Podcasts about Levite

An elderly woman lies unconscious on a hot sidewalk after a terrible fall. Several people stop to help. One calls 911, another gently places a coat under her head. Others put towels under her arms, and still another holds an umbrella over her head until paramedics arrive. As the person who posted the video writes, it’s an especially heartwarming scene because those who stopped included a wide range of age and ethnicities—all working together to help someone in distress. When an expert in God’s law asked Jesus who his neighbor was (Luke 10:29)—that is, who he was obligated to show love to—Jesus responded with a story of a man badly beaten by robbers, lying near death by the side of the road (vv. 30–31). A Levite and then a priest approached, but both passed by on the other side. Finally, a Samaritan stopped to help. What made this so unusual was that Jews and Samaritans had a history of scorn for the other. Yet it was the Samaritan who stopped (v. 33). After telling this parable, Jesus asked which was a neighbor to the fallen man. The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him” (v. 37). Jesus told him—and us, “Go and do likewise.” May God help us see that everyone we meet is our neighbor, another human created by Him and deserving of our aid.

In his latter days, David charges his son Solomon to build the temple for the worship of God, and this is when we learn a few pieces of new information. First, we learn that the Lord did not allow David to build the temple because his hands had shed so much blood and because he had waged great wars. We also realize that David looked forward to the building of the temple even though he himself couldn't build it, charging his son with the task and spending his own time and resources to create a stockpile for the project. David also assigns duties and tasks for the Levite priests before he dies, paving the way for transition from the tabernacle to the temple once Solomon becomes king. 1 Chronicles 21 - 1:03 .  1 Chronicles 22 - 8:07 .  1 Chronicles 23 - 12:24 .  Psalm 104 - 17:22 .  :::Christian Standard Bible translation.All music written and produced by John Burgess Ross.Co-produced by the Christian Standard Bible.facebook.com/commuterbibleinstagram.com/commuter_bibletwitter.com/CommuterPodpatreon.com/commuterbibleadmin@commuterbible.org

The Good Samaritan | Luke 10:30-3530 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,' he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'

Gluttony Dr. Eric J. Gilchrest | June 21, 2026 Check out the weekly sermon here or on our SRBC podcast on Apple Podcast and Spotify. While you're at it, check us out on Facebook and Instagram too. Like what you hear? We'd love to know.At South Run, we read every message personally. Whether you have a question, want to share how God is moving in your life, or are thinking about visiting in person, this is the place to start. If you click the link below, Pastor Eric will personally reach out to you. Listening online? Let us know. Sermon Transcript The Good Samaritan and the Age of Life: Love, Eternal Life, and the Narrow Road of Luke 10 — Sermon TranscriptSouth Run Baptist Church | Springfield, VARev. Dr. Eric GilchrestLuke 10:25–37June 14, 2026 This is a full sermon transcript from South Run Baptist Church in Springfield, Virginia. In this message, Rev. Dr. Eric Gilchrest preaches on the Parable of the Good Samaritan from Luke 10:25–37. This sermon is part of the ongoing "The Jesus Way" transformation series and addresses what eternal life actually means in the original Greek, why love and life are inseparable in Jesus' teaching, and how the Good Samaritan parable reveals that walking the narrow road means active, costly, others-centered love. Opening Prayer: A Church on MissionHeavenly Father, we come today offering you thanksgiving for Ian and for Emma, the great work that they're doing at GW, but also for this church and for the work that those who are in these walls do for those who are outside of these walls. We, Lord, desire to be a church on mission, and we need to keep that front and center. And so, Lord, plant it in each of our hearts that as we go where we go throughout the week on Monday and Thursday and random points on a Saturday afternoon, that we be reminded that we bear your image, we bring your word to the world, and we make new disciples. And so, God, we pray all of this in Christ's holy name. Amen. Where We Are in The Jesus Way SeriesWe are in a series on two ways, right? There is the narrow way that leads to abundant life, and this morning we are talking about that way, and the way that Jesus teaches us to walk — a way that leads to abundance and to life eternal. And then the other way we'll get back to next week, and that's the broad way. It's the easy way, frankly, and it's the way that leads to death and destruction. On Father's Day next week, we will cover the lovely topic of gluttony, so you definitely won't want to miss that, dads. You're welcome. For today, though, we are in a parable that you are probably familiar with. Whether you've been around the church much or not, you definitely know what a Good Samaritan is. We even have like Good Samaritan laws, right? Well, I want to dive down deep, and I'll say this whole framing for me — the whole like two ways, the life, death — has become clarifying, we'll say, in ways that I've not anticipated and I have quite enjoyed as we've gone throughout this series. And I almost think of it as like this lens that I take and then I put it over top of the scripture that we're reading and then I kind of see what pops out, like what's new. And so here we are in a very familiar passage and it is, well, it came as a little bit of a surprise to me, exactly how Jesus frames this. So I hope you have a Bible with you. If you don't, go ahead and grab the one that's in front of you — we definitely want to turn to Luke 10 together. Luke 10:25–28: A Lawyer Asks About Eternal LifeSo again, Luke chapter 10, starting in verse 25. It starts this way as you're turning there. "Behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test." Here we have lawyers doing what lawyers do, right? A lawyer, though, you should know in this day and age is not what you're thinking of as a lawyer. He does not work for the IRS. He does not do like tax law or something like this. He is a lawyer of the Torah, the Jewish law, right? And so this is a man who knows his law well, but very specifically the first five books of our Bible. And this is going to become important because Jesus is going to say to him, like, what does the law say? Like, what does our Bible say, the one you and I share together, right? And so this lawyer, he has spent lots of time in the law, as we'll see, as good lawyers often do. They know the law in order to kind of skirt through it, and he's trying to do this in this passage, but he actually knows what he's talking about. So the passage goes on, and he says, "Teacher" — rabbi, this is Jesus here, our rabbi, the one we should be listening to and following — "what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" And as I'm pulling that lens, remember, and I'm putting it on and I see this phrase, eternal life, I think to myself, well, here it is. This is part of what we're trying to do for this season of our church history — looking at ways that lead to life and ways that lead to death. And here Jesus is being asked like the exact question I'm asking you and I'm trying to get us all talking about, and that I think is of utmost importance. We might even say a matter of life and death. And he says, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Now, if you were asked this question, if somebody on the street came to you, it's worth asking, like, what would you say? How would you answer that question? What "Eternal Life" Actually Means in the Greek: The Age of Life vs. The Age of Death Backing up just a minute, this phrase eternal life needs just a little bit of clarification. The word for eternal here is not exactly the platonic, like, eternal sense that you and I often use it. Now, it might mean that to a degree, but only in like a secondary sense. It actually comes from a Greek word, eon — or the English version is eon. Eon is an age, right? There's one eon, and then there's the next eon, there's one age, and then there's the next age. And he's asking him, well, how do I get myself into the age of life? It's important that you know that there is an age of death — or as Paul calls it, the evil age, right? This age actually is that, right? It's the age that ultimately we all know is hovered over by these two things of sin and death and evil, and it lurks about, and none of us get out of here alive, right? That's why this age is the age of death. And this is why the Bible speaks to this matter over and over and over again. And this is the final enemy, death. And so the man is asking a very good question, which is, how do we make it out of the age of death and then make it into the age of life? And he has in mind — he thinks like a good first century Jew — and I need you to think this way for a second so that we can maybe make it a little more complicated. His timeline goes like this. There's the age in which we live, the age of death. There's then an ending to that, and there is a resurrection that happens of all people, good and bad. And then there's a judgment that happens, and the people are either judged good or bad. And then there is the age of life. That might be how you're thinking of things right now, in fact. But here's the important wrinkle. A resurrection has already happened. A resurrection has already happened. And so when Jesus is resurrected, the timeline gets shoved into the present. And then also, with that happening, there is a real sense in which judgment has also happened, and yet is also going to happen. It's a both-and. And Paul, if we had time, he gives us both of these. But the point is actually this — what Jesus does is he drags eternal life and he puts it smack dab into this life. And this life is where eternal life begins. And he'll say things like, "the kingdom of God is in your midst, is among you." He's referring to himself. He's saying, through me starts this eternal life. It's here and it's now. And so when Jesus is being asked this question — what must I do to enter into this age of life? — he doesn't say it out loud, but he is saying, well, it starts right now. It's not something we're pushing off to the future. We don't just kind of do all the right things now and then punch a ticket and then we get into the thing. No, you're in it right now. Jesus Tosses the Question Back: How Do You Read the Law?And so he says to this lawyer — well, he refuses to answer his question, actually. What does he do? He tosses it right back to him. And he says to him, well, you tell me, you lawyer, you know the law. What's written in the law and how do you read it? I actually love that last question — the "how do you read it" — that is so important. I don't have time to dig down deep here, but just know that we should all be asking, like, how do we read this scripture? Like, how do you read it? We all read it slightly differently, but Jesus wants to teach us how we read our scripture. And so the man says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." And Jesus, maybe to his shock, certainly to my shock, says, wow, you're correct. You got it right. Like, that is the answer. And in fact, in the other Gospels, Jesus is the one to say these things. Who knows? Maybe this lawyer got it from Jesus. And he says, you're supposed to love God. And by the way, all of those categories — that just simply means your whole being, everything you are. You're just supposed to love God with like every last ounce of who you are. And then love your neighbor as yourself. And this is the simplification of all things. It's the simplification of the law, the scriptures, what God is trying to do with the world. It is just love, right? Love God, love your neighbor. Now, I'd add this. When we talk about loving our neighbor, the Bible breaks down for us to love God with our souls and our minds and our strength and all these various aspects of who we are. And I would say, well, that's just a description of how to love. And we should do the same with the people in our lives. We should love them in similar kinds of ways, with our whole being. "He said to him, you have answered correctly. Do this and you will live." Again, there's our word — life, right? Well, how do we live a life? And how do we do it right? And how do we stay on that narrow path? He says, well, do this. The guy gets it. "Who Is My Neighbor?" — The Question Jesus Refuses to Answer DirectlyAnd if we stopped there, we would feel really good about this passage and it'd all be done. But the man, remember, he's a lawyer and he knows his law. And the job of the lawyer is to get around the law and to kind of sneak through it. And so he says the follow-up. He wants to justify himself and says to Jesus, well, excuse me, who is my neighbor? Jesus does not answer this question. I'll just go ahead and say that very clearly here. Jesus does not answer who the neighbor is. He pulls up the example of somebody being a good neighbor — that is the Samaritan — treats the robbed man that we're going to meet here as the neighbor, but the Samaritan is not actually technically the neighbor here. He's the one who's doing it right, who is loving his neighbor well. All of this explodes the boxes that this lawyer no doubt has, and it should explode ours too. And I can't go into exactly what a Samaritan is, but I assure you, the lawyer is thinking the Samaritan is not one of us. Whoever the "us" is for you — not one of us. He's over there. He's one of them. And Jesus is saying, well, look at the them. Whoever your "them" is, they're doing it right. They're the one who's loving well. And it should cause us to stop in our tracks and to ask, well, if they're able to love well, and they're finding what Jesus is calling eternal life or abundant life in this life that's leading to this eternal life, well, maybe I've got some work to do. Jesus replies to the question that the lawyer asks. He doesn't answer it. He, of course, does what Jesus does, which is to either ask a question — which is what he did the first time — or to tell a story, which is what he does this time. Luke 10:30–32: The Priest and the Levite Pass ByAnd so he says, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance, there was a priest going down the road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Well then likewise, a Levite came to the place, saw him, passed by on the other side." I assure you, the Levite knows the law too, right? And the priest, well, he knows the law too. And Jesus is saying, do the priest or the Levite do the law? That is, do they love their neighbor? And the answer is very clearly no, right? They do not. Luke 10:33–35: The Samaritan and the Meaning of CompassionNow the Samaritan, whether or not he knows the law is actually not exactly clear, and in some ways not even to the point. The Samaritan does the law. He does the thing that should be done here, which is he sees the man half dead, and he goes to help him. I would stop here for just one minute and point out this word to you — compassion, at the end of verse 33. Compassion. This word shows up only three times in your gospel of Luke. It shows up in the following ways. The widow of Nain — Jesus encounters this woman who already is a widow. She's lost her husband. She then loses her son in the story that is being told. And Jesus looks at this woman who has lost her husband and her son, and he has compassion. Which is to say, the word itself means like his insides are like turning outside, and he's like physically in pain watching this woman and is feeling her pain, right? It also shows up in the passage we're going to talk about next week as you join us for gluttony, which is the story of the prodigal son, actually. When the prodigal son returns home from his gluttonous encounters, the father is there and he looks at him from afar and he has compassion on him. His insides are turned outside. And then here, the Samaritan — he looks at this man and he has compassion on him. I would say if we are going to love at all, we need compassion. If we are going to love our neighbor as ourselves, it is going to require us to put ourselves into the very shoes of the neighbor, to walk the mile with them, to see ourselves as the dead man on the side of the road who needs help, and to ask the question, if I were that dead man, what would I want this priest to do for me? If I were that dead man, what should that Levite do? I'm crying out for him, and he walks right on by. That is not keeping the law. But the Samaritan — the Samaritan sees him and is able to put himself into his place and to see the position that he's in, which is helpless, and he has the ability to do something, and he does. Interestingly, this idea of love is then here for the next few verses explained not as a feeling the Samaritan has — because we all have the feeling when we see something bad happen, and we're like, oh, that's awful, oh man, I feel so bad for this person — love requires action. It requires actually doing something, which is precisely what the Samaritan does in the verses that follow. In verse 34, "He went to him, to the man dying on the side of the road, and he bound up his wounds, he poured on oil and wine to heal them, and then he set him on his own animal, and he brought him to an inn, and he took care of him." This doesn't even account for the fact that he took time out of his own, no doubt, busy schedule to stop and to help this man and to assist him to a place. And he probably missed a really important meeting. And I'm sure some friends and some family were probably upset with the Samaritan who was supposed to be home for dinner. And he missed the kid's soccer game. But he did this very important thing that was in front of him. But it doesn't even stop there. "The next day, he took out two denarii. And he gave it to the innkeeper. And he said, take care of him. And if you spend more, keep track of that, because I will repay you when I come back." This is a man who loves in a way that goes above and beyond, and it is active. It's not just a man who walks and says, oh, there's a person that is almost dead over here, and that's tragic, as he keeps walking on by. This is the kind of love that God is calling us into as well, and this is the narrow road that leads to life. You might understand why now it's a narrow road, because it's difficult to walk. It's the road less traveled. It's the one that requires something of you. "Go and Do Likewise": Love and Life Are InseparableAnd then Jesus finishes up. He says, "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" And the lawyer has to confess, well, I guess it's the one who showed mercy. And then Jesus says again, well, you got it right. "Go and do likewise." Go and do likewise. When I think about this passage and this idea that we are to walk down this narrow road that leads to life — life and love, in my mind, are almost like one in the same. They all come together, these two come together in ways that are almost impossible to pull apart as you dig down deeper and deeper and deeper into what a full life is. I was trying to wrestle with the question, why does this road lead to life? Like, why does loving someone lead to life? And here's what I think Jesus is doing. Remember, Jesus has pulled eternal life into this life. The very one that you're in now, listening to me speak. And love in this life, this eternal life we're hopefully, prayerfully in — it is the substance of it all. Love is the design of humanity. It is what we were made for. In Eden, when we were created, we were created to love God. And then it was not good for man to be alone. So he creates Eve, and we were meant to love one another. And then he looks at the first couple and he says, multiply, make more of you, and then love them too. And this is what it's all for and all about. The God who made us is in himself self-giving love — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If the Trinity means one thing, it means pouring out love one to the other to the other. And we are made in that kind of image, which means the great commandment — love God and love neighbor — this is not a rule that gets bolted onto the side of life, as if it's like some sort of external hope that you might do this at some point. It is the manufacturer's description of how this whole thing runs. Withholding love doesn't keep you safe, and spending love doesn't drain your life. Jesus, in fact, says, do these things and you will have life. Jesus Is the Good Samaritan: He Crosses the Road to Find Us Half DeadWe see this love most clearly in the person of Jesus. When he pours himself out on the cross, he redeems us. He snatches us out of death and delivers us into an age of life, eternal life. If Jesus has done this for me, well, then he must love me, right? And if Jesus has done this for you — and he has — then he must love you. But Jesus has loved the whole world and God has sent his son that we all might have eternal life, that we all might be entered into the age of life. And why love? Because God loves you, and he wants us to love one another and to love him as we were intended to do. Communion: The Table as the Place Where Love and Life MeetAs we come to the table this morning, it is important that we recognize that this two-fold command of love — to love God and love our neighbor — it is kind of one thing. I would suggest to you that when God says to us that we are to love him, what he does not mean is that we have like a really nice worship service together and I have all the feels and it's just me and God and I'm loving every minute of it. And I don't even think he means like, well, I love God and therefore I pray every day and I love God and I'm reading my Bible every day. These are all very good things and they actually do lead you to God. So don't misunderstand me. But what I think he means is he pairs that with love your neighbor, because that is the ultimate understanding of whether or not you love God well. Because every person in this room around you right now and every person you've ever met in your life is bearing the image of God. And if you can't love them well, it is worth asking whether you're loving God. And so this morning as we come to the table, we are reminded that Jesus has poured himself out for us. He has shown us what love looks like. He literally puts his hands on the cross like this, and he opens himself up for humanity. And he takes the penalty that was due to us, and he offers us a way to God. I find Jesus directly in the parable of the Good Samaritan. In fact, many interpreters have. It turns out he's not the priest, he's not the Levite, he is the Samaritan, though. He is the outsider, the despised one, yet the one who actually does the law of love. And he comes to our roads where we are lying half dead and he has compassion on us. He looks at us in our estate and he is moved. His insides turn outside. He says, I want something better for this child of mine. I want them to live a full life now, and eternal life forever. This is what I want for them. And so what does he do? He binds up our wounds. He pours the oil and the wine on them. He pays the price. And he promises he will come back to pay the rest of it. And this is what the table is. On the night before Jesus died, he took bread and a cup and he said, this is my body and this is my blood. And it is poured out for the forgiveness of your sins. We have all been robbed by the age of death. But we have also participated in the age of death. And we need forgiveness from that. So Christ, he crosses the road and he offers us a hand up and out of it. And this morning we get to participate in the forgiveness of sins that he offers to each and to every one of us. Our Call: To Be the Samaritan for OthersHe then expects something of us. As people who are walking down that road with him, the dust of the rabbi getting all over us — you remember that? — as we walk that way of love, we then too must take up the role of the Samaritan for the others who are around us. Our job in this world is to bandage those who are hurt and broken and to pour whatever oil and wine Jesus has given to us onto their wounds too. And we're to lift them up out of their estate. And this, this is what it means to be a follower of Christ. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, Holy Son, and Holy Spirit, you are self-giving love, perfected. God, we have fallen short of your glory, no doubt. We have sinned and are in need of a Savior. And so, Jesus, this morning, we come asking one more time for your salvation. Some of us, this might be the first time, saying, I need a Savior. I need someone to bandage up the wounds that are just too deep. I can't do it myself. Or somebody is lying there saying, I am half dead. I can't do this by myself. And Jesus, we know you are saying to them right now, I am here for you. I am here to bind those wounds and to raise you back to life again. So God, as we prepare our hearts for the communion table, we ask that we do so with sincerity and with gravity, knowing the cost that you have paid — your very life. And that out of this should flow for all of us gratitude, a thanksgiving. And for all this and more, we give you thanks and praise. In Christ's holy name we pray. Amen.‍ ‍South Run Baptist Church | 8712 Selger Drive, Springfield, VA 22153 | Sunday Worship at 11am Serving Springfield, Burke, West Springfield, Lorton, Alexandria, Fort Belvoir, and Franconia, Virginia. Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

