first draw an analogy with the ‘helmet of ‘salvation' (6:17). If you BELIEVE you have been SAVED, you are wearing the helmet of SALVATION! In a similar way, to buckle on the ‘belt of truth' (6:14), BELIEVE what God says ABOUT YOU. There is lots of correct doctrine that you can believe— and that is all part of the belt of truth, but if you are preparing for spiritual war against wicked spiritual forces, you haven't actually buckled the belt around your waist until you BELIEVE what God's Word says about YOURSELF! For practice, read Ephesians 1:1-2:10, asking God in prayer to help you believe what these verses say about you as a believer in Christ. Claim everything Paul says about ‘you', ‘we', or ‘us' in these verses. Clothe yourself with the amazing truths about YOU/US found in this passage.

A few years ago I published a YouVersion reading plan entitled Buckling the belt of truth. In this podcast I'm reissuing the first episode of that reading plan. Here I am at 72. I'm beginning to not be so surprised at my own age. Being so very elderly, perhaps it is time to share some grandfatherly advice. Maybe I have some of you fooled. Some of you may think that an elder missionary like me has it all together and that I don't ever sin. You might think that I have conquered all weaknesses and no longer have episodes of sinful thoughts. You would be wrong. And I suspect that I don't fool everyone. People who really know me have seen my weaknesses. However, if I am working with the right information, a lot of you have struggles with sin the same way I do. So let me start by calling our attention again to these frequently quoted verses: 2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT'15 3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. 2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV: 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. Those are great verses, but they leave me asking, even crying out, “Which promises?! I don't think I have “escaped the world's corruption” yet! Have I been overlooking a key promise somewhere?!” Peter follows verses 3-4 by urging his readers to take steps for spiritual maturity found in verses 5-8. While Peter gives great advice in those verses (which I hope you will study), I still keep coming back to verses 3-4 and asking, “How do I put golden promises found somewhere in the Bible into effect?— so that through them, I can ‘share in God's divine nature' and truly ‘escape' from bondage to sinful desires. What are the practical steps to do that?” Where can I find the promises that unlock moral excellence and self-control? Just like any college curriculum, before you start advanced courses, you need to take the prerequisites. So also, for you to get the most from this study, here are the prerequisites. This study is for true believers in Christ who are mature enough in following Jesus to have experienced the frustration I just explained above. The 5-7 studies I am starting with this session won't be much help to you if you are living in gross disobedience to basic commands in God's Word. Using an extreme example, if you make your living by stealing packages, you need to get an honest job before taking this course. This course is for those seeking spiritual maturity. The first step in becoming a maturing follower of Jesus is for you to repent of all openly disobedient life-styles. Another foundational step toward maturity is being a member of a local Bible-believing church, being baptized, and taking part in the Lord's supper with your fellow believers. I can imagine some readers complaining about my saying this. I urge you to understand that membership in an organized fellowship of believers is a baked-in part of how God designed humans to live. The picture of community life starts in Genesis and goes through the whole Bible. You will not be successful in your quest for spiritual maturity if you are attempting to live as a Lone Ranger Christian. Other readers will say, “I don't want to be a lone ranger, but there isn't a Bible believing church near me.” I recognize that finding a church that is faithfully teaching the Bible will become increasingly difficult at this time— especially in some countries, but also anywhere in the increasingly post-Christian world. Look for a home fellowship that you can join. Finally, an important foundational prerequisite step is to cultivate a scheduled Bible reading habit. If you fit this profile, please continue to listen/read. 1. My first step to finding the golden promises Peter mentioned and escaping moral corruption is to Put on the belt of truth. This is one of seven parts to the Christian's armor found in Ephesians 6. But I suggest that we make this clarification: Buckle the belt of truth by believing what God says about you in the Bible. NLT'07 Ephesians 6:14: 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth … If you are a Christian, you believe a lot of true things already about Christ and the Bible. (You believe Christ came to earth to save us. You believe the Bible is God's message to us.) But do you reject believing other things the Bible says about you? If you do, it is like putting on a belt— putting it through your belt loops, but not buckling it. So let's learn how to buckle the belt of truth. In this lesson, I want to sensitize you to realize when you don't actually believe it when the Bible says incredibly awesome things about YOU as a believer in Christ. Having the realization is often the hardest part. After that, ask God to renew your mind to fully accept the new truth. Let's make one thing clear about believing. Believing isn't something that just sort of happens. Believing is an act of the will. You decide if you believe something or believe in Somebody, or not. This is why in Scripture we read that God commanded people to believe and do what He told them, and He punished them for a stubborn refusal to believe His commands. Just look at the people of Israel who followed Moses all the way from Egypt and through the wilderness. They got all the way to the border of the promised land, knowing all the time what they would have to do. But when the Lord, “Now it's time to enter and conquer that land,” they said, “Surely you couldn't mean us!” Let's go back to where we started. Peter said, “he (God) has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. Here's the basic principle I hope you will learn: When you encounter ‘great and precious promises' in your Bible reading, telling you about wonderful things God has done for you or given to you, ask God to make those things real to you. Ask him to open your mind to receive that truth about you, and help you live in the light of that truth. You will need to pray asking God for such help, because for your whole life, Satan and his friends have been feeding lies to you. ============== Now let's turn to Ephesians 1. You might want to follow the episode notes so that you can see the words I have highlighted. NLT'15 Ephesians 1:1-23: 1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God's holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. 2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. This letter written to the normal believers in Ephesus, is therefore written to us too. For now let's skip the idea that Paul called them ‘holy people', because Paul comes back to that idea more than once below. 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. This paragraph turns our normal understanding upside down. I think that most people think of God as the angry judge that will destroy us. But these verses have God as the actor doing all these wonderful things, which are too many for me to comment on now. Let me highlight just two of them: God loves us and called us in advance. Change what you think about God and yourself: Tell this truth to yourself: God loves even me. God called me long ago, before I was born (amazingly, before He made the world). Let's claim another truth here: As a believer in Christ, you are united with Christ. A literal translation will say, ‘in Christ'. Jesus spoke of this unity when He said, “I am the vine and you are the branches.” (John 15:5) NLT'07 John 15:4: 4 Remain in me (joined to me), and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. This idea of being ‘joined' to Christ (or ‘in Christ) is spoken of in many places in Paul's writing, and it becomes one of the themes of this letter. But, dear friend, it's time for you to start believing this idea about yourself! This is a key concept in believing that you are accepted as ‘holy' in God's sight. If you see yourself as separate from Christ, sadly, you will act like you are not connected to Christ. Now with this connection, we also have the reason we are holy. It's not that we are in any natural sense ‘saints', but we have been made holy by Christ. We have received his holiness. Out of the incredible richness of this paragraph, I want to pull out one more gem. God has adopted you and me into his family. In the Greek Paul used a legal term here which means you have been given ‘sonship' or ‘legally adopted as a son'. In Roman law, the adoption of a son could not be undone. It was permanent. (Ladies, in this spiritual reality, don't let the male gender of this term rob you from considering yourself permanently adopted.) Dear friend, it's time to revise how you think of yourself. You're not a nobody. You're not unloved. You are a permanent member of the most powerful royal family! Let's skip down to the middle of v.13. 9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ— which is to fulfill his own good plan. 10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ— everything in heaven and on earth. 11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan. 12 God's purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. 13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him. Think about this: God has given you a guarantee that he is going to give you a wonderful inheritance. Stop saying, “Well, as long as I get to heaven I don't need an inheritance.” God wants us to think about that inheritance. It is healthy for us to think longingly for our inheritance in heaven. Our guarantee is not some flimsy card that we will misplace. Our guarantee is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts! Our text says, “when you believed in Christ, he (God) identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit,” It is crucial that you have a sense of belonging to God given by the Holy Spirit. Think of how personal and intimate is this bond we now have with God. I think you will find that this intimate bond is something you want to keep. This is one of our main motivations in seeking to live a holy life in God's sight. NLT'07 Romans 8:9: 9 … (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) It's no wonder that in the John 15 passage we quoted about Jesus being the vine and we the branches, He mentions prayer: NLT'07 John 15:7: 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! If we aren't praying, then we aren't believing the truths I just listed for you. 15 Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God's people everywhere, 16 I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, 17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. 18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called— his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. 19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power 20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms. 21 Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else— not only in this world but also in the world to come. 22 God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. 23 And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. Power points: God is for us and loves us. God is the actor for most of this chapter. This love from God the Father is counter-intuitive for us. We won't believe it unless we realize our lack of belief and pray to God asking Him to make it real to us. God went to great lengths to put his plan into action. This gives us great confidence that we have really been called by Him. We are one with Him, joined to Him. We are united to Christ, so much so that He considers us actually part of his body. We have a powerful guarantee, the Holy Spirit, which is not an external thing, but an inward witness that we are joined to Christ. We are God's holy people, not because we have the power to be holy. But God has made us holy by our unity with Christ. This is our identity! Take this identity. Believe and preserve this identity by taking care of the unity you have with the Holy Spirit. Paul wants us to understand all these things so that we understand that God will use his power to help us.   Homework: 2PE.1.3-4 EPH.6.10-18 EPH.1 EPH.2.1-10   ===================== Actual YouVersion reading plan text: THEME: Buckle the belt of truth by fully believing WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT YOU. Verses like 2 Peter 1:3-4 often left me asking questions: Which promises? I don't think I have ‘escaped the world's corruption' yet! Have I been overlooking the key promise somewhere?! How do I put the promises into effect? How can be a ‘partaker of the divine nature and escape' …'? The verses that I am sharing in this reading plan are the best answers I have found to those questions. The verses in these readings include the Biblical term ‘flesh'— which might be translated in your Bible as ‘sinful desires', or ‘sinful human nature'. The ‘flesh' is basically the evil and selfish desires that spring from our bodies. We are all different in our ‘fleshly' weaknesses, but the Bible holds the keys to victory for everyone. First of all, it is important to remove a common excuse for sin. In Romans 7:24 Paul exclaims, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” Paul is NOT negating what he says in chapter 6 and 8 by that desperate cry. (The second half of chapter 7 is Paul's explanation of 7:5-6.) The burden of the whole passage is that we are to no longer to live as slaves of sin (6:6, 8:2). Let's take a look at all the spiritual armor that God gives us in Ephesians 6:10-18. I want to focus on the ‘belt of truth (6:14). But I want to first draw an analogy with the ‘helmet of ‘salvation' (6:17). If you BELIEVE you have been SAVED, you are wearing the helmet of SALVATION! In a similar way, to buckle on the ‘belt of truth' (6:14), BELIEVE what God says ABOUT YOU. There is lots of correct doctrine that you can believe— and that is all part of the belt of truth, but if you are preparing for spiritual war against wicked spiritual forces, you haven't actually buckled the belt around your waist until you BELIEVE what God's Word says about YOURSELF! For practice, read Ephesians 1:1-2:10, asking God in prayer to help you believe what these verses say about you as a believer in Christ. Claim everything Paul says about ‘you', ‘we', or ‘us' in these verses. Clothe yourself with the amazing truths about YOU/US found in this passage.

“All creation is groaning,” for a day when it will no longer suffer corruption. Can you relate to wanting something different or something more from this life? Maybe the suffering is felt so deeply that you can't even describe the feeling with words. In Roman's chapter 8, this feeling is described as “groaning” and what can we do with this deep feeling of despair? Today's message, from our series entitled, “The Greatest Chapter” we look at Romans 8:18-25 to learn what we can do when our hearts are groaning in midst of suffering. "The Greatest Chapter, Romans 8" is our series from the book of Romans. Series: "The Greatest Chapter, Romans 8" Sermon Title: The Great Groaning Verse Reference: Romans 8:18-25 Campus: Keslinger Date: 05/22/22 Speaker: Jeff Frazier #onlineservice #2022sermon #churchonline If you are new (or newish) or would just like to connect with a pastor, just text the word "hello" to 630-686-7334. One of our pastors will follow up with you personally. ============================= Announcements: ============================= • Spring Connect Card: We're asking that every Chapelstreet family please take a moment to fill out a Spring Connect Card here https://chapelstreet.ccbchurch.com/go... • VBS: Vacation Bible School is right around the corner — June 27th–30th! There is still time to register your kids if you haven't already: https://chapelstreet.church/events/va... We are also in need of adult helpers for VBS! If you would like to serve in this area, please email Ms. Becky: bchennault@chapelstreetchurch.com • Here is our link to give online: https://chapelstreet.church/give • You can always find our weekly announcements listed out on our website at https://chapelstreet.church/news ============================= Connect With Us: ============================= • Reach out to Pastor Stetson by texting the word "hello" to 630-686-7334. • Like/Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chapelstchurch • Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chapelstchurch/ • Explore our website: https://chapelstreet.church/ • Are you looking to continue hearing about this and other topics? Check out our church podcast for a discussion about this sermon: https://chapelstreet.church/for-where-you-are-podcast/

Do you have outfit anxiety? Are you unsure about what people are wearing these days? Does it even matter what we wear now?  Get our newest episode “What to Wear for Easter” here. Pro Fashion Tip:  Hellleerrrrrrr.....people are wearing pants again. And you need to start making a plan to get out of your workout pants. Today. With the promise of a new spring season, let's take this opportunity for a fresh fashion start!  People are going out again. You need to go out again. You need to wear clothing again, and you need to plan for that.  You can do it! Holly will help you. Ok, so Easter is upon us. That means Easter dresses and Easter bonnets and new outfits for the whole family, right?  But why?  Why do people dress up so much for this holiday, and what should you wear to enjoy this happy time of year?  First, some history:  Literally since the beginning of time people dressed in white or their best clothing to celebrate the vernal equinox, and believed that the possibility of wearing new clothes could bring good luck. This evolved to white linen robes worn during Easter to symbolize rebirth and new life.  In Roman times, the Emperors demanded that the court must wear fine new clothing on Easter, which later came to represent the end of Lent. Jump to the post-Civil War era, when Easter started being known as the “Sunday of Joy,” as women started to wear happier and brighter colors instead of dark colors for mourning.  And then, the late 19th century was the beginning of the Easter Parade in New York City where women paraded down Fifth Avenue and their new clothes for the holiday. The importance of the Easter outfit continues today, albeit with less pomp and circumstance, but it is still a strong tradition today for those who celebrate.  Now that we know ‘why' Easter clothes are a thing, now you know the ‘what' to wear. Holly has a full list of on-trend, age-appropriate recommendations on the show for you this week, and of course as always, you can see all of them on her Pinterest boards.  Bright-colored accessories, shoes and clothing The ‘power suit' in solid bold colors Romantic, flowy midi- and maxi-dresses with gorgeous prints, made of beautiful fabrics, with high shoulders or puffy sleeves, and long or asymmetrical cuts Tops, sweaters and dresses with cut-outs Chunky, layered necklaces and statement earrings The ‘statement short' Brightly colored bags, shoes or a sash With so many fun ideas, you will not have one ounce of  ‘outfit anxiety' after this episode! And finally, Holly gives some major shout-outs to her podcast listeners who have DM'd her with some fabulous, real-life fashion questions. She tells us about “Sandra” and “Lauren” and their fashion dilemmas and how to fix them. Got fashion questions? Ask Holly!  She will answer you directly AND make you famous on our very fashionable and prestigious podcast.  FASHION CRIMES PODCAST “The Best Fashion Friend You Never Knew You Needed” Hosted by your favorite personal stylist Holly Katz! www.fashioncrimespodcast.com Sign up for Holly's exclusive weekly fashion content!

A few years ago I published a YouVersion reading plan entitled Buckling the belt of truth. In this podcast I'm reissuing the first episode of that reading plan. Here I am at 72. I'm beginning to not be so surprised at my own age. Being so very elderly, perhaps it is time to share some grandfatherly advice. Maybe I have some of you fooled. Some of you may think that an elder missionary like me has it all together and that I don't ever sin. You might think that I have conquered all weaknesses and no longer have episodes of sinful thoughts. You would be wrong. And I suspect that I don't fool everyone. People who really know me have seen my weaknesses. However, if I am working with the right information, a lot of you have struggles with sin the same way I do. So let me start by calling our attention again to these frequently quoted verses: 2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT'15 3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. 2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV: 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. Those are great verses, but they leave me asking, even crying out, “Which promises?! I don't think I have “escaped the world's corruption” yet! Have I been overlooking a key promise somewhere?!” Peter follows verses 3-4 by urging his readers to take steps for spiritual maturity found in verses 5-8. While Peter gives great advice in those verses (which I hope you will study), I still keep coming back to verses 3-4 and asking, “How do I put golden promises found somewhere in the Bible into effect?— so that through them, I can ‘share in God's divine nature' and truly ‘escape' from bondage to sinful desires. What are the practical steps to do that?” Where can I find the promises that unlock moral excellence and self-control? Just like any college curriculum, before you start advanced courses, you need to take the prerequisites. So also, for you to get the most from this study, here are the prerequisites. This study is for true believers in Christ who are mature enough in following Jesus to have experienced the frustration I just explained above. The 5-7 studies I am starting with this session won't be much help to you if you are living in gross disobedience to basic commands in God's Word. Using an extreme example, if you make your living by stealing packages, you need to get an honest job before taking this course. This course is for those seeking spiritual maturity. The first step in becoming a maturing follower of Jesus is for you to repent of all openly disobedient life-styles. Another foundational step toward maturity is being a member of a local Bible-believing church, being baptized, and taking part in the Lord's supper with your fellow believers. I can imagine some readers complaining about my saying this. I urge you to understand that membership in an organized fellowship of believers is a baked-in part of how God designed humans to live. The picture of community life starts in Genesis and goes through the whole Bible. You will not be successful in your quest for spiritual maturity if you are attempting to live as a Lone Ranger Christian. Other readers will say, “I don't want to be a lone ranger, but there isn't a Bible believing church near me.” I recognize that finding a church that is faithfully teaching the Bible will become increasingly difficult at this time— especially in some countries, but also anywhere in the increasingly post-Christian world. Look for a home fellowship that you can join. Finally, an important foundational prerequisite step is to cultivate a scheduled Bible reading habit. If you fit this profile, please continue to listen/read. 1. My first step to finding the golden promises Peter mentioned and escaping moral corruption is to Put on the belt of truth. This is one of seven parts to the Christian's armor found in Ephesians 6. But I suggest that we make this clarification: Buckle the belt of truth by believing what God says about you in the Bible. NLT'07 Ephesians 6:14: 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth … If you are a Christian, you believe a lot of true things already about Christ and the Bible. (You believe Christ came to earth to save us. You believe the Bible is God's message to us.) But do you reject believing other things the Bible says about you? If you do, it is like putting on a belt— putting it through your belt loops, but not buckling it. So let's learn how to buckle the belt of truth. In this lesson, I want to sensitize you to realize when you don't actually believe it when the Bible says incredibly awesome things about YOU as a believer in Christ. Having the realization is often the hardest part. After that, ask God to renew your mind to fully accept the new truth. Let's make one thing clear about believing. Believing isn't something that just sort of happens. Believing is an act of the will. You decide if you believe something or believe in Somebody, or not. This is why in Scripture we read that God commanded people to believe and do what He told them, and He punished them for a stubborn refusal to believe His commands. Just look at the people of Israel who followed Moses all the way from Egypt and through the wilderness. They got all the way to the border of the promised land, knowing all the time what they would have to do. But when the Lord, “Now it's time to enter and conquer that land,” they said, “Surely you couldn't mean us!” Let's go back to where we started. Peter said, “he (God) has given us great and precious promises. These are the  promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. Here's the basic principle I hope you will learn: When you encounter ‘great and precious promises' in your Bible reading, telling you about wonderful things God has done for you or given to you, ask God to make those things real to you. Ask him to open your mind to receive that truth about you, and help you live in the light of that truth. You will need to pray asking God for such help, because for your whole life, Satan and his friends have been feeding lies to you. Now let's turn to Ephesians 1. You might want to follow the episode notes so that you can see the words I have highlighted. NLT'15 Ephesians 1:1-23: 1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God's holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. 2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. This letter written to the normal believers in Ephesus, is therefore written to us too. For now let's skip the idea that Paul called them ‘holy people', because Paul comes back to that idea more than once below. 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. This paragraph turns our normal understanding upside down. I think that most people think of God as the angry judge that will destroy us. But these verses have God as the actor doing all these wonderful things, which are too many for me to comment on now. Let me highlight just two of them: God loves us and called us in advance. Change what you think about God and yourself: Tell this truth to yourself: God loves even me. God called me long ago, before I was born (amazingly, before He made the world). Let's claim another truth here: As a believer in Christ, you are united with Christ. A literal translation will say, ‘in Christ'. Jesus spoke of this unity when He said, “I am the vine and you are the branches.” (John 15:5) NLT'07 John 15:4: 4 Remain in me (joined to me), and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. This idea of being ‘joined' to Christ (or ‘in Christ) is spoken of in many places in Paul's writing, and it becomes one of the themes of this letter. But, dear friend, it's time for you to start believing this idea about yourself! This is a key concept in believing that you are accepted as ‘holy' in God's sight. If you see yourself as separate from Christ, sadly, you will act like you are not connected to Christ. Now with this connection, we also have the reason we are holy. It's not that we are in any natural sense ‘saints', but we have been made holy by Christ. We have received his holiness. Out of the incredible richness of this paragraph, I want to pull out one more gem. God has adopted you and me into his family. In the Greek Paul used a legal term here which means you have been given ‘sonship' or ‘legally adopted as a son'. In Roman law, the adoption of a son could not be undone. It was permanent. (Ladies, in this spiritual reality, don't let the male gender of this term rob you from considering yourself permanently adopted.) Dear friend, it's time to revise how you think of yourself. You're not a nobody. You're not unloved. You are a permanent member of the most powerful royal family! Let's skip down to the middle of v.13. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him. Think about this: God has given you a guarantee that he is going to give you a wonderful inheritance. Stop saying, “Well, as long as I get to heaven I don't need an inheritance.” God wants us to think about that inheritance. It is healthy for us to think longingly for our inheritance in heaven. Our guarantee is not some flimsy card that we will misplace. Our guarantee is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts! Our text says, “when you believed in Christ, he (God) identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit,” It is crucial that you have a sense of belonging to God given by the Holy Spirit. Think of how personal and intimate is this bond we now have with God. I think you will find that this intimate bond is something you want to keep. This is one of our main motivations in seeking to live a holy life in God's sight. NLT'07 Romans 8:9: 9 … (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) It's no wonder that in the John 15 passage we quoted about Jesus being the vine and we the branches, He mentions prayer: NLT'07 John 15:7: 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! If we aren't praying, then we aren't believing the truths I just listed for you. Power points: God is for us and loves us. God is the actor for most of this chapter. This love from God the Father is counter-intuitive for us. We won't believe it unless we realize our lack of belief and pray to God asking Him to make it real to us. God went to great lengths to put his plan into action. This gives us great confidence that we have really been called by Him. We are one with Him, joined to Him. We are united to Christ, so much so that He considers us actually part of his body. We have a powerful guarantee, the Holy Spirit, which is not an external thing, but an inward witness that we are joined to Christ. We are God's holy people, not because we have the power to be holy. But God has made us holy by our unity with Christ. This is our identity! Take this identity. Believe and preserve this identity by taking care of the unity you have with the Holy Spirit. Paul wants us to understand all these things so that we understand that God will use his power to help us. Homework: 2PE.1.3-4 EPH.6.10-18 EPH.1 EPH.2.1-10  