They Boldly Spoke the Word of God Acts 4 by William Klock Chapter and verse breaks in the Bible are not part of the original text.  Chapter breaks were added about eight hundred years ago and verses about five hundred.  There's an old biblical studies urban legend that Robert Estienne, the French printer who published one of the early New Testaments with verse division, marked them out while riding on horseback from Paris to Lyon, explaining the often frustrating way they cut through thoughts and sentences.  Chapter breaks can be just as annoying.  I say this because last week we left off our study of Acts at the end of Chapter 3, but the end of Chapter 3 isn't where this story ends.  You'll remember that this story about Peter and John and the lame man followed right on the heels of Pentecost.  Peter and John were on their way to the temple to pray when they met a lame man begging at the temple gate.  “Silver and gold have I none,” said Peter, “but such as I have I give.  In the name of the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, get up and walk!”  And he lifted up the man the man began to jump up and down and to praise God.  And as everyone began to gather around, Peter began to preach.  He reminded them of their own story, of God's promises going all the way back to Abraham, and how all those promises were fulfilled and how the story was brought to its climax in the death and resurrection and ascension of Jesus. I won't repeat everything I said last Sunday, but needless to say—and even if you aren't familiar with the story—you probably knew that trouble was coming.  But that pesky chapter break.  It saved you from an hour-long sermon, but it also cut the story in half.  So we'll pick up after the break, with Chapter 4, now.  [It's page 1083 in the pew Bibles.] Luke continues: “As they were speaking to the people, along came the priests, the chief of the temple guard, and the Sadducees.  They were greatly annoyed that they were teaching the people and proclaiming that the resurrection of the dead had begun to happen in Jesus.  They seized them and put them under guard until the next day, since it was already evening.  But a large number of the people who had heard the message believed it and the number of men grew to five thousand.” The idea of the resurrection of the dead was a big deal for the Jews and you'd think that announcing that it had somehow begun in Jesus would be good news.  And obviously it was for the thousands who believed.  Not so much for the Sadducees.  They were sad, you see, because they didn't believe in the resurrection of the dead.  Okay, not really.  Their name goes back to Zadok, the high priest in the days of David and Solomon.  That name, Zadok, is also related to the Hebrew word for righteousness.  So the Sadducees thought of themselves not only as the sons of Zadok, but also as the righteous ones.  And in the First Century, they controlled the priesthood.  They were aristocratic and they were in power and people like that don't usually like revolutionary ideas, and if there was there was a great revolutionary idea alive in Judah, it was the idea of the resurrection of the dead.  Resurrection means that things are broken and that God will, one day, come to set things to rights—and that implied that the Sadducees were part of the problem needing to be set right.  So they're upset at Peter's preaching.  The Pharisees didn't like this talk either.  As far as they—and everyone else who hoped for resurrection—were concerned, all God's people would be raised from the dead at the end of the age.  The idea that Jesus was raised all by himself was like heresy.  And, of course, if Jesus had been raised, it meant he was the Messiah and they refused to accept that idea.  So no matter how many eyewitnesses there were to the risen Jesus, it had never happened, so far as they were concerned. But back to the Sadducees.  They controlled the priesthood and the priests were the gatekeepers of Israel.  And this talk about Jesus as Messiah and his being resurrected, which means he'd initiated the age to come already, that was the sort of talk that might spark a revolution.  And, of course, a revolution was what was already happening as the gospel and the Spirit were beginning to do their work.  But just as they hadn't recognised it in Jesus, the leaders of Israel refuse to recognise it now and they have Peter and John locked up for the night.  Even still, Luke goes to the trouble to make the point that thousands believed anyway.  The gospel cannot and will not be stopped! Verse 5: “On the next day their rulers, the elders, and the scribes gathered in Jerusalem, along with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and all the members of the high-priestly family.  When they'd stood them in the midst, they asked, ‘How did you do this?  What power did you use?  What name did you invoke?'  Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit.  ‘Rulers of the people and elders,' he said, ‘if the question we're being asked today is about a good deed done for a sick man, and whose power it was that rescued him, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that this man stands before you fit and well because of the name of the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, whom you crucified, but whom God raised from the dead.  He is the stone which you builders rejected, but which has become the head cornerstone.  Rescue won't come from anyone else.  There is no other name given under heaven and among men by which we must be rescued.'” Do you remember that scene in Luke 11 where Jesus is confronted after casting out a demon?  “You can only cast them out, because you're one of them,” they accused him.  The same thing is happening again.  I think Luke wants to highlight that what's happening here might be an “act” happening through the apostles, but it's still ultimately Jesus acting.  Or the Spirit, which amounts to the same thing.  Luke makes a point of saying that Peter was full of the Spirit when he answered the accusation.  So just like Jesus, when the council asks them in whose name they healed the lame man, not only is Peter bold to announce that it's Jesus of Nazareth, they boldly assert that he is the Messiah—the one they crucified, but whom God raised from the dead.  So Peter is reasserting everything: It's Jesus.  Yes the one they crucified.  And this isn't just about a lame man walking again, this is about the resurrection of the dead.  It's about the fact that Jesus is Lord and that the revolution has begun.  The age to come, new creation, the kingdom of God is here.  In fact, they quote Psalm 118 at the council to explain it all.  Psalm 118 is a psalm of the temple.  It's about people going up to the temple to celebrate God's new day to claim his rescue, his salvation.  It's a psalm about God's life-giving power and it's about God bringing his people through trouble and rescuing them from danger. It's a psalm about trusting in God's mercy and it's a psalm about God's victory over the powers of the world.  “It is better trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in man…than to put confidence in princes,” says the Psalmist (vv. 8-9). So they're saying, “It's Jesus.  He really is the Messiah and he really has inaugurated God's new age.  But then it's like they're deliberately poking a stick in these folks' eye.  The Sadducees (and the Pharisees, too, and most people) were all about the temple.  It was the embodiment of Israel's hopes for God's rescue and for the fulfilment of his promises to one day come again to dwell with his people.  And so this whole episode started with a man who'd been sitting in the temple gate for years, hoping for a rescue, yet never healed, and now suddenly healed by Peter and John—in the power of Jesus.  So that's the first thing.  It says that God has, in fact, returned to dwell with is people, but instead of being in the holy of holies, he's indwelling the disciples of Jesus.  And then, in case they hadn't made the connection, Peter, inspired by the Spirit, quotes Psalm 118 at them.  Yes, the hope of God's return is happening—in Jesus.  Yes, God is now present in his temple—but that temple isn't made of stone, it's these Jesus people.  And yes, God has come to rescue us just as he promised, to set this broken world to rights, to wipe away the tears—through Jesus.  And at the same time, it would be hard for the council to miss the hint that the mortal princes, the people from whom God's people need to be rescued are not the pagan nations, but the Sadducees and elders and scribes who are rejecting Jesus.  (Yes, the pagan nations, too, but first, God's got to deal with the corrupt leaders of his own people.) It's the same thing Peter has been preaching, first on Pentecost, then to the crowd who gathered around the lame man when they saw him jumping up and down.  Every time, Peter grounds God's salvation in Jesus as the fulfilment of his promises and of Israel's story.  Every time, it's the announcement that Jesus is Lord; that he's come to rescue his people; and every time, it's a call to repentance and faith.  This sort of situational astuteness and gospel boldness is what it looks like to be full of God's Spirit.  And the council recognised this, even if they didn't want to admit what (or who) it was.  Verse 13: “When they saw how boldly Peter and John were speaking and realised that they were untrained, ordinary men, they were astonished and they recognised them as men who had been with Jesus.  And when they saw the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply.  They ordered them to be put out of the assembly while they conferred amongst themselves.  ‘What can we do to these men?' they said.  ‘This is a spectacular sign that has happened through them.  All Jerusalem knows it, and we can't deny it.  But we certainly don't want it to spread any further amongst the people.  So let's threaten them with awful consequences if they speak anymore in this name to anyone.'  So they called them in and gave them orders not to speak at all or to teach in the name of Jesus.” It's comical and I think that's what Luke intended.  It's like they've completely missed the significance of what Peter and John have seen.  They've seen Jesus risen from the grave.  They saw him ascend to his throne.  They heard everything he said.  They saw everything he did.  And now they're doing the same sorts of things themselves in his name.  They know, without a doubt, that in Jesus God has come, that Jesus is Lord, that the kingdom is now, and that the days of the principalities and powers, the old temple, and its priests are numbered.  Peter and John know which is the winning side…without a doubt.  Threatening them isn't going to change that. Brothers and Sisters, we really need to think on that.  Don't just read Acts and let it go in one ear and out the other.  Stick a finger in one ear if you have to, but let this sink in.  Because you and I have just as much reason to be as confident as Peter and John.  No, we aren't eyewitnesses to the resurrection or the ascension, but we have every reason to believe the accounts of them.  Someone a while ago asked me about difficulties with the creation accounts in Genesis and with the history of the Exodus.  There are difficulties in the Bible.  There are hard philosophical questions for which I haven't yet found the perfect answer.  But I do know that Jesus rose from the dead.  I've heard all the arguments against it.  And they don't hold up.  I don't want to get into those details here, because that's not what our text today is about.  My point is simply that we have every reason to believe that Jesus rose from the dead and just like St. Paul, confronted by that inescapable reality, we have to accept that Jesus is the Messiah and that the rest of it all is true—even we have to wait til the New Jerusalem to understand the ins and outs of exactly how some of it is true.  It's true.  As Matt reminded us last week: Christ has died.  Christ is risen.  Christ will come again.  And not only do those three facts change everything, they ought to give us confidence and boldness to proclaim the good news that Jesus is Lord, that God has come to our rescue, and that his kingdom is now.  I'm not terribly concerned, for example, about Bill C-9.  But even if I were, I'm not going to let it stop me proclaiming the good news.  Because Jesus is King and in him the resurrection of the dead has begun.  And that truth ought to be as revolutionary for us as it was for Peter and John and the King and his Parliament and his Prime Minister ought to be just as afraid of this resurrection revolution as the Sadducees, the elders, and the scribes were. So Luke goes on in verse 19: “But Peter and John gave them this reply: ‘You judge,' they said, ‘whether it's right before God to listen to you rather than to God.  As far as we're concerned, we can't stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.'  Then they [the council] threatened them some more, and let them go.  They couldn't find any way to punish them because of the people, since everyone was glorifying God for what had happened.  After all, the man to whom the sign of healing had happened was over forty years old. Brothers and Sisters, don't stop talking about what you have seen and heard.  Peter and John were witnesses to the resurrection and ascension of Jesus.  You know what you're a witness to?  You're witness to the transforming power of those events.  Somehow most Christians seem totally unaware of this witness.  Maybe it's because we're so oblivious to our own history.  Maybe we need to read up on history so that we'll be aware of the power of the gospel.  The very thing that Peter and John looked forward to is now—at least partially—in our past.  Luke says there were five thousand believers in those days just after Pentecost.  Brothers and Sisters, today there are 2.6 billion.  They lived in a world in which no one outside Judaea had ever heard of Jesus.  We live in a world where Jesus is known the world over.  They lived in a little Jewish pocket surrounded by pagan nations so mired in moral filth it's hard for us to image the depth of depravity, because even as bad as might think the world is today, it has been so dramatically transformed by the gospel.  Our world, even the secular parts of it, value things like mercy and compassion, because of the transforming power of the gospel.  Brothers and Sisters, we live in a world that has been radically transformed by the power of the gospel.  If Peter and John had reason to be confident, you and I have even more. But notice, too, what they do when faced with opposition.  Verse 23: “When they had been released, they went back to their own people and told them everything that the chief priests and the elders had said.  When they heard it, they all together lifted up their voices to God.  ‘Sovereign Lord,' they said, ‘you made heaven and earth and the sea and everything in them.  And you said through the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of our father David, your servant, “Why did the nations fly into a rage, and why did the peoples think empty thoughts?  The kings of the earth arose and rulers gathered themselves together against the Lord and against his anointed Messiah.” It's true, Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the nations and the peoples of Israel, gathered themselves together in this very city against your holy servant Jesus, the one you anointed, to do whatever your hands and your plan had foreordained to take place.  So now, Lord, look on their threats and grant that we, your servants, may speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand for healing, so that signs and wonders may come about through the name of your holy servant Jesus.'” It would do us well—and it would do the kingdom well—if we responded to opposition the way the disciples did.  We need to pray more and fret less.  There is a battle raging in the world.  Jesus has won the decisive victory, but that doesn't mean that the powers of this old age aren't trying to maintain their grip.  They're like the bad guys in the movies, hanging on to the edge of the cliff with their fingers—doomed, but unwilling to give up.  To pray is to stomp on their fingers and to send them falling.  Pray.  Pray the psalms.  Pray Psalm 2 the way they do here.  This was Israel's prayer, but Jesus and the events surrounding those first Christians reoriented it.  They cry out with the Psalmist: Why do the nations rage?  Why do the peoples think with empty thoughts? The kings of the earth have huddled together against the Lord.  Except this time Israel herself had become one of the nations, her priests huddled together with Pontius Pilate.  They'd crucified Jesus.  And yet the disciples, in their prayer, also acknowledge that God is sovereign.  Remember that for Jews to quote a line from a Psalm was to call to mind the whole thing.  And in Psalm 2, yes the nations raged and their kings gathered together against his anointed, but then—do you remember Psalm 2?—God laughs at them, because they're fools.  And God establishes his king on Mount Zion.  The once raging nations become his inheritance.  And Peter and John and the rest knew that in Jesus this psalm was being fulfilled.  The Psalm concludes addressing those kings, “Now therefore, O Kings, be wise” and just so the disciples pray, “Now therefore, Lord, look on their threats and grant that we, your servants, may speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand for healing, so that signs and wonders may come about through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”  Brothers and Sisters, pray the Spirit-inspired scriptures back to God and things will happen.  Luke writes in verse 31: “When they had prayed the place where they were gathered was shaken.  They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and they boldly spoke the word of God.” We should learn this prayer.  When the principalities and powers of the old age push back, pray this prayer.  When the local council or the legislature or Parliament or the King or the courts push back, pray this prayer.  When the gospel gets you in trouble with your family or at school or in your work, pray this prayer.  When you become discouraged, if you're struggling to keep the faith, if you're wrestling with sin, if you feel cornered by the world, the flesh, and the devil, pray this prayer.  Remember that you are a witness to the power of the gospel in the world.  And pray this prayer. And immediately Luke shows us the church—not just boldly proclaiming the good news—but also living it out as a community.  Luke shows us the church as the working model of God's new creation in the midst of the old.  Luke shows us the church being the new temple: the place of God's presence and the fulfilment of his promises of abundance and generosity.  Look at verses 32-37.  I was tempted to save these for next week as they lead us into Chapter 5.  I actually think they could warrant their own sermon.  But look at them now: “The company of those who believed had one heart and one soul.”  Remember Paul telling the Philippians to “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Messiah Jesus”?  Be of one Jesus-like mind.  That plays out in all sorts of ways and Luke shows us one here: “Nobody said that they owned their property; instead they had everything in common.  The apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus with great power and great grace was upon all of them.  For there was no needy person among them, since any who possessed lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sale, and placed it at the feet of the apostles, who then gave to each according to their need.  Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, to whom the apostles gave the surname Barnabas, which means ‘son of encouragement', sold some land which belonged to him, brought the money, and laid it at the apostle's feet.” As I said a few weeks ago when we looked at Chapter 2, this doesn't mean they became a bunch of proto-Marxists.  Luke's point is that they became a family that live out the generosity and abundance of God's new creation.  We know from what we read later, that they had their own homes in which to meet.  And the focus of their charity was on the truly indigent, especially widows—on people notably with no family to take care of them.  And Paul will warn in his own letters that the able-bodied should get jobs instead of mooching off the community.  Again, the point here is that they very visible became the community in which torah itself was being fulfilled.  They've become the land of overflowing with milk and honey.  They've become the people who truly love their neighbours.  They've become the new temple in which God has returned to dwell with his people.  And they're doing and being this community right in Jerusalem: showing up the old Israel, exposing the priest and the council, showing that the old temple and its sacrifices are done.  God has fulfilled his promises and he's done so in Jesus and in the people who gathered around him in faith. And, Brothers and Sisters, we ought to be the same sort of new creation, heaven-on-earth community here.  As in Peter and John's day, the powers that be will tell us to go away and concentrate on heaven while they run the earth.  They'll warn us not to shove our religion down anyone's throat, while they, of course, will do their best to shove their materialism, their commercialism, their hedonism down our throats.  They'll get frustrated with us when we refuse to worship in their temples to money and power and sex and politics and war.  And when that happens, Brothers and Sisters, pray.  And remember that Jesus has died, Jesus has risen, and that Jesus will come again.  Be shaped by that story.  Be confident, knowing that God has and is and will fulfil his promises.  Be bold knowing that the gospel has power and that we live in a world transformed by that power, even if everyone ignores it or denies it.  Pray.  Remember.  Be bold.  And then remember that we are the family of the Messiah, marked out by his powerful name in our baptism and that in those baptismal waters, he's plunged us in to his Spirit.  He has made us new and we're not the family meant be and to bring and to live out his new creation, to live out heaven on earth in anticipation of the day when Jesus finally sets it all to rights.  We are the family that refuses to stop singing his praises and proclaiming his glory.  That's what we were created to do in the first place.  That's what Jesus has rescued us to do right now.  And it's what all creation will one day, by his grace, do again. Let's pray: O Lord, hear us in your mercy, we pray, and grant that we, to whom you have given the desire to pray, may be defended and comforted by your mighty aid, and strengthened in all dangers and adversities, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Join us as we dig deeper into last Sunday's sermon from Pastor Marcus Lane "The Gospel on Trial" and hear from Amy Duncan and Nate Zuellig on "Cornerstone". Digging Deeper Questions: How does the notion that "the word does the work" shift how you approach the calling to take part in God's mission?   Have you ever encountered the accusation or felt like Christianity is exclusive? How does the nature of grace help address this concern?   How might the life of the early church challenge you to grow in generosity? Scripture Reading: Acts 4:1-22, 32-37 1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, 2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.   5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, 6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, "By what power or by what name did you do this?" 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."   13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. 14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. 15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, "What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name." 18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard." 21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened. 22 For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.   32 Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. 33 And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. 34 There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold 35 and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 36 Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, 37 sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. Intro/Outro Song: "Only One" Nate Zuellig ULC Artist In Residence    "Cornerstone" Hillsong CCLI Song # 6158927   CCLI License # 11254293