A few years ago I published a YouVersion reading plan entitled Buckling the belt of truth. In this podcast I'm reissuing the first episode of that reading plan. Here I am at 72. I'm beginning to not be so surprised at my own age. Being so very elderly, perhaps it is time to share some grandfatherly advice. Maybe I have some of you fooled. Some of you may think that an elder missionary like me has it all together and that I don't ever sin. You might think that I have conquered all weaknesses and no longer have episodes of sinful thoughts. You would be wrong. And I suspect that I don't fool everyone. People who really know me have seen my weaknesses. However, if I am working with the right information, a lot of you have struggles with sin the same way I do. So let me start by calling our attention again to these frequently quoted verses: 2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT'15 3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. 2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV: 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. Those are great verses, but they leave me asking, even crying out, “Which promises?! I don't think I have “escaped the world's corruption” yet! Have I been overlooking a key promise somewhere?!” Peter follows verses 3-4 by urging his readers to take steps for spiritual maturity found in verses 5-8. While Peter gives great advice in those verses (which I hope you will study), I still keep coming back to verses 3-4 and asking, “How do I put golden promises found somewhere in the Bible into effect?— so that through them, I can ‘share in God's divine nature' and truly ‘escape' from bondage to sinful desires. What are the practical steps to do that?” Where can I find the promises that unlock moral excellence and self-control? Just like any college curriculum, before you start advanced courses, you need to take the prerequisites. So also, for you to get the most from this study, here are the prerequisites. This study is for true believers in Christ who are mature enough in following Jesus to have experienced the frustration I just explained above. The 5-7 studies I am starting with this session won't be much help to you if you are living in gross disobedience to basic commands in God's Word. Using an extreme example, if you make your living by stealing packages, you need to get an honest job before taking this course. This course is for those seeking spiritual maturity. The first step in becoming a maturing follower of Jesus is for you to repent of all openly disobedient life-styles. Another foundational step toward maturity is being a member of a local Bible-believing church, being baptized, and taking part in the Lord's supper with your fellow believers. I can imagine some readers complaining about my saying this. I urge you to understand that membership in an organized fellowship of believers is a baked-in part of how God designed humans to live. The picture of community life starts in Genesis and goes through the whole Bible. You will not be successful in your quest for spiritual maturity if you are attempting to live as a Lone Ranger Christian. Other readers will say, “I don't want to be a lone ranger, but there isn't a Bible believing church near me.” I recognize that finding a church that is faithfully teaching the Bible will become increasingly difficult at this time— especially in some countries, but also anywhere in the increasingly post-Christian world. Look for a home fellowship that you can join. Finally, an important foundational prerequisite step is to cultivate a scheduled Bible reading habit. If you fit this profile, please continue to listen/read. 1. My first step to finding the golden promises Peter mentioned and escaping moral corruption is to Put on the belt of truth. This is one of seven parts to the Christian's armor found in Ephesians 6. But I suggest that we make this clarification: Buckle the belt of truth by believing what God says about you in the Bible. NLT'07 Ephesians 6:14: 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth … If you are a Christian, you believe a lot of true things already about Christ and the Bible. (You believe Christ came to earth to save us. You believe the Bible is God's message to us.) But do you reject believing other things the Bible says about you? If you do, it is like putting on a belt— putting it through your belt loops, but not buckling it. So let's learn how to buckle the belt of truth. In this lesson, I want to sensitize you to realize when you don't actually believe it when the Bible says incredibly awesome things about YOU as a believer in Christ. Having the realization is often the hardest part. After that, ask God to renew your mind to fully accept the new truth. Let's make one thing clear about believing. Believing isn't something that just sort of happens. Believing is an act of the will. You decide if you believe something or believe in Somebody, or not. This is why in Scripture we read that God commanded people to believe and do what He told them, and He punished them for a stubborn refusal to believe His commands. Just look at the people of Israel who followed Moses all the way from Egypt and through the wilderness. They got all the way to the border of the promised land, knowing all the time what they would have to do. But when the Lord, “Now it's time to enter and conquer that land,” they said, “Surely you couldn't mean us!” Let's go back to where we started. Peter said, “he (God) has given us great and precious promises. These are the  promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires. Here's the basic principle I hope you will learn: When you encounter ‘great and precious promises' in your Bible reading, telling you about wonderful things God has done for you or given to you, ask God to make those things real to you. Ask him to open your mind to receive that truth about you, and help you live in the light of that truth. You will need to pray asking God for such help, because for your whole life, Satan and his friends have been feeding lies to you. Now let's turn to Ephesians 1. You might want to follow the episode notes so that you can see the words I have highlighted. NLT'15 Ephesians 1:1-23: 1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God's holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. 2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. This letter written to the normal believers in Ephesus, is therefore written to us too. For now let's skip the idea that Paul called them ‘holy people', because Paul comes back to that idea more than once below. 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. This paragraph turns our normal understanding upside down. I think that most people think of God as the angry judge that will destroy us. But these verses have God as the actor doing all these wonderful things, which are too many for me to comment on now. Let me highlight just two of them: God loves us and called us in advance. Change what you think about God and yourself: Tell this truth to yourself: God loves even me. God called me long ago, before I was born (amazingly, before He made the world). Let's claim another truth here: As a believer in Christ, you are united with Christ. A literal translation will say, ‘in Christ'. Jesus spoke of this unity when He said, “I am the vine and you are the branches.” (John 15:5) NLT'07 John 15:4: 4 Remain in me (joined to me), and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. This idea of being ‘joined' to Christ (or ‘in Christ) is spoken of in many places in Paul's writing, and it becomes one of the themes of this letter. But, dear friend, it's time for you to start believing this idea about yourself! This is a key concept in believing that you are accepted as ‘holy' in God's sight. If you see yourself as separate from Christ, sadly, you will act like you are not connected to Christ. Now with this connection, we also have the reason we are holy. It's not that we are in any natural sense ‘saints', but we have been made holy by Christ. We have received his holiness. Out of the incredible richness of this paragraph, I want to pull out one more gem. God has adopted you and me into his family. In the Greek Paul used a legal term here which means you have been given ‘sonship' or ‘legally adopted as a son'. In Roman law, the adoption of a son could not be undone. It was permanent. (Ladies, in this spiritual reality, don't let the male gender of this term rob you from considering yourself permanently adopted.) Dear friend, it's time to revise how you think of yourself. You're not a nobody. You're not unloved. You are a permanent member of the most powerful royal family! Let's skip down to the middle of v.13. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him. Think about this: God has given you a guarantee that he is going to give you a wonderful inheritance. Stop saying, “Well, as long as I get to heaven I don't need an inheritance.” God wants us to think about that inheritance. It is healthy for us to think longingly for our inheritance in heaven. Our guarantee is not some flimsy card that we will misplace. Our guarantee is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts! Our text says, “when you believed in Christ, he (God) identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit,” It is crucial that you have a sense of belonging to God given by the Holy Spirit. Think of how personal and intimate is this bond we now have with God. I think you will find that this intimate bond is something you want to keep. This is one of our main motivations in seeking to live a holy life in God's sight. NLT'07 Romans 8:9: 9 … (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.) It's no wonder that in the John 15 passage we quoted about Jesus being the vine and we the branches, He mentions prayer: NLT'07 John 15:7: 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! If we aren't praying, then we aren't believing the truths I just listed for you. Power points: God is for us and loves us. God is the actor for most of this chapter. This love from God the Father is counter-intuitive for us. We won't believe it unless we realize our lack of belief and pray to God asking Him to make it real to us. God went to great lengths to put his plan into action. This gives us great confidence that we have really been called by Him. We are one with Him, joined to Him. We are united to Christ, so much so that He considers us actually part of his body. We have a powerful guarantee, the Holy Spirit, which is not an external thing, but an inward witness that we are joined to Christ. We are God's holy people, not because we have the power to be holy. But God has made us holy by our unity with Christ. This is our identity! Take this identity. Believe and preserve this identity by taking care of the unity you have with the Holy Spirit. Paul wants us to understand all these things so that we understand that God will use his power to help us. Homework: 2PE.1.3-4 EPH.6.10-18 EPH.1 EPH.2.1-10  

There are some dates that forever stick in people's minds and today is one of them. The reason for that is that the great English Playwright William Shakespeare has a line in one of his plays, “Beware the Ides of March.” In Roman times, today, March 15th was known as the Ides of March.

In Roman mythology, the twin brothers Romulus and Remus created the city of Rome. The killing of Remus by his twin, along with other tales from their story, have inspired artists throughout the ages. Since ancient times, the image of a she-wolf suckling the twins has been a symbol of the city of Rome and the ancient Romans. The story of the twin brothers is believed to have been told before the founding of Rome. This is because the earliest written account of the myth dates back to the 3rd century BC.The pair were the children of Mars and Rhea, and their story is often told by authors such as Virgil wherein they were born in order to create Rome. Modern scholarship approaches the stories of Romulus and Remus, with the retelling being based on the various versions presented by Roman historians. Other narratives suggest that these are popular or folkloric traditions, while some remain inscrutable in their meanings.They were often described by poets and painters to be well built, tall and had the classic physical features of the classical Mediterranean man. They had dark curly hair and physically dominant in stature.They are descendants of Aeneas, who were responsible for discovering Italy. Romulus and Remus were related to Aeneas through Numitor, who was the king of Alba Longa and their mother's father. Before they were conceived, his reign was usurped by Amulius, who was the brother of Mars.Amulius inherited the treasury of Alba Longa from Numitor. He wanted to avoid a conflict of power, so he killed the male heirs of Numitor and forced Rhea to become a Vestal Virgin. Vestal Virgins were priestesses of Vesta, patron goddess of the hearth; they were charged with keeping a sacred fire that was never to be extinguished and to take vows of chastity.Some legends suggest that Mars appeared and laid with Rhea, while others suggest that Hercules was her partner. It is also possible that she was raped by an unknown man, and that she gave birth to her sons. It was custom for a Vestal Virgin to be condemned to death if she betrayed her vows, however, since Amulius feared the wrath of Hercules or Mars, he did not want to stain his hands with the blood of her children.Amulius ordered the execution of the twin brothers by throwing them into the Tiber River. He believed that since they would die without being killed by the sword, they would be spared from punishment by the gods. He ordered a servant to carry out the death sentence, but in every scenario of this myth, the servant takes pity on the twins and spares their lives. The servant, then, places the twins into a basket onto the River Tiber, and the river carries the boys to safety.Being characters that were exclusive to the Roman mythology and among the few characters that were not influenced by the Greeks, they do not have any alternate names.  The city of Rome was named after the victorious brother Romulus who fought with his brother over the location of the new city.The twins were not blessed with any powers or super human capabilities. They however had established themselves as leaders with the command over the people within their armies.The story of Romulus and Remus have been told and retold from various perspectives in modern cinema, television and have inspired numerous books and novels. There have been claims that the biblical story of Cain and Able was heavily inspired by the legend of Romulus and Remus.Read about them at https://mythlok.com/romulus-remus/

Standing in the Gospel of Christ is crucial for all wisdom filled warriors. The words that Christ speaks give life and were the life blood of Moses, Abraham, David and all men of faith. It is absolutely necessary to follow the living voice. The voice invades the darkest places on earth and those called into the war must stand fast in dominion authority of His voice. In Roman's 7, Paul distinguishes between living under the Law of Moses versus living by the voice of Christ and all those who seek to invade the darkness must be voice driven!