Korah is the antihero in this Torah portion, infamous for leading a coup against Moses and Aaron that leaves 15,000 dead. However, every family dispute has two sides to the story, so we should learn more about Korah to fully understand the family dynamics. Korah was a prominent Levite and a close relative of Moses and Aaron. Korah's father and Moses's father were brothers, which makes Moses, Aaron, and Korah first cousins. As Korah watched his cousins attain the highest positions of authority in the community, resentment slowly took root in his heart.Support the showConsider donating (one-time or recurring) to www.TheJerusalemConnection.us so we can continue to bring valuable content via podcasts free to the public. Help us increase our audience reach and improve production quality. Your donation is 100% tax-deductible to our non-profit organization. Bible Fiber and The Red Alert Report are available via YouTube and all major podcast platforms. The Jerusalem Connection also engages in additional educational and advocacy programs. Check our "Projects" tab for all the endeavors we invite YOU to be part of.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 134 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

We've been in the story of the Good Samaritan before. Last year we asked what mercy looks like. This year we're asking something harder: what gets in the way? The priest and Levite weren't monsters. They were busy. They had somewhere to be. And maybe that's the most uncomfortable thing about this parable… most of us understand them. In Luke 10, the hidden villain isn't bad theology. It's urgency. And the Samaritan's greatest act wasn't what he did, it's that he stopped. This week in "Following Jesus in Real Life," we're inviting you to consider that love requires us to be interruptible… and that the interruptions we keep avoiding might be exactly where God is waiting.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 134 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Luke 10:25-37The Parable of the Good Samaritan25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'[a]; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'[b]”28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii[c] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,' he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 133 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 133 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 132 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