Audio Transcript: This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston and our neighborhood churches, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Good morning, welcome to Mosaic Church. My name is Jan, one of the pastors here along with Pastor Shane and Pastor Andy. If you're new or visiting, we're so glad you're here with us. I pray that you get connected. We do that officially through the connection card and the worship card if you fill out legibly. Just redeem it at the welcome center for a little gift. And then we'll also send you another gift in the mail. A couple housekeeping things. The 16th, next Sunday, we have a baptism seminar. If you have not been baptized as an adult and you'd like to know more, it's right after the service with lunch provided. And then on the 23rd, we have a membership class. We take membership seriously. Church is a family, membership is how we know that you are in the family that is Mosaic Boston. We also have a baptism today. My daughter, Melana, she's four, she's really excited about the baptism. She came up to me yesterday, I had no idea what she was talking about, she's like, "When's the next time you're going to dunk a person in the bathtub with their clothes on?" Had no idea what she was talking about. She said, "Baptism." I told her, "There's baptism tomorrow." She's like, "Yeah."So, we have baptism after the second service. We'd love to have you join us. Also, every time it snows for the first time, I give a public service announcement about how to flourish in Boston in the winter. This is important. I don't see anyone else doing this, this is important. Here's what you need, three things to flourish in Boston in the winter. Number one, you need a nice pair of waterproof boots. Necessary, very necessary, with good grip on them, very important. Number two, you need a good winter coat, preferably with a coat that has a little fuzzy trim, which keeps the wind out. That's important. Number three, you got to take your vitamin D. You got to take your vitamin D. I don't know why, I have to say this. None of the government officials who are supposed to care about our health, for the past two and a half years, no one's talking about this. Take your vitamin D. There's not enough sunshine in Boston, take your vitamin D. And take care of your immune system. God gave you an immune system. Work out, eat good food not the processed junk. Okay, that's my public service announcement.With that said, would you please pray with me over the preaching of God's holy Word? Heavenly Father, thank you for this incredible word that you have prepared for us from your servant, Paul. We thank you for his personal example of being willing to sacrifice everything, go through whatever suffering to get the message out, to get the message to your elect. I pray you use us in the same way. Make us a people who no matter what the sacrifice, no matter what the suffering, we're willing to go through it because there's nothing more important than building your kingdom, than helping people be transferred from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of your beloved Son. And make us a people who are strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Strengthen us, strengthen us in every aspect of our life so when the time comes to sacrifice we have more to sacrifice and we can endure more suffering. We pray that you bless the preaching of the holy word, and I pray deep in our hearts, give us a true realization, the preeminence of Christ, that there's nothing greater than Christ. I pray all this in Christ's holy name. Amen.We're in 2 Corinthians 11:16-33 today. We're continuing our Prodigal Church season two series. A few more sermons left in this series. The title of the sermon today is Through Many Tribulations. The early church understood that when you get saved, you get saved to a life of following Jesus Christ, and that life includes tribulations. Acts 14:21-22, this is where that text comes from, "When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith and saying, 'Through many tribulations, we must enter the kingdom of God.'"As we look at what's going on in the world, one of the things that I'm praying about the Lord deepening in our body is a sense of discernment, to discern what's true and to discern what's evil, what's false, what's lies. And this is what St. Paul does in this letter, in the second part of the letter, he wants to deepen a discernment in the people of God to know, to know when they are being bamboozled. When we ask the question, "What in the world is going on?" you got to ask a few timeless, helpful questions, and this comes from ancient philosophers. The questions that come from Latin, cui bono? cui bono? Who benefits? Who's responsible for a certain event in any crime investigation or in politics, in any event? There's a high probability that it's the person standing to gain the most from it. Cui bono? Who benefits?The second one is an extension of the first is, cui prodest, who profits? We know the term, "Follow the money." It was first used by Roman philosopher, Seneca the Younger in this play Madea, were Madea says to Jason, "Cui who gains by a crime committed it." And then que malo is who suffers? Used in conjunction with que bono and que prodest, you figure out who will benefit and who will suffer as a result of a certain action. And this one who suffers is crucial to discerning in particular the motivations of our leaders. Because Jesus Christ talked about leadership. He said, "Whoever wants to be the greatest among you has to be the greatest servant." Meaning whoever wants to lead the people has to be willing to suffer the most.These are questions that are helpful of discerning a person's motivations. Why does a person do what they do? Why do you do what you do? What drives you? What motivates you? I'm not talking about hypothetically, theoretically. If you're a Christian, what motivates you, not what should motivate you? What does today, what does in the season of your life, what motivates you? If you're not a Christian, what motivates you? And will it matter in five years? Will it matter in 10 years, 20, 30? Will it matter from the perspective of eternity?These are all things we're wrestling with here from 2 Corinthians, 11:16-33. Would you look at the text with me? "I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool so that I too may boast a little. What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not with the Lord's authority, but as a fool. Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast." By the way, Saint Paul makes a lot more sense if you imagine him as an Italian. It just makes so much more sense. "What I'm saying with this boastful confidence, I say not with the Lord's authority, but as a fool. Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves. For you bear if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face. To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that. But whatever anyone else dares to boast of, I'm speaking as a fool, I also dare to boast of that."Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one. I'm talking like a madman, with far greater laborers, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the 40 lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys; and danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea danger, from false brothers, in toil and hardship through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is a daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I'm not indignant? If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, He who is blessed forever, knows that I'm not lying. At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands."This is a reading of God's holy and infallible, authoritative Word. May you write these eternal truths upon our hearts. Three points to frame up our time. First, beware leaders who sacrificed other for self. I know it's beware of leaders, but be beware leaders sounds more ominous. Follow leaders who sacrifice self for Christ, and then emulate leaders who decrease so Christ increases. First, be aware leaders who sacrifice others for self. In the second part of the letter, Saint Paul is battling for the very soul of the Corinthian church. He's battling against false teachers. The people aren't Christians. He says earlier in the text that they're actually Satan's servants, doing everything they can to pull people away from Christ. They can't pull people away from Christ. Satan and these servants try to do everything to keep the people of God from faithfulness, which is the key to usefulness.The lesson learned in this text, they don't just apply to spiritual leaders. These lessons that we draw from the text, they apply to all leaders, anyone who you follow, anyone who you listen to, anyone who you obey, anyone who influences how you live on a day to day, who influences the decisions we make. What he's saying here is, "Beware. Beware of blind obedience to authority just because they're authority figures." And the context, this 2 Corinthians 11:13-15, "For such men are false apostles, deceitful workman, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguised himself as an angel of life. So it is no surprise if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds."See, the thing with Satan is he's in it for himself. He doesn't want to obey anyone. He doesn't want to take commands from God. Satan's servants, willing or unwilling, these same servants are in it for themselves just like Satan. What does Satan promise Eve and Adam at the very beginning? He promises them life without God. He says, "You'll be like God, meaning you can decide for yourself what's good and what's evil, what's right and what's wrong." These so-called super apostles came into the church after Paul left, and they started building a following boasting about their credentials, their worldly credentials. And St. Paul here answers those boasts. He answers those super false apostles. 2 Corinthians 11:16, "I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little."What Paul is about to do is he's about to attack the very heart of the power of the false apostles. He's going to dismantle their authority with his own "foolish boasting". Because the problem was the Corinthian church had become enamored with the idol of sophistication. The false teacher said, "Hey, Paul's not here, let's build up the church." And these people who are educated probably in Old Testament scripture, probably have even doctorates from Jerusalem, they're looking for a job and they come in, "Oh, here's some religious people. Let's make this a job. Oh, let's reach some more people. Yeah, Paul's tactics, they don't work in reaching the masses. Let's soften the gospel. Let's not talk so much about sin. We're in Corinth. Let's not talk about gender. Let's not talk about sexual boundaries. Let's not talk about marriage is one man one woman. Let's not talk about any of that. Let's just talk about that God loves you and He has a tremendous plan for your life to live any way that you want," which is coincidentally the plan of Satan. "Let's not overly focus on scripture. Let's meet people where they are. Let's present the message in a more sophisticated way where it doesn't really touch people's lives but they walk away like they got some kind of spiritual teaching."In Roman culture, they valued strength and success. So these false teachers boasted in their worldly wins, their credentials, their speaking fees, their influence, their following, their commendation and letters of recommendation. And Paul isn't about to boast in his wins, he's about to boast in his Ls, his losses. He's about to present a catalog of suffering. He uses the same rhetorical technique that his enemies used with one difference, he flips it on its head. He does the upside down of what they were doing just to show how foolish it is to say, "I've come to tell you about God, how great God is," and the whole time you're talking about how great you are.2 Corinthians 11:17, "What I'm saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool." Now, this is a challenging verse, and this is really important to understand the question that's raised by godless, pagan, biblical scholars. They used this verse to build a case that Paul didn't write scripture. Therefore, we don't have to listen to Paul. Which is false. And we have another apostle who knew Jesus before Paul knew Jesus, Peter in 2 Peter 3:14-18 talking about Paul. "Therefore, beloved, since you were waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patients of our Lord at salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matter. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures."What does he call the writings that Paul Graphe, he calls them scriptures. "You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the era of lawless people, lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now until the day of eternity. Amen." So this was scripture. So what does verse 17 mean when he says, "Look, I say not as the Lord would, but as a fool."? What he's revealing is this internal battle with the Holy Spirit. As he's writing, he knows that the Holy Spirit is flowing through him. He knows these words aren't his. He knows these ideas aren't his. He's just a vessel of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit's writing through him. And the Holy Spirit gets to this verse and He's like, "Paul, this is what you're about to do. Write it." And Paul says, "No, Lord, I don't want to boast." And the Holy Spirit says, "Write it."And it pained Paul to do this because he didn't see an example of this kind of boasting from Jesus Christ. Yet, God tells Paul to do it. Paul wanted to imitate Christ in everything. Twice in the epistles of Corinthians he says, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ." But sometimes, to battle Satan's most effective strategies you must reveal how foolish these strategies are by employing the same technique just upside down. He doesn't want to fight them on their own terms, but he has to because God said so. Do we have an example of Jesus debating people in power? Yes, of course we do. But when it counted the most, Jesus Christ did not answer His accusers. 1 Peter 2:23, "When He was reviled, He had not reviled in return. When He suffered, He did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to Him who judges justly."Jesus didn't defend Himself when He stood before Pilate or Caiphus, unjustly accused, on purpose. Why? Because He was here to fulfill a very particular mission, and that mission was to die for the sins of the whole world. It had to be this way. Paul, and us sometimes, are forced to honestly, reasonably, fairly defend ourselves sometimes for the preservation of the truth. When this happens, we're not happy about it. Paul's so humble, he has no desire to defend himself. He's not doing it for himself, he's doing it for the benefit of the Corinthian church. He's so reluctant to boast even in suffering because he hates it. He resents it. But he must do it to expose just how foolish these false teachers are.Proverbs 26 is really helpful to discern what's going on in this text, verse four and five, "Answer not a fool according to his folly lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes." So which one is it? Do I answer the fool, or do I not answer the fool? There's a lot of fools around me. Am I answering the fools? And he says, "There's two ways of dealing with a fool. First, ignore, rise above the fray, refuse to condescend to the level. But second, sometimes you got to answer the fool according to his folly. But do it better than they did." And Paul, he'd much rather talk about Jesus. However, since the false teachers waged personal attacks, he defends his integrity while simultaneously undermining their influence. And also, through this, he shepherds the church and teaches them how to develop discernment. Verse 18, "Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. For you gladly bear with fools being wise yourselves."Now here St. Paul brings in a little sarcasm because sarcasm often is powerful. He's a big shot, super apostles. He's boasting in the worldly accomplishments. Paul had more. But they didn't know God. And they didn't know the wisdom of God. They didn't know the gospel of God. We learned earlier in the text they were preaching a different Jesus with a different spirit, with a different gospel, thinking themselves to be wise. They were fools. They present themselves as philosophers and theologians, but they didn't know God. And then Paul brings in this phrase, "being wise yourself", this biting sarcasm. Sarcasm is basically saying the opposite of what's true. What he's saying is, "Well, aren't you something? Aren't you guys so smart? I left you guys, and you are so intelligent, you are so educated that you put up with these fools. The Corinthian church thinking themselves wise were acting foolishly, and Paul publicly calls out folly when necessary."You're saying you're so smart. You put up with fools while they exploit you and they plunder you." Verse 20, "For you bear if someone makes slaves of you or devours you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or strikes you in the face. To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that." The sophists and itinerant philosophers and teachers of that day were known for taking advantage of people who were less informed, less educated. And what did they do? They had the same goal in mind as Satan does, they wanted to enslave people to man-made rules. "Here's my rules, follow them." To devour them financially, to extort, to exploit, to take advantage of them using not love but entrapment, using them not loving them. The phrase "put on airs" here is these are people who push themselves forward, lifting themselves up as they push everyone else down. "Strikes you in the face," he says. Is this just humiliation, where you strike someone in the face with verbal abuse? Or is this physical abuse?Well, there are examples in the early church that these false teachers did abuse people physically. They brought that in from their understanding in Jerusalem. St. Paul later talks about the lashes that he got. He was physical abused, to dominate to humiliate. Cultish behavior. It's all typical behavior of Satan servants. They're like leaches, suck life out of the victim. This is tyranny. That's what he's addressing here. Jesus never taught us to accept that tyranny is anything other than sin. Yes, he taught us to turn the other cheek, but turn the other cheek has nothing to do with physical abuse. Turn the other cheek has to do with being willing to forgive a person who has abused you. So if you are being physically abused, it is not our duty to remain in a position where we are physically abused. Scripture teaches against that.Paul never intended to make disciples of themselves, only disciples of Jesus. And the enemies of the gospel always seek to make disciples of themselves with the intention of enslaving. Verse 21, Paul says, "To my shame, I must say we were too weak for that." Too weak for what? He said, "We were too weak to take advantage of you." Obviously, he's saying, "We didn't take advantage of you on purpose. And these people are coming in, they take our kindness as a sign of weakness." He said, "Whatever anyone else dares to boast of, I'm speaking of as a fool. I also dare to boast of that." What he's saying is in effect, "These people took advantage of you. We could have if we wanted to. We didn't. I was too weak to enslave anyone," he was basically saying, "devour your resources and abuse you."Scripture often talks about this understanding of spiritual authority as service not domination. 1 Peter 5:1-5, "So I exhort the elders among you, the pastors, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ," the apostle Peter says, "as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed. Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you, not for shameful gain, but eagerly, not dominating over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility under one another, for God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."Matthew 20:25-28, the words of Jesus Christ, "But Jesus called them to Him and said, 'You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. "Beware leaders that sacrifice others for themselves," Jesus says. No, the true leaders, spiritual leaders, and any true leaders, these are foundational keys to leadership. You lead by service. You lead sacrifice. And this is point two, follow leaders who sacrifice self for Christ. And 2 Corinthians 11:22, "Are they Hebrews?" So Paul here now is giving us his resume. "Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I."The false teachers made a big deal of their authentic Jewish background, their pedigree. They knew the Hebrew language. So they were religious, they knew the Old Testaments scriptures. Israelites. They brought in the theocratic name of God. This is Israel. And they are offspring of Abraham that they would inherit the messianic king. Paul is a disciple of Gamaliel. He's a Pharisee of Pharisees. He played the same card just better. He had the right ethnic, religious, educational background. He gives us this in Philippians 3:3-11. "For we are the circumcision, we worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh, though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, of Pharisee, as to zeal, a persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under the law, blameless."But whatever gain I had, I counted as lost for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as lost because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I've suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead."He continues in 2 Corinthians 11:23, "Are they servants of Christ? I'm a better one. I'm talking like a madman," he knows this, this is nuts what he's doing, "with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, countless beatings, and often near death." You see that switch, you see what he's doing? "I am a great servant of Christ." And right here he could have talked about his greatness. He could have talked about how many people became Christians through his ministry, how many churches he planted, how many political figures he spoke truth to. He could have done all... how many miracles God's done through him? "No, because I'm a better servant of Christ, now let me tell you about how much I've sacrificed: greater labors, more imprisonments, countless beatings, and often near death."Here, this isn't hyperbolic. He's giving us a true list of his sufferings. The Apostle Paul here elaborates on how much he has sacrificed for the name of Jesus Christ and the mission of Christ. The false teachers came in, they said, "You're following that guy? The hand of God is not on that guy. Obviously, God has cursed that guy, look how much pain He's gone through. If God blesses a person, if God's hand is upon a person, they're rich, and they're healthy, and they're good looking, and they never have any suffering. They never have suffering."Saint Paul says, "No that's wrong." He didn't view suffering as a curse from God, he viewed suffering as an honor, as a blessing from the Lord. That's a gift from God. Also, Paul, he is a smart guy, and the deeper you study, the more you swim in the waters of Paul's writings, you realize just how intelligent he was and how the Holy spirit's using him. The false prophets came into the church for real profits. They didn't come to the church to help the people, they came to the church to make money. And they called Paul a hack who didn't charge a speaking fee because no one would pay even if he charged. That was the accusation. And Paul says, "You want my invoice? You want to know how much you cost me? I'll give you my invoice. I'll give it to you."I've got lots of stories about my daughter. One of my daughters, I won't say, she gave me three coupons for Christmas for 15-minute massages. It was nice. It's nice. And I've got the gong thing, the T.J. Maxx version. And I got this little spikey thing that you go put in your head and you're like, "Whoa." And then she did it for 10 minutes yesterday. She's like, "You got 35 minutes left." Which is funny to me. Imagine if she was an infant and I was like, "All right, I changed your diaper once. You got two more changes left." Do you want my invoice of what it took to get you here? That's why he finds this so ludicrous. So as you read this, you got to ask what drove St. Paul to make these sacrifices.Verse 24, "Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the 40 lashes less one." The 40 lashes was the maximum allowed by the law of Moses, and the Jewish authorities of that day said, "Let's do 39," using the rabbinical principle of fencing the law so that even if you miscount, you don't go over 40. So 39, 40 minus one. So 195 times he was whipped. Was it just leather straps? We're not told. When Jesus was whipped, it wasn't just leather straps. It was leather straps, a little pieces of sharp bone at the inner rock to tear his flesh off. 195 times. Most likely, his whole back was covered in lacerations. 2 Corinthians 11:25, "Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and the day I was a drift at sea."The rods were the Roman form of beating. Paul was beaten both by the Jewish and Roman authorities. Though, he was a Roman citizen, he should have been legally protected from the physical beatings. But the local petty tyrants didn't always obey their own laws. And St. Paul did appeal to Caesar. He said, "What you're doing here is wrong." He did fight unwarranted tyranny. He spoke up against it. The beatings and lashings weren't just painful but meant to humiliate, to dishonor. Paul here boast on something that was extremely humiliating, but he doesn't mind doing it because he doesn't esteem the opinion of people that much, because he esteems the opinion of God infinitely more, is infinitely more precious. He continues, verse 26, "On frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, and danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, and danger from false brothers."In the Roman empire, because of the Pax Romana, the Roman Peace, they built tremendous roads, transportation infrastructure that sprawled all around the empire, and they had thousands of ships sailing. You could travel to most parts of the Roman empire, although accessible, the travel wasn't easy. St. Paul suffered much, especially because he had such a controversial message. Anywhere he went, he would just share the gospel. In 2 Corinthians 11:27, "In toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure." Paul poured himself out in every single way imaginable on behalf of the gospel. He left nothing in his tank. He left everything on the field.2 Corinthians 11:28, "Apart from other things, there's a daily pressure on me of my anxiety for the churches." He just described a catalog, a litany of suffering that any one single predicament of these that he mentioned, any one of them would cause most modern Christians to throw up their hands and quit in despair and say, "No, no, no, no, no, this is not worth it. This whole Christian thing isn't worth it. Right, you said that all I have to do is repent all my sins and I go to eternity. I did not sign up for a life of suffering." Well, that's because the American church has been preaching a half gospel for decades. "You come to Jesus, all your sins are forgiven." Yeah, you come to Jesus, all your sins are forgiven. That's awesome. But now you're a servant of God, and God gets to tell you what to do. God gets to call you wherever God wants to call you. God gets to create a plan for you because He's God. And the only thing that you are allowed to say, dear Christians, is "Yes, sir. Yes, sir, where would you send me, Lord? How much do you want me to sacrifice, Lord? I'm all in." None of this, "No, I'm just going to live a comfortable life." And do nothing.Satan's servants has crept into the American church to make us flacid, just to do nothing for the Lord, nothing of consequence. Paul said, "Apart from all of this apart." You're like, "Yeah, I've been through some stuff." And the whole time he says, "I've had the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for the role the churches." Instead of despairing, Paul emerges victorious because he knew if God has allowed this suffering to happen in my life, He has a purpose for the suffering, to spread the gospel, to expand the kingdom of God. He suffered physically. He also suffered emotionally and spiritually. This is the concern for the church, for all the churches.Pastors know this. Spiritual leaders know this. It's a spiritual anxiety. In Philippians 4, he says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication, present your request to God." Don't be anxious about the wrong things. Do be anxious about the right things. We should be anxious about the health of our souls. We should be anxious about the health of the souls of our loved ones. We should experience the spiritual anxiety, this heartache for the souls of the people around us. And Paul did. He was concerned with both the church planting and church vibrancy, starting churches, but then growing them in healthy maturity.Verse 29, "Who is weak, and I'm not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?" I spent all week trying to figure out what he means by the word weak. He calls himself weak here, and then in verse 30, we'll get to it. He just gave us a list of stuff that any half verse would kill most any one of us. He calls himself weak. Here he says, "Who is weak? And I'm not weak." Here he's talking about empathy. He says, "When people that he led to the Lord are weak in their faith, when they're suffering, he suffers." This is called empathy. When you feel the pain of other people, this is empathy. Is it weak to experience empathy? Is it weak to experience empathy? No, it's not. It takes an incredible strength to experience empathy, to empathize with another person in their suffering. And the more people under your care, the more strength you need to empathize with every single one of them. More strength you need to bear the weight of a beloved person's suffering. When people suffered, he suffered.And the second phrase is, "Who is made to fall? And I'm not indignant." It literally reads, "Who is entrapped into sin, and I do not burn?" When people fell from the faith, when they sinned, Paul burned with indignation for their souls. I wonder as you read this list, do you have a resume or a catalog of suffering or sacrifice for the Lord? Every faithful Christian should. Like if need be, to make a list of how much you've suffered for the Lord. Because every Christian knows that because Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself for me, He calls me to sacrifice myself for Him. You should have a catalog of suffering. You will have a catalog of suffering. If you continue to faithfully follow Jesus Christ and say yes to every single one of His commandments, you will grow this list, this resume. Every Christian will. In particular, in the time that we live. We need to be wide awake and know that persecution might be around the corner for Christians. It already is in many parts of the world. We need to be ready.Three is, "Emulate leaders who decrease so Christ increases." This phrase comes from John the Baptist. John the baptized from John 3:30 says, "He must increase, I must decrease." John was losing his disciples to Jesus Christ. And one of his disciples said, "Aren't you worried that Jesus is going to have a bigger following then you? He's like, "No. I came to point everyone to Jesus Christ. I don't care about my following. I don't care about my platform. He must increase, I must decrease. 