A lawyer asks Jesus how to inherit eternal life, and the answer is “love.” Love God and love neighbor. But because the lawyer is practiced in manipulating the law, he follows this up with a question we all secretly ask: who can I exclude from my love? Jesus answers with a story that inverts everything. Not only is the Samaritan the neighbor, he is the very one who does the heart of the law by loving the neighbor, and by virtue of this fact, it is assumed that he is the one to inherit eternal life. Jesus' point is this: if you want to walk the path of abundant life now and eternal life in the future, you must learn to love. Dr. Eric J. Gilchrest | June 14, 2026 The Good Samaritan Download Check out the weekly sermon here or on our SRBC podcast on Apple Podcast and Spotify. While you're at it, check us out on Facebook and Instagram too. What We'll CoverWhy eternal life begins now, not in the next lifeWhy "Who is my neighbor?" is really a question about exclusion and why Jesus refuses to answer it on those termsHow you can tell whether you actually love God (hint: it's not about your feelings on Sunday morning; its about how you love your neighbor)Why love is a verb, and the difference between the right words and the right worksWhat the Samaritan teaches us about empathy and compassionWhy self-giving love isn't a rule we're forced to keep but the design we were made to live Like what you hear? We'd love to know.At South Run, we read every message personally. Whether you have a question, want to share how God is moving in your life, or are thinking about visiting in person, this is the place to start. If you click the link below, Pastor Eric will personally reach out to you. Listening online? Let us know. Sermon Transcript The Good Samaritan and the Age of Life: Love, Eternal Life, and the Narrow Road of Luke 10 — Sermon TranscriptSouth Run Baptist Church | Springfield, VARev. Dr. Eric GilchrestLuke 10:25–37June 14, 2026 This is a full sermon transcript from South Run Baptist Church in Springfield, Virginia. In this message, Rev. Dr. Eric Gilchrest preaches on the Parable of the Good Samaritan from Luke 10:25–37. This sermon is part of the ongoing "The Jesus Way" transformation series and addresses what eternal life actually means in the original Greek, why love and life are inseparable in Jesus' teaching, and how the Good Samaritan parable reveals that walking the narrow road means active, costly, others-centered love. Opening Prayer: A Church on MissionHeavenly Father, we come today offering you thanksgiving for Ian and for Emma, the great work that they're doing at GW, but also for this church and for the work that those who are in these walls do for those who are outside of these walls. We, Lord, desire to be a church on mission, and we need to keep that front and center. And so, Lord, plant it in each of our hearts that as we go where we go throughout the week on Monday and Thursday and random points on a Saturday afternoon, that we be reminded that we bear your image, we bring your word to the world, and we make new disciples. And so, God, we pray all of this in Christ's holy name. Amen. Where We Are in The Jesus Way SeriesWe are in a series on two ways, right? There is the narrow way that leads to abundant life, and this morning we are talking about that way, and the way that Jesus teaches us to walk — a way that leads to abundance and to life eternal. And then the other way we'll get back to next week, and that's the broad way. It's the easy way, frankly, and it's the way that leads to death and destruction. On Father's Day next week, we will cover the lovely topic of gluttony, so you definitely won't want to miss that, dads. You're welcome. For today, though, we are in a parable that you are probably familiar with. Whether you've been around the church much or not, you definitely know what a Good Samaritan is. We even have like Good Samaritan laws, right? Well, I want to dive down deep, and I'll say this whole framing for me — the whole like two ways, the life, death — has become clarifying, we'll say, in ways that I've not anticipated and I have quite enjoyed as we've gone throughout this series. And I almost think of it as like this lens that I take and then I put it over top of the scripture that we're reading and then I kind of see what pops out, like what's new. And so here we are in a very familiar passage and it is, well, it came as a little bit of a surprise to me, exactly how Jesus frames this. So I hope you have a Bible with you. If you don't, go ahead and grab the one that's in front of you — we definitely want to turn to Luke 10 together. Luke 10:25–28: A Lawyer Asks About Eternal LifeSo again, Luke chapter 10, starting in verse 25. It starts this way as you're turning there. "Behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test." Here we have lawyers doing what lawyers do, right? A lawyer, though, you should know in this day and age is not what you're thinking of as a lawyer. He does not work for the IRS. He does not do like tax law or something like this. He is a lawyer of the Torah, the Jewish law, right? And so this is a man who knows his law well, but very specifically the first five books of our Bible. And this is going to become important because Jesus is going to say to him, like, what does the law say? Like, what does our Bible say, the one you and I share together, right? And so this lawyer, he has spent lots of time in the law, as we'll see, as good lawyers often do. They know the law in order to kind of skirt through it, and he's trying to do this in this passage, but he actually knows what he's talking about. So the passage goes on, and he says, "Teacher" — rabbi, this is Jesus here, our rabbi, the one we should be listening to and following — "what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" And as I'm pulling that lens, remember, and I'm putting it on and I see this phrase, eternal life, I think to myself, well, here it is. This is part of what we're trying to do for this season of our church history — looking at ways that lead to life and ways that lead to death. And here Jesus is being asked like the exact question I'm asking you and I'm trying to get us all talking about, and that I think is of utmost importance. We might even say a matter of life and death. And he says, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Now, if you were asked this question, if somebody on the street came to you, it's worth asking, like, what would you say? How would you answer that question? What "Eternal Life" Actually Means in the Greek: The Age of Life vs. The Age of Death Backing up just a minute, this phrase eternal life needs just a little bit of clarification. The word for eternal here is not exactly the platonic, like, eternal sense that you and I often use it. Now, it might mean that to a degree, but only in like a secondary sense. It actually comes from a Greek word, eon — or the English version is eon. Eon is an age, right? There's one eon, and then there's the next eon, there's one age, and then there's the next age. And he's asking him, well, how do I get myself into the age of life? It's important that you know that there is an age of death — or as Paul calls it, the evil age, right? This age actually is that, right? It's the age that ultimately we all know is hovered over by these two things of sin and death and evil, and it lurks about, and none of us get out of here alive, right? That's why this age is the age of death. And this is why the Bible speaks to this matter over and over and over again. And this is the final enemy, death. And so the man is asking a very good question, which is, how do we make it out of the age of death and then make it into the age of life? And he has in mind — he thinks like a good first century Jew — and I need you to think this way for a second so that we can maybe make it a little more complicated. His timeline goes like this. There's the age in which we live, the age of death. There's then an ending to that, and there is a resurrection that happens of all people, good and bad. And then there's a judgment that happens, and the people are either judged good or bad. And then there is the age of life. That might be how you're thinking of things right now, in fact. But here's the important wrinkle. A resurrection has already happened. A resurrection has already happened. And so when Jesus is resurrected, the timeline gets shoved into the present. And then also, with that happening, there is a real sense in which judgment has also happened, and yet is also going to happen. It's a both-and. And Paul, if we had time, he gives us both of these. But the point is actually this — what Jesus does is he drags eternal life and he puts it smack dab into this life. And this life is where eternal life begins. And he'll say things like, "the kingdom of God is in your midst, is among you." He's referring to himself. He's saying, through me starts this eternal life. It's here and it's now. And so when Jesus is being asked this question — what must I do to enter into this age of life? — he doesn't say it out loud, but he is saying, well, it starts right now. It's not something we're pushing off to the future. We don't just kind of do all the right things now and then punch a ticket and then we get into the thing. No, you're in it right now. Jesus Tosses the Question Back: How Do You Read the Law?And so he says to this lawyer — well, he refuses to answer his question, actually. What does he do? He tosses it right back to him. And he says to him, well, you tell me, you lawyer, you know the law. What's written in the law and how do you read it? I actually love that last question — the "how do you read it" — that is so important. I don't have time to dig down deep here, but just know that we should all be asking, like, how do we read this scripture? Like, how do you read it? We all read it slightly differently, but Jesus wants to teach us how we read our scripture. And so the man says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." And Jesus, maybe to his shock, certainly to my shock, says, wow, you're correct. You got it right. Like, that is the answer. And in fact, in the other Gospels, Jesus is the one to say these things. Who knows? Maybe this lawyer got it from Jesus. And he says, you're supposed to love God. And by the way, all of those categories — that just simply means your whole being, everything you are. You're just supposed to love God with like every last ounce of who you are. And then love your neighbor as yourself. And this is the simplification of all things. It's the simplification of the law, the scriptures, what God is trying to do with the world. It is just love, right? Love God, love your neighbor. Now, I'd add this. When we talk about loving our neighbor, the Bible breaks down for us to love God with our souls and our minds and our strength and all these various aspects of who we are. And I would say, well, that's just a description of how to love. And we should do the same with the people in our lives. We should love them in similar kinds of ways, with our whole being. "He said to him, you have answered correctly. Do this and you will live." Again, there's our word — life, right? Well, how do we live a life? And how do we do it right? And how do we stay on that narrow path? He says, well, do this. The guy gets it. "Who Is My Neighbor?" — The Question Jesus Refuses to Answer DirectlyAnd if we stopped there, we would feel really good about this passage and it'd all be done. But the man, remember, he's a lawyer and he knows his law. And the job of the lawyer is to get around the law and to kind of sneak through it. And so he says the follow-up. He wants to justify himself and says to Jesus, well, excuse me, who is my neighbor? Jesus does not answer this question. I'll just go ahead and say that very clearly here. Jesus does not answer who the neighbor is. He pulls up the example of somebody being a good neighbor — that is the Samaritan — treats the robbed man that we're going to meet here as the neighbor, but the Samaritan is not actually technically the neighbor here. He's the one who's doing it right, who is loving his neighbor well. All of this explodes the boxes that this lawyer no doubt has, and it should explode ours too. And I can't go into exactly what a Samaritan is, but I assure you, the lawyer is thinking the Samaritan is not one of us. Whoever the "us" is for you — not one of us. He's over there. He's one of them. And Jesus is saying, well, look at the them. Whoever your "them" is, they're doing it right. They're the one who's loving well. And it should cause us to stop in our tracks and to ask, well, if they're able to love well, and they're finding what Jesus is calling eternal life or abundant life in this life that's leading to this eternal life, well, maybe I've got some work to do. Jesus replies to the question that the lawyer asks. He doesn't answer it. He, of course, does what Jesus does, which is to either ask a question — which is what he did the first time — or to tell a story, which is what he does this