2 Corinthians 11:30, Paul says, "If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness." Paul knew that when he is weakest Christ is strongest. When he is weakest, he can't but trust in the strength of Jesus Christ. He knew he couldn't do a thing for the Lord without the Lord's power. 2 Corinthians 3:5, "Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God. Our power comes from God."This verse I have to deal with just a little bit, because I've been wrestling all week, "What in the world does he mean by showing my weakness?" In particular, in the context, the guy got beaten how many lashes? 195. Three times beaten by rods, shipwrecked a night and a day in sea, cold, exposure. So how are you not dead, bro? That's my question. That's my question. How did you get out of this thing alive? That's my question. Obviously God. Obviously God. Obviously God. But scripture nowhere doesn't say, "Hey, hey, Christians, be strong in the Lord and the strength of His might and never do anything in your life to get stronger. Remain weak. Hey, Christians, remain weak spiritually, remain weak physically, remain weak financially, remain weak, remain weak, remain... " Do you see that in the Bible? That's nowhere in the Bible. So what does he mean by weakness?Well, it's a spectrum, right? The weakness and strength is a spectrum, and every single person, they're in a different range on the spectrum. If you lift, which you should, every Christian should be as strong as you possibly can in health wise, immune system, it's good for you. You should lift. And when you have an off day in the gym, like that off day is different for different people. I've lifted with people and they're like, Yeah, I feel really sluggish today. I've been sick for like four weeks, and I barely got out of bed." And then they put on four plates on each side, the big ones.The weakness is different for people. And the stronger you are, the stronger your weakness is. And, and this is important because in the context, what is Paul doing here? What did we start off with? He's engaging. He's doing battle with the false teachers, the servants of Satan. He's going to war with them, and he clearly wins. After this argument, he gets clear that he won. So he's using his weakness as a way to overcome his enemies. This is really important. It's really important because I do believe that there's an attack on the church today. The attack is coming from everywhere, and it's on all humans, but it's on the church in particular. The attack comes through a lie through the narrative that Christians should be weak by definition. "Oh, you're a Christian, you should be weak in every aspect of life." We should be weak physically, financially, socially, relationally, intellectually, educationally, spiritually. Weak, Christians should be weak.Should Christians be weak?No.No. Is it okay for a Christian to be weak? Yes, it's okay. Sometimes it's children, it's baby Christians. Sometimes you're sick. Yes. This is why we, the stronger, are called to help the weaker. The stronger you are, the more you can help those who are weaker. But if you are weak and you have the ability to get stronger, should you get stronger? Of course. Right, this is as clear as day. I don't even know why I have to say this.Also, don't judge a person's strength from your starting line, judge a person's strength from their starting line. You're like, "Oh, I don't know what your starting line is." Then get to know the person. But we are to grow stronger. And by the way, this attack to make people and people in the church weak, the attack is specifically targeting men. I don't know if you noticed this. Satan specifically targets men, and he specifically targets Christian men. The Christian men should be weak because Christian men don't do anything for the kingdom. What is weakness? Weakness is a lack of strength to protect yourself. That's all weakness is, it's a lack of strength. Is that what Paul means in 2 Corinthians 11:30 when he says, "If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness."? I don't think so.What's he mean by weakness? How is he weak after just giving us a catalog of suffering that would kill any of us? Is it weakness to suffer so much? No, of course not. Well, this is what the world and the false prophets, this is what they would all say, that it's we weakness that you allowed yourself to suffer so much. That's what the world says. It's weakness that you put yourself in a position to be hurt. That's what the world says. Well, the world doesn't understand what true love is. Isn't it true strength to sacrifice yourself, to be willing to suffer for the one you love? Yeah. Choosing the way of suffering for the one you love, yeah. This is the way of the cross. This is choosing the way of the cross and walking in it daily. It takes the greatest amount of strength that today I'm going to deny myself. I'm not going to do what I want. I'm going to do what's best for my beloved.Was Paul weak? No, he wasn't weak, he was meek. And there's a difference. He had the strength to choose to put himself in a vulnerable situation for the sake of others. It's not just a catalog of suffering but of sacrificed, and he sacrificed a lot. Just like Jesus Christ. Jesus standing before Pilate, was Jesus weak? No, He's not. He was meek. At that moment, He could have killed Pilate. He chose not to. "I could kill you, but I'm going to die for you instead." That's true power. In that case, He chose to lay aside His strength to take on the bigger enemy. By the way, this is how Paul started the whole argument, 2 Corinthians 10:1, he started the whole argument challenging the false teachers, he say, "I, Paul, myself entreat to you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when I'm away." He said, "I am entreating you by the meekness of Jesus Christ." Not the weakness of Jesus Christ. Weakness is having no strength, meekness is focusing your strength.It's why Christians like from the outside Jesus did look weak. Many Christians from the outside, you do look weak. We look weak. But it's not weakness, it's strength under control. That's what meekness is. One of my favorite verses in all of scripture is Numbers 12:3, where it says, "Moses was very meek, more than all people who are in the face of the earth." Moses was very meek. I find that interesting because it's kind of parallel with what Paul is doing here. Who wrote the Book of Numbers? It was Moses. Moses was the most meek person. As he's writing, he's like, "Holy Spirit, you sure? He's like, "Yeah, yeah, write that."Moses also killed a guy with his bare hands and buried the corpse in a desert. Was he weak? No, of course he wasn't weak. Weak people can't be meek by definition. If you have no strength to keep in check, then you can't even be meek. Meekness assumes strength. My message is we need more meek Christians and fewer weak Christians. So if you have the ability to get stronger, get stronger in every single aspect of your life, in particular men. Women, you guys are crushing it. Keep growing in strength. Keep growing in the Lord. Keep getting stronger. Men, you need to be leading the charge and growing in strength, because it is our job to provide and to protect and to build so when the time comes we're ready to sacrifice self to protect. And the more you have to give, the greater sacrifice you could make.We're called to sacrifice self for others. Is it weakness to risk pain to self because you love one another? No, it's the greatest power. It's the greatest strength. That's why self-denial is a superpower. This is my message, I just pray that all of us gets stronger in every aspect of life. It starts with being stronger in the Lord and the strength of His might. But I've noticed that when people are strong in the Lord, every other aspect of their life just gets stronger. The closer you are to the Lord, the more filled to Spirit you are. Correlation causation, I'm not sure. Everything, you just get stronger relationally, stronger marriages, stronger parenting, stronger children, stronger finances, just stronger all around, stronger mental health, stronger physically. Because you understand when you work for the Lord, full tell all the time. You have to figure out how to get your energy up and to work as hard as you can, and so when persecution comes, you are hard to kill, just like St. Paul was. You can't kill the guy. And obviously, protected by the power of the Spirit, and then we're invincible until the day the Lord calls us home.2 Corinthians 11:31, "The God and the Father of the Lord Jesus, He who is blessed forever, knows that I'm not lying." St. Paul here as he's finishing the chapter brings in an oath. He preempts the story that he's about to tell, and he brings in an oath to make sure that his detractors are listening. And then he starts his story. "At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me." So Paul concludes this catalog of suffering by describing one particularly humiliating experience in his life. He was a young, accomplished scholar under Gamaliel, a rising star in the religious world of the Roman Empire. He was a genius, and he was zealous, willing to do anything and everything for his God. So he took letters of recommendation and he's on the road to Damascus to go persecute Christians, to arrest them, and ultimately to execute them. And then on the way, Jesus Christ meets him on the road to Damascus, the resurrected Christ, and blinds him with His light. Paul gets saved.Now this hunter of Christians becomes hunted by his own colleagues. The dissident has to be eliminated. St. Paul here talks about the time when he was in Damascus and he knew that his colleagues were here to kill him, and that he, by the help of Christians, he's lowered in a fish basket like a child to escape his former colleagues. In the next chapter, he's going to recount how he was lifted to the third heaven. He got to experience spiritually... Very few people have ever experienced. Before he recounts how he was lifted to the heavens, he recounts how he was lowered in a fish basket, like the lowest of the low in the middle of the night, just weak and vulnerable. And 2 Corinthians 11:33, "But I was let down on the basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands." Paul headed toward Damascus a Pharisee, and he leaves a humbled Christian, a follower of Jesus Christ.He embraces his suffering for Christ. "This is my weakness," he says. "My weakness is that I love Jesus Christ so much that I'm willing to experience whatever suffering the Lord appoints for me. That's my weakness." His weakness was his love for God, which is actually his strength. And that's why it's upside down.Is this your weakness, dear Christian, a love for God that overcomes everything? Or do you have a weakness for an idol instead? Well, then, you won't be effective. We're called to be like Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, Isaiah 53, "He is the suffering servant." Our Messiah, the king of kings comes to die in a cross for our sins. He's humiliated, scorched, beaten, bruised, bleeding on the cross to procure our salvation. The only thing you have to do is be justified. Yes, it's true, it's true, it's true. Repent of your sins and follow Jesus Christ. Repent, follow Jesus. Repent, believe. Repent, believe. Repent of your sins. But just know that if God has appointed you a salvation, He has also appointed you to make sacrifices for Him, for His kingdom. And all we who faithfully follow Jesus Christ in this life, we will suffer. That's a promise. Or wants to lead a holy life will suffer.We shouldn't seek suffering, but we also shouldn't be surprised when we do suffer. And we must resolve today to remain unflinchingly faithful in the faith of any adversity. I'll close with the words of Jesus Christ, Luke 9:23. "And He said to all, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." Amen. Let's pray.Heavenly Father, we thank you for Jesus Christ. You called Him to live a life of holiness. You called Him to take on the ultimate enemies of Satan, sin, and death. And Jesus Christ, you wrestled in Gethsemane, and you cried out, "If there's any other way, let this cup of suffering pass from me." And there was no other way, and Jesus, you went to the cross, and you bore the wrath of God that we deserve for our sin. You bore our deaths and you took on the hell of Satan and demons. And did that so we would not have to. But then you also call us a life of following you, of taking up our cross daily, a cross of self-denial, of saying no to self, saying yes to your plan, saying yes to service and sacrifice. I pray that you strengthen us in that Holy Spirit. Empower us like you've never empowered us before, and use us to spark a revival in this region of the nation and beyond. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Sermon by Inessa Utayev SERMON NOTES: The world teaches us that first we live and then we die. But Jesus said, only when we die, will life begin. The ways of the world will always contradict the ways and Word of God. (Luke 9:23) “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. Jesus gives us three requirements for anyone who wants to follow Him. Deny himself. Take up his cross daily. Follow me. In Roman times, carrying a cross always led to death on that cross. If someone took up his cross, he never came back. It was a one-way journey. Jesus parallels this to say that following Him is a commitment; a one way journey, and there is no turning back. Why do we have to take up our cross? The instrument of death and torture? Didn't Jesus take on the cross for us? (Luke 9:24-25) 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? (or in other words, his soul.) We must follow Jesus this way (by taking up our cross) because it is the only way that we will ever find life. It sounds strange to say, “you will never live until you die,” but that's the truth because resurrection only happens to dead people. The living don't need it. The tricky part about the Christian life is that before you can experience Christ's resurrection power and new life, you have to die to yourself. In order for you to live, you have to die. What does it mean to die? (Romans 8:5-14) Before you can experience Christ's resurrection power in your life, you first have to die to yourself. Die to your passions. Die to your pride. Die to your lusts, die to your addictions, die to your worldly pursuits. So many people forget about the first two things Jesus said: he said, deny yourself, take up your cross DAILY, and then, follow me. We skip to step three and say, Lord I'm just going to follow you without denying myself or picking up my cross. YOU CAN'T FOLLOW JESUS WITHOUT DYING FIRST. LIFE doesn't stop at death. IT STARTS AT DEATH! God's goal is not to just get you to the cross and leave you there. God has no desire to keep you dead. When we surrender to Him, when we pick up our crosses, every single day, God comes and infuses us with His resurrection power, authority and life. The call of God requires you to lay your life down --- if it's any less than that, if it doesn't cost you everything, it's not from God. It's time to fully surrender to Jesus. It's time to deny ourselves, and it's time to pick up the cross. Give Him your whole self. Your whole life. Place it all on the altar and watch fire begin to fall. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/overflow-show/support