time. Luke 10:30–32: The Priest and the Levite Pass ByAnd so he says, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance, there was a priest going down the road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Well then likewise, a Levite came to the place, saw him, passed by on the other side." I assure you, the Levite knows the law too, right? And the priest, well, he knows the law too. And Jesus is saying, do the priest or the Levite do the law? That is, do they love their neighbor? And the answer is very clearly no, right? They do not. Luke 10:33–35: The Samaritan and the Meaning of CompassionNow the Samaritan, whether or not he knows the law is actually not exactly clear, and in some ways not even to the point. The Samaritan does the law. He does the thing that should be done here, which is he sees the man half dead, and he goes to help him. I would stop here for just one minute and point out this word to you — compassion, at the end of verse 33. Compassion. This word shows up only three times in your gospel of Luke. It shows up in the following ways. The widow of Nain — Jesus encounters this woman who already is a widow. She's lost her husband. She then loses her son in the story that is being told. And Jesus looks at this woman who has lost her husband and her son, and he has compassion. Which is to say, the word itself means like his insides are like turning outside, and he's like physically in pain watching this woman and is feeling her pain, right? It also shows up in the passage we're going to talk about next week as you join us for gluttony, which is the story of the prodigal son, actually. When the prodigal son returns home from his gluttonous encounters, the father is there and he looks at him from afar and he has compassion on him. His insides are turned outside. And then here, the Samaritan — he looks at this man and he has compassion on him. I would say if we are going to love at all, we need compassion. If we are going to love our neighbor as ourselves, it is going to require us to put ourselves into the very shoes of the neighbor, to walk the mile with them, to see ourselves as the dead man on the side of the road who needs help, and to ask the question, if I were that dead man, what would I want this priest to do for me? If I were that dead man, what should that Levite do? I'm crying out for him, and he walks right on by. That is not keeping the law. But the Samaritan — the Samaritan sees him and is able to put himself into his place and to see the position that he's in, which is helpless, and he has the ability to do something, and he does. Interestingly, this idea of love is then here for the next few verses explained not as a feeling the Samaritan has — because we all have the feeling when we see something bad happen, and we're like, oh, that's awful, oh man, I feel so bad for this person — love requires action. It requires actually doing something, which is precisely what the Samaritan does in the verses that follow. In verse 34, "He went to him, to the man dying on the side of the road, and he bound up his wounds, he poured on oil and wine to heal them, and then he set him on his own animal, and he brought him to an inn, and he took care of him." This doesn't even account for the fact that he took time out of his own, no doubt, busy schedule to stop and to help this man and to assist him to a place. And he probably missed a really important meeting. And I'm sure some friends and some family were probably upset with the Samaritan who was supposed to be home for dinner. And he missed the kid's soccer game. But he did this very important thing that was in front of him. But it doesn't even stop there. "The next day, he took out two denarii. And he gave it to the innkeeper. And he said, take care of him. And if you spend more, keep track of that, because I will repay you when I come back." This is a man who loves in a way that goes above and beyond, and it is active. It's not just a man who walks and says, oh, there's a person that is almost dead over here, and that's tragic, as he keeps walking on by. This is the kind of love that God is calling us into as well, and this is the narrow road that leads to life. You might understand why now it's a narrow road, because it's difficult to walk. It's the road less traveled. It's the one that requires something of you. "Go and Do Likewise": Love and Life Are InseparableAnd then Jesus finishes up. He says, "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" And the lawyer has to confess, well, I guess it's the one who showed mercy. And then Jesus says again, well, you got it right. "Go and do likewise." Go and do likewise. When I think about this passage and this idea that we are to walk down this narrow road that leads to life — life and love, in my mind, are almost like one in the same. They all come together, these two come together in ways that are almost impossible to pull apart as you dig down deeper and deeper and deeper into what a full life is. I was trying to wrestle with the question, why does this road lead to life? Like, why does loving someone lead to life? And here's what I think Jesus is doing. Remember, Jesus has pulled eternal life into this life. The very one that you're in now, listening to me speak. And love in this life, this eternal life we're hopefully, prayerfully in — it is the substance of it all. Love is the design of humanity. It is what we were made for. In Eden, when we were created, we were created to love God. And then it was not good for man to be alone. So he creates Eve, and we were meant to love one another. And then he looks at the first couple and he says, multiply, make more of you, and then love them too. And this is what it's all for and all about. The God who made us is in himself self-giving love — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If the Trinity means one thing, it means pouring out love one to the other to the other. And we are made in that kind of image, which means the great commandment — love God and love neighbor — this is not a rule that gets bolted onto the side of life, as if it's like some sort of external hope that you might do this at some point. It is the manufacturer's description of how this whole thing runs. Withholding love doesn't keep you safe, and spending love doesn't drain your life. Jesus, in fact, says, do these things and you will have life. Jesus Is the Good Samaritan: He Crosses the Road to Find Us Half DeadWe see this love most clearly in the person of Jesus. When he pours himself out on the cross, he redeems us. He snatches us out of death and delivers us into an age of life, eternal life. If Jesus has done this for me, well, then he must love me, right? And if Jesus has done this for you — and he has — then he must love you. But Jesus has loved the whole world and God has sent his son that we all might have eternal life, that we all might be entered into the age of life. And why love? Because God loves you, and he wants us to love one another and to love him as we were intended to do. Communion: The Table as the Place Where Love and Life MeetAs we come to the table this morning, it is important that we recognize that this two-fold command of love — to love God and love our neighbor — it is kind of one thing. I would suggest to you that when God says to us that we are to love him, what he does not mean is that we have like a really nice worship service together and I have all the feels and it's just me and God and I'm loving every minute of it. And I don't even think he means like, well, I love God and therefore I pray every day and I love God and I'm reading my Bible every day. These are all very good things and they actually do lead you to God. So don't misunderstand me. But what I think he means is he pairs that with love your neighbor, because that is the ultimate understanding of whether or not you love God well. Because every person in this room around you right now and every person you've ever met in your life is bearing the image of God. And if you can't love them well, it is worth asking whether you're loving God. And so this morning as we come to the table, we are reminded that Jesus has poured himself out for us. He has shown us what love looks like. He literally puts his hands on the cross like this, and he opens himself up for humanity. And he takes the penalty that was due to us, and he offers us a way to God. I find Jesus directly in the parable of the Good Samaritan. In fact, many interpreters have. It turns out he's not the priest, he's not the Levite, he is the Samaritan, though. He is the outsider, the despised one, yet the one who actually does the law of love. And he comes to our roads where we are lying half dead and he has compassion on us. He looks at us in our estate and he is moved. His insides turn outside. He says, I want something better for this child of mine. I want them to live a full life now, and eternal life forever. This is what I want for them. And so what does he do? He binds up our wounds. He pours the oil and the wine on them. He pays the price. And he promises he will come back to pay the rest of it. And this is what the table is. On the night before Jesus died, he took bread and a cup and he said, this is my body and this is my blood. And it is poured out for the forgiveness of your sins. We have all been robbed by the age of death. But we have also participated in the age of death. And we need forgiveness from that. So Christ, he crosses the road and he offers us a hand up and out of it. And this morning we get to participate in the forgiveness of sins that he offers to each and to every one of us. Our Call: To Be the Samaritan for OthersHe then expects something of us. As people who are walking down that road with him, the dust of the rabbi getting all over us — you remember that? — as we walk that way of love, we then too must take up the role of the Samaritan for the others who are around us. Our job in this world is to bandage those who are hurt and broken and to pour whatever oil and wine Jesus has given to us onto their wounds too. And we're to lift them up out of their estate. And this, this is what it means to be a follower of Christ. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, Holy Son, and Holy Spirit, you are self-giving love, perfected. God, we have fallen short of your glory, no doubt. We have sinned and are in need of a Savior. And so, Jesus, this morning, we come asking one more time for your salvation. Some of us, this might be the first time, saying, I need a Savior. I need someone to bandage up the wounds that are just too deep. I can't do it myself. Or somebody is lying there saying, I am half dead. I can't do this by myself. And Jesus, we know you are saying to them right now, I am here for you. I am here to bind those wounds and to raise you back to life again. So God, as we prepare our hearts for the communion table, we ask that we do so with sincerity and with gravity, knowing the cost that you have paid — your very life. And that out of this should flow for all of us gratitude, a thanksgiving. And for all this and more, we give you thanks and praise. In Christ's holy name we pray. Amen.‍ ‍South Run Baptist Church | 8712 Selger Drive, Springfield, VA 22153 | Sunday Worship at 11am Serving Springfield, Burke, West Springfield, Lorton, Alexandria, Fort Belvoir, and Franconia, Virginia. Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 132 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 131 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 131 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Saint Bartholomew was one of the Twelve Apostles, a Galilean; the Gospel accounts say little more about him. It is said that, after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, he traveled in the service of the Gospel to Arabia and Persia, and brought to India a translation of the Gospel according to Matthew. Eusebius writes that one hundred years later Pantaenus, an illustrious Alexandrian scholar, found this gospel when he traveled in India. By most accounts Bartholomew ended his life in Armenia, where he met his martyrdom by crucifixion. According to many, he and Nathaniel are the same person: the Gospel accounts that speak of Bartholomew do not mention Nathaniel; and St John's Gospel,which mentions Nathanael as one of the Twelve, does not mention Bartholomew. But according to the Greek Synaxarion, Bartholomew and Simon the Zealot are one and the same.   Saint Barnabas was one of the Seventy, from Cyprus, a Levite and at one time a fellow-student with St Paul under Gamaliel. After Christ's Ascension, he led the Seventy until the Apostle Paul's conversion. He is mentioned often in the Acts of the Apostles, which describes some of his travels as a companion of St Paul. By all accounts, he was the first to preach the Gospel of Christ in Rome and in Milan. His wonder-working relics were discovered on the island of Cyprus in the time of the Emperor Zeno; on this basis the Church of Cyprus was established as an independent Church, since it had an apostolic foundation.

Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Barnabas; a Levite; not one of the Twelve, but referred to as an "apostle" by St. Luke; he was a friend to St. Paul, and brought him before the apostles, when he was seeking to redeem his reputation; Barnabas and Paul went to Antioch, where they taught Christians for a year; afterwards, Barnabas traveled through Asia Minor and was a respected missionary and advisor Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/11/26 Gospel: Matthew 5:20-26

Oaks & Jabs back in action Radiomaxxing (you'll have to listen to the episode to get it). Jam packed show with a bit of a surprise even. Hope you enjoy. Peace & God Bless. Playlist: ALL WAYS by MC Imprint ft. tore xo Lokd In 2.0 Stedfastt ft. Stephen the Levite, Manchild, Russ Shanks & DJ Onenine Quiet On The Set by Braille & YP aka Young Paul Peace Automatic by TruWerdz UP by Derek Minor New Scene by Trutha & creed caldwell Barsmaxxing by Sintax The Terrific & Sir Chamberlain Cross Before The Crown by Si Knightly Father by Paradox & DJ Sean P ft. Liz Vice Refuse 2.0 by m1L, MotionPlus & Kaboose ft. Alyssa Jane Concrete Chronicles by Nikkuubeats kinda unintentionally ft. Oaks & Jabs Accept Joy by DJ Sean P Boptimus Prime by Tae Lamar AIN'T OVER YET by MC Imprint Stages by Kaboose ft. MonLee Mane Vote on the playlist at www.definitionradio.com/show/1003 Leave your requests/shout-outs on our socials www.facebook.com/DefinitionRadio www.instagram.com/DefinitionHH www.twitter.com/DefinitionHH www.krosswerdz.com

In this fascinating and profound episode, we dive into the deep mysteries of St. John's Gospel with John Johnson, the founder of Patmos Hosting and the Albertus Magnus Institute (and Joshua Charles's sponsor into the Catholic Church). Johnson reveals that St. John was likely a student of Aristotle, and used his most powerful rhetorical techniques to communicate the most sublime truths about Christ, the Eucharist, the betrayal of Judas, and the authority of Peter.You can read John Johnson's biography here: https://magnusinstitute.org/senior-fellows/john-johnson/VISIT OUR WEBSITEhttps://eternalchristendom.com/BECOME A PATRON OF THE GREAT TRADITIONAs a non-profit, you can support our mission with a tax-deductible gift. Help us continue to dig into the Great Tradition; produce beautiful, substantive content; and gift these treasures to cultural orphans around the world for free: https://eternalchristendom.com/become-a-patron/CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIAX: https://twitter.com/JoshuaTCharlesFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/joshuatcharles/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshuatcharles/DIVE DEEPERCheck out our “Becoming Catholic” resources, where you'll find 1 million+ words of free content (bigger than the Bible!) in the form of Articles, Quote Archives, and Study Banks to help you become, remain, and deepen your life as a Catholic: https://eternalchristendom.com/becoming-catholic/SUBSTACKSubscribe to our Substack to get regular updates on our content, and other premium content: https://eternalchristendom.substack.com/EXCLUSIVE BOOKSTORE DISCOUNTShttps://eternalchristendom.com/bookstore/CHAPTERS00:00 - Introduction and Bio02:12 - Welcome, Prayer, and Why John's Gospel Matters10:01 - Who Was St. John? Levite, Witness, and Beloved Disciple13:04 - Aristotle, Rhetoric, and Enthymemes in John's Gospel20:08 - Hidden Logic: How John's Gospel Invites the Reader to See31:17 - John 6: The Bread of Life, Judas, and the Scandal of the Eucharist43:54 - Bethany: Mary's Adoration, Judas, and the Poor48:17 - The Last Supper: Betrayal, Tradition, and the Bosom of Christ58:28 - The Resurrection Epilogue: Peter, John, the Boat, and the Final Catch1:31:07 - Revelation, the Beast, Technology, and Final Reflections on LoveThis podcast can also be heard on Apple, Spotify, and other podcast platforms.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 126 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Study the daily lesson of Sefer HaMitzvos for day 126 with Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, where he teaches the mitzvah in-depth with added insight and detail.

Live Voluntarily For The Lord! Acts 4:34-37 34that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need. 36Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), 37sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet.

Preacher: Annie Diamond Jeremiah 29:7 "Seek the peace and prosperity (welfare, shalom, well-being)  of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers (shaloms), you too will prosper (shalom)." Acts 1:7-8 "He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Luke 10:30-37 "...In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side.  So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him.  He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'  "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"  The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."

Tune in as Joni takes a different look at the classic parable about the good Samaritan. -------- Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible.     Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org   Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore.2 And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of the sons of Elam, answered and said unto Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the land: yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing.3 Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the commandment of our God; and let it be done according to the law.4 Arise; for this matter belongeth unto thee: we also will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it.5 Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word. And they sware.6 Then Ezra rose up from before the house of God, and went into the chamber of Johanan the son of Eliashib: and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water: for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had been carried away.7 And they made proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem unto all the children of the captivity, that they should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem;8 And that whosoever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all his substance should be forfeited, and himself separated from the congregation of those that had been carried away.9 Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves together unto Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month; and all the people sat in the street of the house of God, trembling because of this matter, and for the great rain.10 And Ezra the priest stood up, and said unto them, Ye have transgressed, and have taken strange wives, to increase the trespass of Israel.11 Now therefore make confession unto the Lord God of your fathers, and do his pleasure: and separate yourselves from the people of the land, and from the strange wives.12 Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud voice, As thou hast said, so must we do.13 But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to stand without, neither is this a work of one day or two: for we are many that have transgressed in this thing.14 Let now our rulers of all the congregation stand, and let all them which have taken strange wives in our cities come at appointed times, and with them the elders of every city, and the judges thereof, until the fierce wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us.15 Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the son of Tikvah were employed about this matter: and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite helped them.16 And the children of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain chief of the fathers, after the house of their fathers, and all of them by their names, were separated, and sat down in the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter.17 And they made an end with all the men that had taken strange wives by the first day of the first month.18 And among the sons of the priests there were found that had taken strange wives: namely, of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren; Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah.19 And they gave their hands that they would put away their wives; and being guilty, they offered a ram of the flock for their trespass.20 And of the sons of Immer; Hanani, and Zebadiah.21 And of the sons of Harim; Maaseiah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah.22 And of the sons of Pashur; Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethaneel, Jozabad, and Elasah.23 Also of the Levites; Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah, (the same is Kelita,) Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.24 Of the singers also; Eliashib: and of the porters; Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.25 Moreover of Israel: of the sons of Parosh; Ramiah, and Jeziah, and Malchiah, and Miamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah.26 And of the sons of Elam; Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Eliah.27 And of the sons of Zattu; Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, and Aziza.28 Of the sons also of Bebai; Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai.29 And of the sons of Bani; Meshullam, Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, and Ramoth.30 And of the sons of Pahathmoab; Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezaleel, and Binnui, and Manasseh.31 And of the sons of Harim; Eliezer, Ishijah, Malchiah, Shemaiah, Shimeon,32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah.33 Of the sons of Hashum; Mattenai, Mattathah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei.34 Of the sons of Bani; Maadai, Amram, and Uel,35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Chelluh,36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib,37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasau,38 And Bani, and Binnui, Shimei,39 And Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah,40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai,41 Azareel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah,42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph.43 Of the sons of Nebo; Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jadau, and Joel, Benaiah.44 All these had taken strange wives: and some of them had wives by whom they had children.