By One Man, Jesus ChristBy Tammy Lacock “For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of Grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:17, KJB) Warren Litzman discusses in more detail Romans 5:17, reminding us that the Apostle Paul is the Apostle of Grace because his writings ushered in the Dispensation of Grace in which we are living NOW. In Roman 5:17, Paul states it is by this Grace of God that we are saved. Through God's abundant Grace, He sent one man, Jesus Christ, to redeem us from the sin of one man, Adam. Paul's writings help believers understand the final gospel of Jesus Christ that by His death, burial, and resurrection, we too die to this life of sin and rise up with Christ to a new life IN Him. Christ is our righteousness. He is our All. As believers alive IN Him, God our Father in Heaven now sees us blameless and holy. We are His bona fide children! There is only one man who can bring anybody out of this life of sin and death into a new life, eternal life in Him. There is only one man that can bring us back to God. His mighty and beautiful name is Jesus Christ.

The focus of this episode is:Ephesians 5:32-6:9. Family members submitting one to anotherHave you ever been in a conversation like this? Maybe you're talking with a lovable old uncle, or you're in conversation with a friendly neighbor. You've been talking about one thing and then you get off the track and start talking about something else. Finally, comes a moment when one of you says, “Let's get back to what we were talking about.” And you pick up with that earlier train of thought right where you left off.That's something like what we find at the start of Ephesians 5:33. Paul uses a Greek word that is usually translated into English as “nevertheless” or “however.” This Greek word, “nevertheless” refers to something said earlier and picks up the train of thought that was left off for a moment. In this case, with “nevertheless” Paul is referring back to verse 21 where he redefined the vertical act of submitting and turned it into the horizontal relationship of reciprocally submitting. This was the new way Christian believers were to be getting along in the Spirit. Even though “nevertheless” is Paul's first word in the Greek sentence of verse 5:33, some English translations omit the word all together. I think it is important to include it, because it alerts us that Paul is linking back to the subject of verse 21.Paul not only redefined the verb “to submit, ” he also used the word “fear” at the end of the verse 21. Paul said we mutually submit one to another in the fear of Christ, or in respect of Christ. By using the word “fear” Paul signals a second time in verse 33 that he is linking back to verse 21. In verse 33, after he says a Christian husband should demonstrate agape love toward his wife, Paul says a Christian wife “fears” her Christian husband. How does she do that? Not in the way of a frightening fear. Not that kind of fear. But of a fear in the way of a serious and profound respect because of the ties that bind us to Christ. Because we are united in Christ how do we then live as a married couple? Paul says (1) we love our spouse – that's an idea from verse 25 and (2) we respect our spouse – that's an idea from verse 21.If a man is to love his own wife the same as himself, does a wife also love her spouse? Of course! If a wife is to respect her husband, does a husband also respect his spouse? Of course! Our underlying status as members of the body of Christ enriches our relationship with one another as husband and wife. As Christian spouses, each being filled with the Spirit, we reciprocally love and respect one another.Taken out of context, people misuse the words in this verse. They think wives aren't supposed to love their husbands. That husbands don't need to respect their wives. They even claim that wives are to fear their husbands in what is basically a wrong way. These ideas misuse the words in this verse.Recognizing that verse 5:33 has hooks and references back to the previous verses of 32, and 25, and 21, helps us to clear away these misconceptions. And we see again the idea Paul introduced in verses 22-24. We see that the Christian couple is a wonderful example of Christians in a reciprocal relationship.Ephesians 5:32 is the middle point of a pattern that Kenneth E. Bailey called elsewhere a “prophetic rhetorical template.” This modified seven-point prophetic rhetorical pattern runs from Ephesians 5:22 to 6:9. All of it illustrates how believers submit reciprocally one to another. Recognizing this pattern is being used here is a big help to us in understanding what is going on in verses 5:33 and following. [Study Guide note will talk about “the high jump,” as labeled by Bailey, used elsewhere in biblical literature - several smaller sections that give a running start before the major arcing template is presented. This running start begins in verses 15-18. A second step is taken in verses 19-21. And the 7-point chiasm begins in verse 22 and runs through 6:9.]The first three segments of the rhetorical template begin at verses 22, 25 and 28. The middle part is in verse 32. The last three segments of the rhetorical template begin at 5:33, 6:1 and 6:5.As Paul's readers digested what he had just written in verses 22-31, they were coming to understand that Christians should be submitting one to another in church. But was it possible to practice this behavior in the home?That's what Paul addresses in 5:33-6:9. He takes up, one by one, the three basic relationships that could occur in the household of believers in his day. He discusses each category in turn:Husbands and wives (5:33)children and parents (6:1-4)servants and masters (6:5-9)Try not to pay attention to the chapter break that occurs here. It is important to remember that Paul wrote this section on “walking” in the Spirit hundreds of years before chapter breaks and verse numbers were added by other people to his writings. There were no chapter and verse breaks when Paul wrote Ephesians. The big fat number 6 we see in our Bibles standing as the start of chapter 6 should not have been inserted where it now is. It would better have been inserted after the end of verse 9, at the end of this fifth “walking” section of the second half of the Book of Ephesians.Paul uses the word “fear” in 5:33 to link back to verse 21. Paul also uses the word “fear” to tie together all three pairs of relationships that he gives us in 5:33-6:9. Here's how he uses “fear” in each set of relationships. In verse 33, Paul uses “fear” when he talks about wives and their husbands.In 6:1-4, the word “fear” is implied in the verses that are addressed to children and parents.In 6:5-9, “fear” is part of servant-master relationship.Verse 33 deals with married adults in the household. Theirs is a horizontal and reciprocal relationship. In 6:1-4 and 5-9, Paul focuses on two other pairs of relationships in the household. These are relationships in which the individuals are in a position of inequality – as child and parent, and as servant and master. Family Circus! In these 10 verses Paul provides us with a rhetorical three-ring circus. In each ring, Christian family members defy normal expectations and live in Spirit-filled relationships that portray living scenes demonstrating life together in the body of Christ.As a child, I was taken to the final outdoor three-ring performance of the Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus. It was the last one ever held under their enormous tent, called the Big Top. And it was tremendous! Plenty was going on in the center ring! There were trapeze artists flying high overhead while clowns and animal acts performed underneath. To one side in another ring there was an animal act with a lion tamer and plenty of threatening beasts. But wait. There was more! In a third ring there was the noise of a wild west scene with horse riding tricks and cracking pistol displays of incredible marksmanship. Could I follow all that at one time? I sure tried! In these verses there are three rings of activity too. Can we follow all that is going on in them? We can sure try! Readers of ancient literature were used to asking, “How does this apply to life in the household?” These verses sound and feel something like other household lists that were in circulation in Paul's day. Those other lists on “how to” organize a household reflected the value systems of the pagan religions of the day, and of Judaism. These are called “domestic codes.”Paul provides something like a domestic code of his own, except that he modifies the typical literary forms and their content. This has frustrated a number of scholars who have tried to squeeze this section of Ephesians into an outline typical of other ancient domestic codes.Surprisingly, many claim to see a household code in Ephesians starting back in verses 22-31 of chapter 5. But as we have demonstrated those verses are about a household only tangentially. The focus there is on Christ's sacrificial love for the church.When Paul takes up the subject of the Christian household from 5:33 on, he breaks almost every rule in those other domestic codes. He reverses the usual order they use in the way he names the members of the family and he advises family members to relate to one another in ways that are quite revolutionary when compared to the established patterns of his day.Ephesians 6:1-9. Let's look at the Christians who are in unequal positions in the household. Starting with Ephesians 6:1, “obedience” enters the picture. For Paul, there are relationships within a Christian household where obedience is appropriate: between children and parents, and between slaves and masters.These unequal relationships can be limited in duration. They exist only as long as the child is obligated to obey, and only as long as the slave is obligated to serve. Bye the way, the word “obedience” is never used in Ephesians 5:22-31 for how Christians interact with one another. And “obedience” is not required of either Christian spouse to the other in 5:33. Some people hold up verse 33 as a proof text that wives are required to obey their husbands. But verse 33 does not say this. The word “fear” is used in verse 33 but it is not used as a synonym for “obedience.”Children and parents. In Ephesians 6:1-3, Paul exhorts children to obey their parents. In verse 4, he addresses their parents. His comments apply to individuals living in a Christian household. Paul specifies this in verses 1 and 4 by adding the words, “in the Lord” and “of the Lord.”In verses 1-3, four reasons are given for children to be obedient. Paul makes his appeal in terms that are appropriate to children who already old enough and know the Lord. The four reasons are instructive and encouraging. Children are to obey because:They are “in the Lord”They are expected to do what is “right”They have a “commandment” of GodThey are given a “promise”In verses 2-3, Paul quotes the Fifth of the Ten Commandments. It is in Deuteronomy 5:16 and reads as follows: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” To this familiar commandment, the Jewish mind was trained to associate the parallel statement in Leviticus 19:3, “Each of you shall fear his mother and his father ….”The phrase “in the Lord” is reminiscent of Ephesians 5:21. And the idea of “fearing” also refers back to 5:21. Thus, believing children actively and fully enjoy all the rights and privileges of reciprocally submitting members of the body of Christ.Christian children are, nevertheless, called on to obey. Disobedience to parents is not something taken lightly by Paul (see Romans 1:30, 2 Timothy 3:2).In verse 4, Paul turns from Christian children to their Christian parents. The Greek word he uses to refer to them is pateres, a word frequently translated as “fathers” in English Bibles. However, pateres should be translated “parents.”In Ephesians 6:1-2, both parents are specifically named. In the reference to Leviticus 19:3, mothers and fathers are both mentioned. Mothers are mentioned first. There is no preferential treatment given to fathers by Paul in Ephesians 6:4, as if in some special way he is writing to them to the exclusion of mothers.The Greek word for “parents” used in Ephesians 6:4 is the same Greek word used in Hebrews 11:23. There, it designates the “parents” of Moses who hid him for three months.In his commentary on Ephesians, F. F. Bruce explained that Ephesians 6:4 denoted not just fathers, but both parents. He pointed out how this fit with the parallel passage correctly translated in Colossians 3:20-21. Hand washing. One day, many years ago, after Sunday morning church we greeted everyone as we left in the usual way by shaking hands all around. This day we had been invited for dinner at the home of an older member in that church. It was our first time in his home. As soon as we were in the door of his house he pointed us to where we could go wash our hands. With a playful smile and a comment about germs he encouraged us to “go wash off the brethren.” By brethren he meant both the brothers and sisters we had just greeted.In a similar way, in his letters, Paul often referred to all believers, both male and female, as “brothers.” Galatians 1:2, is an example of this.Thus, in verse 4, Paul forbids both Christian parents from “embittering” or “provoking to wrath” their children. Both parents are to be respectful in their dealings with their children. In Christ, their children are members together with them in one shared spiritual joint-body.Similarly, according to the Greek of verse 4, both parents are responsible for their children, to “nurture them in the discipline and admonition of the Lord.” Paul teaches that nurturing children includes both “discipline” and “admonition.” The word “discipline” Paul uses here is a general term. It means “discipline in general” (as used in 2 Timothy 3:16, and Hebrews 12:5). “Admonition” means “special admonition” as in Titus 3:10. Some Bible versions translate this into English as “the training and instruction of the Lord.”Thus, honorable parents, worthy of obedience, are to model righteous and measured living. Both the mother and the father are to instruct their children in biblical doctrines, clarifying for their children the motivation behind their acts as parents. In this way their children will come to know that the loving care and discipline they receive from their parents is the outflow of the will of their loving God, who inspired the commandments they and their parents are putting into practice.Servants and masters. In Roman households in and around Ephesus in Paul's day, often there were many servants. It has been estimated that in some of the cities and towns where Paul preached a large percentage of the population was either enslaved or worked as servants. What word does Paul have for these Christian members of the household? What equivalent truth does he have for today's members of the household?In verses 5-9, Paul illustrates how, even in the context of the obedience required in the servant-master relationship, submitting reciprocally can still be practiced in everyday life in the context of Christian households.In verse 5, Paul again uses the words “fear” and “as Christ,” reminding readers of the connection with 5:21 and verses 22 to 31. In life, the distinction made between servants and masters is not a spiritual distinction. It is only a social and a temporary one. Paul exhorts servants to be thoroughly Christian in all they do (verse 5). They are to work “as servants of Christ” (verse 6) and serve “as to the Lord” (verse 7) because their ultimate master is the Lord (verse 8).It is from the Lord that payment would come. In this way, vertical relationships of servants with their earthly masters are overlaid with the priority of spiritual relationships. This being the case, Paul makes a bold application to Christian masters in verse 9. He tells them to act as do their Christian servants!In addition, masters are to hold themselves back from threatening, remembering that they too share a master in heaven. Their heavenly master is no respecter of person or rank, whether male or female, young or old, slave or free.Completing the “walk.” In sum, according to the two three-part strings of illustrations that Paul uses to explain the meaning of Christian submission in Ephesians 5:21, “walking carefully in the Spirit” means every believer is to be submitting reciprocally to every other member in the body of Christ. Above all, Christ sets the example for us to follow.This kind of behavior is possible in the church and at home. Each one is to practice this reciprocal submitting with other believers at church. And where the case applies, each Christian is to practice this reciprocal submitting to others in the household, whether as spouses, as children and parents, and even as servants and masters.What this passage does and does not sayIn Ephesians 5:15-6:9, Paul explains how to walk carefully and successfully in the Spirit. In verses 15 through 21 he introduces in broad strokes how to do this. The culmination of these verses presents the dramatically transformed behavior of Spirit-filled believers reciprocally submitting one-to-another in Christ. Then, in verses 22 through 6:9 Paul presents a modified seven-part prophetic rhetorical chiasm that illustrates in detail “how to” practice this kind of mutual submission. In parts one through three in verses 22-31, he gives three “as Christ” examples.The middle of the chiasm is the high truth that believers united are one in a joint-body with Christ himself.In Ephesians 5:33-6:9, he gives three “in the household” examples.In this passage, from Ephesians 5:15-6:9, Paul does not teach that man is ‘head' of the woman. He does not teach that a man is ‘head' of the house. He does not teach that a husband is responsible for the spiritual health of a wife. He does not teach that a father is more responsible than a mother for the upbringing of their children.Such ideas are “leadership” heresies based on misunderstandings of the passage. I wrote an entire book discussing how these “leadership” heresies are not part of seven major passages in the Bible. They are not biblical. In fact they are counter-biblical. Trying to practice these non-biblical teachings has damaged the Christian experience, poisoned home life and weakened the church. This passage is about walking carefully as Christians filled with the Spirit. From verse 21 on this passage is not primarily about marriage. An individual may know Christ yet never marry. Or, an individual might know Christ as a single before marrying, as a spouse during marriage, and as a single again after the death of a spouse. According to Ephesians 5:15-6:9, the great mystery now revealed is that believers enjoy a relationship with Christ that goes beyond even that enjoyed by the first humans with God in the Garden of Eden. Walking together, filled with the Spirit, our relationship with Christ, goes even beyond Eden.***I invite you to visit our website at Tru316.com for links to the podcast, plus our books, blog posts and our YouTube Channel with more than a dozen in-depth Workshops on the 7 key Bible passages on women and men from Eden on. There is also a Study Guide on this episode for use in personal study or in small groups and more. You can find it in the blog posts on Tru316.com or write me at Bruce@Tru316.com. And thanks for joining me on The Eden Podcast!The Eden Podcast is brought to you by the Tru316 Project. YOU can help equip others by becoming a member of the Tru316 Project for $3.16/month or more. Go topatreon.com/tru316project. 