Today's Scripture passages are Judges 19 - 20 | Luke 10:25-37.(*Please note that today's reading includes a reference to an incidence of sexual violence.*)Read by Christina Edmondson.Get in The Word with Truth's Table is a production of InterVarsity Press. For 75 years, IVP has published and created thoughtful Christian books for the university, church, and the world. Our Bible reading plan is adapted from Bible Study Together, and the Bible version is the New English Translation, used by permission.SPECIAL OFFER | As a listener of this podcast, use the code IVPWORD40 for 40% off and free shipping on any IVP resource mentioned in this episode at ivpress.com.Additional Credits:Song production: Seaux ChillSong lyrics written by: Seaux Chill, Ekemini Uwan, and Christina EdmondsonPodcast art: Kate LillardPhotography: Shelly EveBible consultant: JM SmithSound engineering: Podastery StudiosCreative producers: Ekemini Uwan and Christina EdmondsonAssistant producer: Christine Pelliccio MeloExecutive producer: Helen LeeTo reach the IVP podcast team, please use this form.Disclaimer: The comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and/or the guests featured on the podcast and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of InterVarsity Press or InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

Most of us read the Good Samaritan and ask, "Am I the priest? The Levite? The Samaritan?" But Jesus may have intended something very different. What if we're not supposed to see ourselves as the one offering help—but the one needing help? The good news of the Gospel is that Jesus did not pass us by. Jesus became the wounded Man to rescue those who wounded Him. And because we have been shown mercy, He calls us to become people who show mercy.

In this episode, we tackle the raw and unfiltered Book of Judges. We step into an era where "there was no king in Israel" to see what happens when a society—and an individual—abandons prophetic boundaries and begins to substitute personal preference for divine law. The Pride Cycle: We analyze the text's relentless pattern of prosperity, pride, sin, suffering, supplication, and salvation. We look at why God preserves this cycle as a warning for our day. Gideon's Reduction: We explore why God reduced Gideon's army from 32,000 down to just 300 men. We learn why the Lord intentionally puts us in positions where we cannot boast in our own strength. The Leadership of Deborah: We study the courage of Deborah and the unexpected heroism of Jael, illustrating how God raises up faithful individuals to do what others are too fearful to attempt. The Descent of Samson: We map out the tragic, literal "downward" geographical and spiritual journey of Samson, looking at how a man of such high potential fell victim to low achievement because of weak self-discipline. Doing Right in Our Own Eyes: We conclude with the sobering final verse of the book, confronting the modern trap of moral relativism and discovering why true freedom requires submitting to the King of Kings. Call-to-Action: Gideon needed a fleece to confirm his faith, but eventually had to move forward in the dark. What is a "strange strategy" the Lord is asking you to trust in your life right now? Let's share our thoughts on overcoming personal spiritual cycles in the comments below. To keep your faith "Unshaken" through every round of life's trials, please like, subscribe, and share this video! Chapter Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction to the Book of Judges 3:01 The Pride Cycle 14:46 An Incomplete Conquest 23:29 Making the Rounds of Righteousness & Wickedness 43:25 The First Minor Judges 51:24 Deborah & Jael 1:08:06 The Song of Deborah & Mothers in Israel 1:31:45 Gideon's Doubt & Faith 1:54:49 The Sword of the Lord & of Gideon 2:17:28 Gideon's Aftermath 2:29:33 Abimelech's Reign & the Parable of the Bramble 2:44:07 Justice & Mercy, Goodness & Grief 2:52:11 Jephthah & His Daughter 3:16:15 Samson: Child of Promise 3:26:18 Samson's Strength and Weakness 3:57:39 Samson & Delilah 4:07:33 Bind and Blind 4:16:15 Micah and the Problem of Priestcraft 4:33:42 The Levite's Concubine and the Price of Virtue 5:00:52 Conclusion 

Retirement planning is not about retirement.That's the provocation David opens with — and he means it. This episode isn't another checklist. It's a ground-up rethink of what the 5-to-10-year sprint before retirement actually demands: emotionally, philosophically, and financially.Starting with a question no financial podcast has the nerve to ask — is retirement even a biblical concept? — David works through everything from the psychology of stopping work to the hard mechanics of income portfolios, tax strategy, and the risks that blow up otherwise solid plans.If you've been coasting toward retirement on autopilot, this episode is the alarm clock.In This Episode0:00 — Cold OpenWhy the conventional framing of retirement is wrong, and what this episode is actually going to cover.~3:00 — Is Retirement Even a Biblical Concept?The word never appears in Scripture. The one exception in Numbers 8, what the parables actually teach about accumulation, and why the biblical model looks more like a pivot than a finish line.~9:00 — The Behavioral Trap: What Will You Actually Do?The identity crisis nobody warns you about, retirement depression, underspending vs. overspending, and five questions worth sitting with before you make any financial decisions.~15:00 — The Purpose Problem: Should You Even Fully Retire?The happiest retirees David has seen, the financial benefits of partial work, and why "retire to something" beats "retire from something" every time.~20:00 — Business Owner or Employee: The Decisions Are DifferentW-2 employees: catch-up contributions, pension options, the healthcare gap before Medicare, Social Security timing. Business owners: exit planning, retirement plan vehicles, tax-efficient value extraction, and the concentration risk problem.~26:00 — Accumulation vs. Distribution PortfoliosWhy the portfolio that built your wealth can destroy your retirement. Sequence of returns risk explained plainly — same average return, completely different outcomes.~29:00 — The Bucket StrategyThree buckets, three time horizons, one framework that eliminates panic selling. How Bucket One is your shock absorber and why Bucket Three can still be aggressive.~32:00 — Roth vs. Pre-Tax: The Great DebateIt's almost always "and," not "or." Tax diversification, the Roth conversion window, and why business owners have unique opportunities here.~35:00 — The Risks Nobody Wants to Talk AboutLongevity risk (you live longer than your money does) and long-term care (70% of retirees will need it). What hybrid products exist now and why waiting to have this conversation is itself a costly decision.~38:00 — Spend on Experiences While You Can + Legacy PlanningThe go-go, slow-go, no-go framework. Why retirees wait too long. Legacy basics: beneficiary designations, powers of attorney, donor-advised funds, and the "talk while you can" imperative.Key Takeaways

The longest Parsha in the Torah (Nasso) contains a seemingly unconnected string of subjects. It begins by detailing the responsibilities of adult working-age Levites from three Levite families, followed by a census of those Levites. In the middle of the Parsha contains the laws of the sotah (the suspected adulteress) and the Nazir (a person […]

The longest Parsha in the Torah (Nasso) contains a seemingly unconnected string of subjects. It begins by detailing the responsibilities of adult working-age Levites from three Levite families, followed by a census of those Levites. In the middle of the Parsha contains the laws of the sotah (the suspected adulteress) and the Nazir (a person who accepts upon himself a vow to refrain from wine, coming into contact with the dead, and haircuts for a period of time, typically 30 days), and the priestly blessing (the special blessing formula that priests are commanded to bless Israel with). The Parsha ends with the special gifts and tributes given by the princes of the 12 tribes of Israel on the day of the inauguration of the Tabernacle and on the eleven subsequent days. At first glance, it seems very hard to find a common thread connecting these disparate subjects. In this very interesting and fun Parsha podcast, we share a powerful and counterintuitive theme that is strung throughout the Parsha. The takeaways for us are profound.– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –DONATE: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –NEW TORCH Mailing Address POBox:TORCHPO BOX 310246HOUSTON, TX 77231-0246– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –Email me with questions, comments, and feedback: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletterrabbiwolbe.com/newsletter– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe's PodcastsThe Parsha PodcastThe Jewish History PodcastThe Mitzvah Podcast This Jewish LifeThe Ethics PodcastTORAH 101 ★ Support this podcast ★

Before Ezra and his companions start on their long journey to Israel, problems already arise that need ironed out: No Levites decided to make the journey, so Ezra needs to find some willing Levites to change their minds Ezra felt ashamed to ask the king for assistance from the Persian army, so he orders a 3-day long fast to ask for protection from God Ezra immediately gives the Priests and Levites temple duties before setting out This chapter highlights the importance of faith and obedience, noting that Ezra and the Israelites trusted in God's power to protect them on their journey. It also emphasizes the significance of listening to God's call, citing the example of the Levites who initially refused to join the journey but eventually answered God's call and were blessed. Lastly, this episode concludes with a discussion on the importance of treating offerings to God with respect and reverence. Jenn notes that any offering given to God is considered holy and should be treated as such. Related Episodes: Hebrews 11:1-16 - Faith and Obedience Go Together 1 Chronicles 24-26 - The Levite's Role in The 2nd Coming of Christ Numbers 3:1-13 (From Creation) - How the Levite Tribe Relates to Modern Christianity Don’t just check out one… Take a look at them all! YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnh-aqfg8rw Ko-Fi - https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Website - https://www.p40ministries.com Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/p40ministries Contact - jenn@p40ministries.com Rumble - https://rumble.com/c/c-6493869 Books - https://www.amazon.com/Jenn-Kokal/e/B095JCRNHY/ref=aufs_dp_fta_dsk Merch - https://www.p40ministries.com/shop YouVersion - https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/38267-out-of-the-mire-trusting-god-in-the-middle Check out LifeAudio for other faith-based podcasts on parenting, studying Scripture, and more:www.lifeaudio.com Become a Coffee-Tier member to gain access to The Bible Explained on Fridays: https://ko-fi.com/p40ministries Support babies and get quality coffee with Seven Weeks Coffee https://sevenweekscoffee.com/?ref=P40 Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

In the longest parsha in the Torah by verses, we continue to read about the Levite families and their responsibilities, we learn about the three tiers of the Nation's encampment, the laws of a suspected adulteress, the laws of the Nazir, the Priestly blessings, and we read a very wordy account of the gifts of […]

The Mishna states that the method of slaughtering a red heifer (para aduma) is not the same method used for breaking the back of the neck of a decapitated heifer (egla arufa), and vice-versa. A braita brings a source demonstrating that one cannot break the back of the neck of the para aduma and that one cannot slaughter the egla arufa. Both laws are derived from verses found within the passage of the egla arufa. The Mishna notes that while blemished kohanim are disqualified from Temple service, blemished Levites are fit for their respective duties. Conversely, while Levites are restricted to a specific age range for their service, kohanim can work in the Temple at all ages. A braita derives a source for both of these exclusive rules from a verse in Bamidbar 8:24. The age limitation on Levites only concerned the period of carrying the Tabernacle in the desert; for the singing service, there is no age limitation, provided the Levite can still sing properly. Regarding this age restriction for the Levites, a contradiction arises between two verses, as one states the youngest age one can work is thirty, while another states twenty-five. The Gemara reconciles this by differentiating the stages: at twenty-five a Levite begins his training, and at thirty he can actually perform the service. A braita brings a debate about the minimum age for kohanim to begin serving in the Temple - either at the biological age of maturity (the appearance of two pubic hairs) or at the age of twenty. The maximum age for their service is when they reach old age, which Rabbi Ela in the name of Rabbi Chanina defines as the point when one begins to tremble. Rav Chisda explains the scriptural source behind this minimum age debate. Later, the Gemara brings two explanations regarding whether Rebbi's requirement of twenty as the minimum age is an enacted rabbinic law, or if it was instituted because the older kohanim felt uncomfortable with teenagers performing the sacred Temple service. The method of contracting ritual impurity in earthenware vessels is not the same method of contracting impurity in other vessels. A braita details the exact differences and delineates the scriptural sources from which they are derived.

In the longest parsha in the Torah by verses, we continue to read about the Levite families and their responsibilities, we learn about the three tiers of the Nation's encampment, the laws of a suspected adulteress, the laws of the Nazir, the Priestly blessings, and we read a very wordy account of the gifts of the tribal leaders during the weeks following the Tabernacle's inauguration.– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –DONATE: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –NEW TORCH Mailing Address POBox:TORCHPO BOX 310246HOUSTON, TX 77231-0246– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –Email me with questions, comments, and feedback: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletterrabbiwolbe.com/newsletter– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe's PodcastsThe Parsha PodcastThe Jewish History PodcastThe Mitzvah Podcast This Jewish LifeThe Ethics PodcastTORAH 101 ★ Support this podcast ★

The Mishna states that the method of slaughtering a red heifer (para aduma) is not the same method used for breaking the back of the neck of a decapitated heifer (egla arufa), and vice-versa. A braita brings a source demonstrating that one cannot break the back of the neck of the para aduma and that one cannot slaughter the egla arufa. Both laws are derived from verses found within the passage of the egla arufa. The Mishna notes that while blemished kohanim are disqualified from Temple service, blemished Levites are fit for their respective duties. Conversely, while Levites are restricted to a specific age range for their service, kohanim can work in the Temple at all ages. A braita derives a source for both of these exclusive rules from a verse in Bamidbar 8:24. The age limitation on Levites only concerned the period of carrying the Tabernacle in the desert; for the singing service, there is no age limitation, provided the Levite can still sing properly. Regarding this age restriction for the Levites, a contradiction arises between two verses, as one states the youngest age one can work is thirty, while another states twenty-five. The Gemara reconciles this by differentiating the stages: at twenty-five a Levite begins his training, and at thirty he can actually perform the service. A braita brings a debate about the minimum age for kohanim to begin serving in the Temple - either at the biological age of maturity (the appearance of two pubic hairs) or at the age of twenty. The maximum age for their service is when they reach old age, which Rabbi Ela in the name of Rabbi Chanina defines as the point when one begins to tremble. Rav Chisda explains the scriptural source behind this minimum age debate. Later, the Gemara brings two explanations regarding whether Rebbi's requirement of twenty as the minimum age is an enacted rabbinic law, or if it was instituted because the older kohanim felt uncomfortable with teenagers performing the sacred Temple service. The method of contracting ritual impurity in earthenware vessels is not the same method of contracting impurity in other vessels. A braita details the exact differences and delineates the scriptural sources from which they are derived.

→ Watch on YouTube → Detailed Show Notes → Timestamps: (00:00) A brief overview of these chapters.(06:25) The pride cycle explained.(11:29) The pride cycle illustrated in the Book of Judges.(15:56) Successive generations of Israelites forget God and the things he has done for them.(17:56) The theme of denigrating the northern tribes of Israel.(21:33) Othniel is the first judge. Ehud, the second judge, brings a “gift” to Eglon, the fat king of Moab.(27:24) Deborah is the third judge. How her story compares to the Ishtar myth.(36:51) Gideon is the fourth judge and humbly trusts in God.(47:43) Gideon refuses the invitation to be the king of Israel and teaches that Israel should make God their King.(53:20) Samson is the 7th judge and is blessed with great strength. His ultimate destruction is symbolic of the descent of the House of Israel. Other myths of the ancient world, those of Nergal and Oedipus, may indicate that Samson's story contains recontextualized tropes from older times.(1:11:00) Abimelech is the 5th judge and slays his seventy brothers.(1:14:15) Jephthah is the 6th judge and makes a rash vow and sacrifices his only daughter.(1:17:47) In the first epilogue Micah sets up a false religion.(1:19:59) In the second epilogue a Levite woman is horribly violated and killed. Civil war ensues among the Israelites. We see that if Christ isn't our King, we will be without civilization. → For more of Bryce Dunford’s podcast classes, click here. → Enroll in Institute → YouTube → Apple Podcasts → Spotify → Amazon Music → Facebook The post Ep 373 | Judges, Come Follow Me 2026 (May 25-31) appeared first on LDS Scripture Teachings.

Luke 10:25-3729 But he (the expert in the law who stood up to test Jesus) wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii[e] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,' he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Ezra 10 While Ezra prayed and made confession, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, a very great assembly of men, women, and children, gathered to him out of Israel, for the people wept bitterly. 2 And Shecaniah the son of Jehiel, of the sons of Elam, addressed Ezra: “We have broken faith with our God and have married foreign women from the peoples of the land, but even now there is hope for Israel in spite of this. 3 Therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the commandment of our God, and let it be done according to the Law. 4 Arise, for it is your task, and we are with you; be strong and do it.” 5 Then Ezra arose and made the leading priests and Levites and all Israel take an oath that they would do as had been said. So they took the oath. 6 Then Ezra withdrew from before the house of God and went to the chamber of Jehohanan the son of Eliashib, where he spent the night,[b] neither eating bread nor drinking water, for he was mourning over the faithlessness of the exiles. 7 And a proclamation was made throughout Judah and Jerusalem to all the returned exiles that they should assemble at Jerusalem, 8 and that if anyone did not come within three days, by order of the officials and the elders all his property should be forfeited, and he himself banned from the congregation of the exiles. 9 Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled at Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month. And all the people sat in the open square before the house of God, trembling because of this matter and because of the heavy rain. 10 And Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have broken faith and married foreign women, and so increased the guilt of Israel. 11 Now then make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.” 12 Then all the assembly answered with a loud voice, “It is so; we must do as you have said. 13 But the people are many, and it is a time of heavy rain; we cannot stand in the open. Nor is this a task for one day or for two, for we have greatly transgressed in this matter. 14 Let our officials stand for the whole assembly. Let all in our cities who have taken foreign wives come at appointed times, and with them the elders and judges of every city, until the fierce wrath of our God over this matter is turned away from us.” 15 Only Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahzeiah the son of Tikvah opposed this, and Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite supported them. 16 Then the returned exiles did so. Ezra the priest selected men,[c] heads of fathers' houses, according to their fathers' houses, each of them designated by name. On the first day of the tenth month they sat down to examine the matter; 17 and by the first day of the first month they had come to the end of all the men who had married foreign women. Those Guilty of Intermarriage 18 Now there were found some of the sons of the priests who had married foreign women: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah, some of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak and his brothers. 19 They pledged themselves to put away their wives, and their guilt offering was a ram of the flock for their guilt.[d] 20 Of the sons of Immer: Hanani and Zebadiah. 21 Of the sons of Harim: Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel, and Uzziah. 22 Of the sons of Pashhur: Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah. 23 Of the Levites: Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (that is, Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer. 24 Of the singers: Eliashib. Of the gatekeepers: Shallum, Telem, and Uri. 25 And of Israel: of the sons of Parosh: Ramiah, Izziah, Malchijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Hashabiah,[e] and Benaiah. 26 Of the sons of Elam: Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth, and Elijah. 27 Of the sons of Zattu: Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad, and Aziza. 28 Of the sons of Bebai were Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, and Athlai. 29 Of the sons of Bani were Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal, and Jeremoth. 30 Of the sons of Pahath-moab: Adna, Chelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh. 31 Of the sons of Harim: Eliezer, Isshijah, Malchijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluch, and Shemariah. 33 Of the sons of Hashum: Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, and Shimei. 34 Of the sons of Bani: Maadai, Amram, Uel, 35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Cheluhi, 36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, 37 Mattaniah, Mattenai, Jaasu. 38 Of the sons of Binnui:[f] Shimei, 39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah, 40 Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah, and Joseph. 43 Of the sons of Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah. 44 All these had married foreign women, and some of the women had even borne children.

May 10, 2026 - Sunday AM Bible Class   This episode surveys the women of the book of Judges and centers on Deborah — Israel's fourth judge and a prophetess — to draw practical lessons for Christian living. Neal opens by noting the worshipful setting and surveys a range of women in Judges: Aksa (Caleb's daughter), Jael (who killed Sisera), Jephthah's daughter, Samson's Philistine wives, the Levite's concubine, the unnamed woman who killed Abimelech with a millstone, Manoah's wife, and other contemporaries like Ruth, Naomi, and Hannah. These stories show a spectrum of character: faithful and faithless, passive and active, righteous and unrighteous. The bulk of the message focuses on Judges 4–5 and Deborah's leadership: her role as a judge sitting under the palm tree, her husband Lapidoth, her prophetic voice, and her victory song in chapter 5. Neal draws four practical applications for women (and for listeners generally): 1) use your tongue properly — speak words that encourage, glorify God, and avoid gossip; 2) be a good influence whose life deserves respect and leads others closer to Christ; 3) cultivate the right Christlike attitude — peaceable wisdom, not arrogance or divisiveness; and 4) be active in service — encourage others, participate in ministry, and model faithful living for younger believers. The episode weaves scripture references throughout (Judges, 1 Timothy, Philippians, James, 1 Peter, Titus, Proverbs) and applies both cultural observations and pastoral encouragement: women's influence in society and the church, the importance of godly speech and attitude, and the value of active service in home and congregation. It ends with an invitation to repentance and public response to the gospel for those who have not yet obeyed Christ, and an exhortation for believers to use their gifts and influence for God's kingdom.   Duration 28:19

Not everyone loves math and numbers. I've heard disturbing rumors that there are some people who even claim to hate math and get irritated when they see numbers. The Book of Bamidbar is called the Book of Numbers because there are a lot of numbers, and in no place are there more numbers than in our Parsha. We read about the numbers of each tribe individually, and then we read about the numbers of each trio of tribes in the four quadrants surrounding the Tabernacle. The number of Levites, the number of firstborn. The truth is, it's not a numbers game. There's something absolutely profound found in the censuses in our Parsha. In this transformative podcast, we learn how the census, the orientation of the nation around the Tabernacle, the flags, and the segregation of the Levites from the Israelites reveal the two different modes of Divine Service: the Israelite mode and the Levite mode. And we discover that even non-Levites can become honorary members of that most elevated tribe. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –This Parsha Podcast is dedicated by Doron Levin in loving memory and leilui nishmas his beloved teacher and Torah study partner, Rabbi Avi Cohen, Avraham Shalom Ben Shlomo David. May his soul be elevated in Heaven.– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –DONATE: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –NEW TORCH Mailing Address POBox:TORCHPO BOX 310246HOUSTON, TX 77231-0246– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –Email me with questions, comments, and feedback: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletterrabbiwolbe.com/newsletter– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe's PodcastsThe Parsha PodcastThe Jewish History PodcastThe Mitzvah Podcast This Jewish LifeThe Ethics PodcastTORAH 101 ★ Support this podcast ★

We kickstart the Book of Numbers with a census of the twelve tribes of Israel – not including the tribe of Levi who is counted independently – conducted by Moses, Aaron, and the most distinguished leaders of said tribes. Subsequently, we read about the banners of the tribes and their assigned encampments, the transference of the sanctity of the firstborn to the Levites, and the designated role of each of the Levite families.– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –DONATE: Please consider supporting the podcasts by making a donation to help fund our Jewish outreach and educational efforts at https://www.torchweb.org/support.php. Thank you!– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –NEW TORCH Mailing Address POBox:TORCHPO BOX 310246HOUSTON, TX 77231-0246– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –Email me with questions, comments, and feedback: rabbiwolbe@gmail.com– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to my Newsletterrabbiwolbe.com/newsletter– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –SUBSCRIBE to Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe's PodcastsThe Parsha PodcastThe Jewish History PodcastThe Mitzvah Podcast This Jewish LifeThe Ethics PodcastTORAH 101 ★ Support this podcast ★

Today we follow two stories of betrayal with Samson and Delilah and Micah and the Levite. Fr. Mike also explains why Judges is the best example of how God can use broken people to do his will. The reading are Judges 16-18 and Psalm 147. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.