In Roman times, it was considered bad luck to get out of bed on the left side. Times have sure changed, and in April/May of 2020 it is impressive if you get out of bed at all. Enjoy!

Apparently the first recorded fish sauce was produced by the ancient Greeks of the Black Sea colonies. Clearly the abundant fish resources of the Black Sea played a role in the production of this extremely popular condiment! The sauce we know from Martial's verse - "here is lordly garum, a costly gift made from the first blood of a still-gasping mackerel!" was almost certainly a table condiment and made from blood and viscera of very fresh fish. Sometimes handled by the diner and used in relatively small amounts over already cooked food. (Sally Grainger 'A New Approach to Roman Fish Sauce' -2007) The other more commonplace kind of sauce was called liquamen and was used in the kitchen by the cook to add salt and other more complex flavours to most dishes, just as we add salt during cooking. This was made using various kinds of whole small fish which were then mixed with salt and left to dissolve and ferment for up to three months. The resulting liquefied fish was removed from its bone and shipped all over Mediterranean in special amphorae. This whole -fish sauce is very similar to the Thai fish sauces so popular today! Roman fish sauce was NOTHING like modern anchovy paste; using the latter has been the downfall of many an attempt to recreate ancient recipes! ( Sally Grainger -The Classical Cookbook)Fish sauce was manufactured at factory sites along the coast; these were typically beside a beach or a harbour. The fish was only a few hours from the net when the process began. These sauces cannot and shall not be seen as a rotten decaying substance! What took place was not bacterial putrefaction (which, given the high proportion of salt would be impossible) but enzymic proteolysis, a process in which the enzymes in the viscera of the fish convert the solid protein into a liquid form. The viscera is therefore essential to the process; without them the protein does not dissolve. What the modern gourmet has to understand, and probably some only know too well from modern experience, is that there was not a single Garum sauce. As always there was the elite one, one for commoners and many other versions in between. For example, when Martial describes this sauce being "made from the blood of a still breath­ing mackerel " it therefore implies this was a black and bloody sauce. Or, the surviving Greek recipes for fish sauce also affirm the importance of the distinc­tion between blood/viscera sauce and one made from whole fish. As we see things can get a little bit complicated when we muddle through the murky waters of ancient gastronomy!One could buy aged elite black mackerel garum, ordi­nary black tuna garum, elite liquamen cooking sauces made from mackerel or cheaper cooking sauces made with a mixture of clupeidae and sparidae, or a tuna or mackerel muria, both of which could also be aged or new. All of these products could also come in second or even third grade versions.The expensive and intensely- flavoured blood sauce would be lost in the cooking process and wasted, needed to be seen by the gourmet to be experienced, val­ued and discussed. Therefore we can conclude it would have been the table sauces handled by the guests or the host himself. From modern South East Asian cuisine we learn of a fermented squid blood viscera (and ink) sauce that is used today in Japanese cuisine. It is known as ishiri and is used as a finishing sauce for sushi as well as cooked food. Its taste neither fishy nor salty, and smells of the iron compounds from the blood. Japanese cuisine also has a whole-fish sauce called ishiru and many dishes are prepared with both i.e the whole fish sauce is used for cooking and the blood/viscera sauce finishes the dish. This sauce is truly fermented with bac­teria and low salt. It is quite remarkable that the Japanese word for viscera is gari!  In Roman cuisine, the use of garum was enriched with different combinations of the sauce - with honey (meligarum), vinegar (oxygarum), wine (oenogarum), water (hydrogarum), or dry spices (such as dill, oregano, coriander, celery, or even mint). These sauces were used as condiments for literally everything: from meat and fish to vegetables, salads, desserts, bread, and wine dipping.The best way to use it in all recipes is thus; Take a litre of grape juice and reduce it by half, cool it and blend a bottle of Thai nam pla fish sauce with it. My favourite recipe that includes garum is "Honey-Glazed Prawns with Oregano and Black Peppers" a relatively simple dish, which I've made countless times as a starter in one of my ancient Greek themed dinners! For a decent starter for two, take 8 large prawns 15ml of olive oil, 30ml of fish sauce 30gr of clear honey, a handful of chopped fresh oregano and black pepper. Place oil, fish sauce and honey in a saucepan, then add the prawns. Sauté gently in the cooking liquor for 2 or 3 minutes. remove prawns from sauce and keep them warm, cook the liquor a little longer so in reduces by half. Add oregano, pour over the prawns and sprinkle liberally with freshly ground black pepper. Serve with crusty bread. Similarly homemade smoked sausages with fish sauce are indeed a treat for every gourmet! mince belly of pork, pine kernels, rue, peppercorns, savory, cumin bay berries fresh parsley and simply grill them! Yum!Music by Aris Lanaridishttps://www.arislanaridis.co.uk/The Noma Guide to Fermentation:Authors: René Redzepi, David ZilberISBN: 9781579657185Review here: https://www.wired.com/story/noma-guide-to-fermentation-book-review/The Classical Cookbook Authors: Sally Greinger, Andrew Dalbyhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1579230.The_Classical_CookbookAndrew Dalby:Siren Feasts: A History of Food and Gastronomy in Greecehttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/308027.Siren_FeastsSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-delicious-legacy. If you love to time-travel through food and history why not join us at https://plus.acast.com/s/the-delicious-legacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sperm Donation For thousands of years, couples have had challenges conceiving. In Roman times there are documented stories of infertile females enlisting 'help' and achieving pregnancies. Donor sperm is different in today's world. IVF clinics follow certain proven protocols that are tried and tested. Going to the pub on Saturday night might be one option but not always a great one. In this episode, Prof explores other approaches to donor sperm and explains the risks of those approaches. If you find this episode useful and know someone else who would benefit, please do share it with them.

We've always needed to know what it means to be a man. Teaching this is nothing new. The problem with our current society is that we don't have teaching manhood programmed into how we teach everything else. In Roman times, boys ran the streets wearing dirty clothes and had to fend for themselves. They would engage in battles, the classroom, too, was combative, they had to defend their point against a crowd, not merely in their own head or onto a piece of paper. We've always taught young men what it means to be a man, but today, with fathers not sticking around, with a school system that increasingly looks down upon masculine qualities and virtues, our young men, our boys, even our middle aged men, are now left to figure things out for themselves. Sad! Who suffers? Everyone! The economy, women, kids, everyone. So, within this article we'll discuss with it means to be a man, but also how to be a man. You won't leave here with mere theory, but with steps by which you can take action. Where We've Gone Wrong 1. Moral virtue doesn't exist in you being harmless. The modern ideal being pushed for men is to be softer, to call yourself a feminist. You are not morally superior because you are more harmless, you are useless. 2. You are not perfect. You can be better than you are. This is an issue, telling kids and humans that they're perfect just the way they are. We all have potential, but that potential is realized by improving and working hard. 3. What comes naturally isn't what's best. Easy things ‘come naturally', the good things in life require effort. 4. Being a man is the ideal, it's a pursuit. It's not a bad thing, but a call that every male must heed. This idea of a patriarchy doesn't exist. Men and women have worked together throughout history, never in opposition. Good men who do great things benefit everyone. Weak men who are soft, hurt those around them. What It Means to Be a Man Fundamentally, you cannot be useless. A useless man is weak, doesn't earn and provide, is soft, complains, sees himself as a victim. How can you not be useless? Follow the following steps as if it were a checklist. 1. Be Dangerous. That is, learn how to protect, to defend, to conquer. At our base, men are protectors. We're defenders. Good men need to be more dangerous than bad men, or else we're in trouble. You're also responsible for others, and therefore useless if you cannot defend them. Learn to fight. Get good with guns. It's not a choice, it's a duty. 2. Earn, succeed, win. Get good at something. That's how you win. Winning isn't a matter of getting something for nothing, but achievement. Achievement takes effort, persistence, and purposeful practice. To add to our fundamental need to be protectors, men must also be providers. If you want to know what it means to be a man, look no further than the head of a household. Get good at something. Earn as much as you can for those who depend on you. 3. Improve, evolve. Practice daily improvement. Have an actual routine set up to help you do this. Don't leave it to chance. Every morning I'm up between 5am and 530am. I read for 45 minutes, head to the gym for 45 minutes, then sit down to work. At the end of the day I'm back reading/studying. Without these habits in place, I don't do what I set out to do. It's a duty to end your life in a better position than where you started it. Be ambitious, be daring. Your ambitions are insights into why you're here, listen to them, add fuel to them, and hunt them down. 4. Aim high. Again, be ambitious. One aspect of manhood is competition. We need it. We actually see increases in our testosterone levels when we compete, and again when we win. It acts like a reward system, rewarding our participation in life....

Christian's possess a new life, identity and status in Christ that should lead them to a new way of living. In Roman' chapter 6 the Apostle Paul explains some things that every Christian needs to know, namely that they died with Christ. They must consider themselves to be dead to sin and alive to God and they must respond to this good news by presenting their body to God as instruments of righteousness.

Dominant social norms and expectations shape how individuals and their public activities are understood. In Roman antiquity, various shifts influenced the production and dissolution of prejudices towards certain types of occupations. In Trade and Taboo: Disreputable Professions in the Roman Mediterranean (University of Michigan Press, 2016), Sarah Bond, Assistant Professor of Classics at the University of Iowa, explores the legal, social, and literary modes of persecution and stigmatization of unseemly occupations and voluntary associations. One's membership in Roman society was often regulated through reputation and social position. Criers, funerary workers, and tanners were among the many trades that were viewed as unwholesome, marginalizing these individuals from the broader community. Over time there were shifts in social perceptions of certain types of work, often catalyzed by religious communities. In our discussion we talked about taboos as an analytical category, reading soundscapes in ancient texts, views of death, corpses, and pollution, the social context of tanners and their odors, mint workers and state labor, bakers and sensual trades, gladiators, archeological topography, the role of Christian and Jewish communities in shaping social norms, and maybe surprisingly, rednecks, the field of Classics, blogging, how to do good public scholarship, the Women of Ancient History database, and how walls embody emotions of fear. Kristian Petersen is an Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Nebraska, Omaha. He is the author of Interpreting Islam in China: Pilgrimage, Scripture, and Language in the Han Kitab (Oxford University Press, 2017). He is currently working on a monograph entitled The Cinematic Lives of Muslims, and is the editor of the forthcoming volumes Muslims in the Movies: A Global Anthology (ILEX Foundation) and New Approaches to Islam in Film (Routledge). You can find out more about his work on his website, follow him on Twitter @BabaKristian, or email him at kjpetersen@unomaha.edu. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices