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A Hamster With a Blunt Penknife - a Doctor Who Commentary podcast
Lee & I start a great voyage of discovery for Kev and Andy as we cherry pick Doctor Who stories for them to clue up on the classic series for the very first time!
Reformed Brotherhood | Sound Doctrine, Systematic Theology, and Brotherly Love
In Episode 496 of the Reformed Brotherhood, Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb open with a rich discussion on the theology of congregational singing — including the Trinity Psalter Hymnal, the Getty's Sing!, and why psalm-singing belongs at the heart of Christian worship. The main event, however, is the first installment of their study of the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30). Tony and Jesse argue that this parable is widely misread as a lesson in personal productivity or spiritual gift deployment, when in fact its center of gravity is entirely eschatological and theological: the wicked servant's failure is not financial incompetence — it is a catastrophic misunderstanding of who the master is, and therefore, who he himself is as a servant of that master. Key Takeaways The parable is eschatological, not motivational. Situated in Matthew 25 as the second of three eschatological parables in the Olivet Discourse, the Parable of the Talents answers the disciples' question about the sign of Christ's coming — not a general lesson about using your abilities for God. "Talents" refers to an enormous monetary sum, not personal giftedness. A single talent represented roughly 20 years of a laborer's wages. Even the least-endowed servant received an immense, unearned gift — which makes the wicked servant's inaction all the more indefensible. The wicked servant's problem is theological, not financial. He doesn't bury the talent out of ignorance or fear alone — he actively mischaracterizes the master as exploitative and unjust. His failure is a failure of theology: he does not know who his master is. The commendation "Well done, good and faithful servant" is the basic reward of every believer, not a tiered prize for the most productive. The five-talent and two-talent servants receive identical commendations, suggesting the measure is proportional faithfulness, not absolute output. Faithful stewardship is active, not passive. Both faithful servants are marked by immediacy and energetic engagement. The parable does not explain how they doubled their talents because the mechanics are not the point — their disposition of active, risk-taking faithfulness is. The parable resists works-righteousness readings. Whether one is Augustine or an anonymous deathbed convert, every justified believer enters into the same joy of the master. The parable is not a theology of graduated heavenly rewards but a distinction between those who understand their master and those who do not. The talents represent the stewardship of the Gospel and the Kingdom itself. The master entrusting his servants with his property is a picture of Christ entrusting the church with the message of salvation — ownership remains with the master, the servants are stewards, not proprietors. Key Concepts The Wicked Servant's Problem Is Who He Thinks the Master Is The most common misreading of this parable locates the wicked servant's failure in laziness or timidity — he was simply too afraid to act. But Tony Arsenal argues compellingly that the servant's own words expose something far more serious. He says, "I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow." This is not a confession of fear; it is an accusation. The servant has constructed a theology of his master as an exploitative, unjust overseer who doesn't deserve a return. What he catastrophically misses is that the very possession of 20 years' worth of wages — an unearned, unimaginable gift — is the master sowing into him. His refusal to act is, at its root, a refusal to acknowledge the master's generosity and authority. This is the parable's most penetrating theological edge. "Well Done" Is for Every Believer, Not Just the Most Productive One of the episode's most pastorally significant observations is Tony's argument that the commendation "Well done, good and faithful servant — enter into the joy of your master" is not reserved for spiritual high-achievers. Because the five-talent and two-talent servants receive word-for-word identical commendations despite wildly different absolute returns, the logical entailment is that the one-talent servant, had he been faithful, would have received the same words. This means the commendation is not calibrated to productivity — it is the basic inheritance of every believer who enters glory. The soul-winner and the deathbed convert, Augustine and the unknown faithful, all hear the same welcome. The parable is therefore not teaching a graduated hierarchy of heavenly reward, but a binary distinction: those who know their master and act accordingly, and those who do not. The Parable Cannot Be Detached from Its Eschatological Context Jesse Schwamb is careful to anchor the parable in its literary and theological context: this is the second of three eschatological parables in Matthew 25, all part of the Olivet Discourse, all delivered in direct response to the disciples' question about the sign of Christ's return and the end of the age. Detaching the Parable of the Talents from that frame — and reading it instead as a general productivity principle or a theology of spiritual gifts — drains it of what Jesse calls its "gravity." The master going away and returning after a long time is a direct image of the ascended Christ and his parousia. The servants' task during the interval is not self-improvement or career stewardship — it is watchful, active discipleship in the time between the first and second comings. Everything in the parable, including the staggering sums of money, is calibrated to that eschatological frame. Memorable Quotes The real difference is that the former servants understood that their master had trusted them with a task and expected something of them, and the unfaithful, wicked, lazy servant had a total misunderstanding of who the master was — and therefore what his role as the master's servant was. That's the point of this parable. — Tony Arsenal Well done, good and faithful servant — that's not a special commendation that only the most amazing Christian servants get. That's the basic commendation that every Christian who enters into glory will receive. Whether you have been the most productive soul-winner in the world... you're going to receive the same commendation as the person who dies, and on their deathbed the last thing that they think is, 'I trust Jesus.' — Tony Arsenal God's measure of faithfulness is proportional, not absolute. The two-talent servant is not judged by the five-talent standard. He is judged by what he received. — Jesse Schwamb Full Transcript [00:00:08] Tony Arsenal: that's not a special commendation that only the most amazing Christian servants get, right? That's the basic commendation that every Christian who enters into glory will receive. Whether you have been the most productive soul-winner in the world, whether you are the most, you know, the most sanctified Christian who's ever lived, whether you are, the most amazing person and millions of people have come to faith because of your ministry, you're going to receive the same commendation as the person who dies, and on their deathbed the last thing that they think is, I trust Jesus." Right. And they've produced no converts, no ministry, and maybe no one even knows that they were justified, because in their final moments before the lights went out, they trusted in Jesus, right? They hear the same well done, good and faithful servant when they enter into glory. Welcome to episode 496 of the Reformed Brotherhood. I'm Jesse. And I'm Tony, and this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey, brother. [00:01:19] Jesse Schwamb: Hey, brother. [00:01:21] Parable Teaser [00:01:21] Jesse Schwamb: You know, the parables just keep coming for us, like we've said. And on this episode, to, just to tee it up, to whet everybody's appetites, we've got three servants, one absent master, an uncomfortable amount of money. What could go wrong? Yeah. As it turns out, quite a bit, especially if you're the kind of person who responds to divine generosity by finding the nearest shovel. So we're gonna get to all of that in this, what I call, this now sandwich of eschatological parables or teachings of Jesus in Matthew 25. So hopefully you're curious, hopefully you're stoked. But you can go put your thumb right in the scriptures there, because you're gonna meet us there very, very, very, very shortly. But first we got business. It's always the business we must do, the part of the podcast where we affirm with something or deny against something. And as always, I'm really curious what you have, and now I understand you have a list, or you're keeping a list. So- I do ... never again will there be something like that falls to the cutting room floor, brothers and sisters. Tony is always gonna have for us whatever was- ... what came to his brilliant mind as an affirmation or denial at any point, day or night. [00:02:29] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. Do you, Jesse, do you ever have... I know the answer to this question is going to be yes- Yeah. That's good ... but I'm gonna ask it- All right ... mostly for rhetorical effect here. This is good podcasting. [00:02:38] Psalm 67B Praise [00:02:38] Tony Arsenal: Do you have, do you have those situations where, like, the, the so- a song hits you, and it's just, like, the right combination of words, but also the right combination of, like, musicality? [00:02:49] Jesse Schwamb: For sure. [00:02:50] Tony Arsenal: Where it just, like, it just, it just feels- For sure like, right and good in every part of your being. So- All the time, yep ... I, I'm affirming, um, th- this is like the most Presbyterian thing ever. I'm affirming the, the arrangement in the Trinity, uh, psalter hymnal for Psalm 67B. Now, I'm not gonna try to sing it for you, but I wanna read the words, because obviously it's, it's a paraphrase of a psalm. So, like, that's the first thing. Like, people, like, calm down. Like, it's okay to sing paraphrases. It's okay to sing. No one is actually singing the Hebrew psalms. Right. Amen. So, like, just calm down a little bit. Amen. Uh, there is a place for us to dedicate specific focus to psalms and songs that are from the psalms, but that can be something like Better Is One Day. Like, that's a song from a psalm. Anyway, that's a whole different, that's a whole different thing. Yes, I'm affirming psalm singing. Uh, yes, I'm denying overly rigid understandings of what that is. But here's the words for Psalm 67, Setting B. That's important It's, "O God, show mercy to us and bless us with your grace and cause to shine upon us the brightness of your face, so that the whole world over may truly know your way and so that your salvation all nations see displayed. O God, let peoples praise you. Let all the peoples praise. Let nations come rejoicing and songs of gladness rise, raise." Then, um, stanza two, "For you will judge the peoples with perfect equity. To nations of the whole Earth a governor you'll be. O God, let the peoples praise you. Let all the peoples praise. The Earth has brought its bounty throughout its harvest days. [00:04:24] Why Sing Psalms [00:04:24] Tony Arsenal: Since God our God will bless us, yes, God will blessing send, that all the Earth may fear Him to its remotest end." Now, there are lots of really great, uh, theologically sound, edifying hymns and worship choruses, but there's just something about the Psalms, right? It's inspired- Um- ... it's perfect. Again, like I said, nobody is singing the actual Hebrew Psalms, or even, I shouldn't say nobody, most people are not singing, like, the Psalms from the ESV, right? These are almost all paraphrases. They're, they're translations. But there's just something about the Psalms that I have grown so much to appreciate since joining a Presbyterian church. That's not to say other traditions don't sing Psalms in their own right, and again, like, we would sing Better Is One Day and other songs that were based on Psalms. Um, even, like, real direct translations or real direct versions of Psalms, like Better Is One Day or Create In Me A Clean Heart, there's all sorts of them. But there's just something about singing the Psalms, and this particular musical setting, it's triumphant, but not in the, like, fanfare kind of triumphant. Do you know what I mean, Jesse? Like- Mm-hmm ... it's, it's a triumphant melody, and it has, like, really interesting rises and falls and... So I, I'm gonna probably try to put this at the end of the episode. So listen. Hopefully I'll get the whole thing. Let me just, let me just do this. Hold on a second. It's just gorgeous. It's just beautiful. So I, I, I don't know what it was this morning. Uh, it's, I wasn't, like, promo- particularly emotional. It didn't, like, make me cry. Yeah. But all of that's fine. Like, I've been brought to tears in worship before, and that's, that's all good and well. There was just something about it that resonated, and I was like, "This is just good." Like, this is just good music. It's good singing. Something about hearing, uh, the whole congregation singing together. Like, it was just beautiful. It was just a beautiful moment. So if you are not in a psalm-singing church, first of all, why aren't you in a psalm-singing church? Uh, no worship leader on Earth, no, no person who is worth... Uh, when I say worship leader, I mean the person who's responsible for leading musical worship. No one who's leading worshipful music, worshipful? Worship music, if you approach them and say, "I would like to sing more songs that are based on the Psalms," if they say, "We don't wanna sing Psalms here," then you just go somewhere else. Like, someone who tells you, like, "We don't wanna s- we don't wanna sing God's Word," that doesn't make any sense to me. [00:06:56] Jesse Schwamb: Right. [00:06:56] Tony Arsenal: Um, now again, like, there's a way to do it. Sometimes musically they're challenging, especially if you're singing out of something like the hymnal. But again, there are plenty of really good modern style songs and hymn style songs that are either based on the Psalms or are paraphrases, very similar to what you get in the, in the Trinity Psalter Hymnal. Or most, most people who are leading in musical worship are competent enough to just sort of take the sheet music and figure out how to do it on guitar or figure out how to play it on piano. Um, they're not that difficult. So you will be edified if you do this. Your church will be edified. There's probably a lot of people out there responsible for musical worship that actually would really like to do this, and they're kind of probably, like, just waiting for that nudge, so you may even be benefiting them. But yeah, this, this psalm is beautiful. It's just a gorgeous arrangement, and it's, it's perfect, inspired words. Really was a, just a, a balm to my soul this morning. [00:07:51] Jesse Schwamb: I love it. And o- of course, a lot of that is still happening, which is such a glorious gift to the church. The couple of times that I've had the privilege of writing music for my own church has been right from the scriptures, and for me recently that was, like, Ephesians 1 and Psalm 16. And that's mainly because, like, as a lyricist, I'm not that creative, and I'd rather go direct to the source. And all those end up being a paraphrase, like you said, anyway. Es- especially if you wanna get turn of phrase or if you wanna have a little bit of rhyming, which is always a beautiful thing. I love the Psalter, and my, my hot take on that is I sometimes find that I like, I don't wanna call them, like, the alternate, but, like, the other secondary arrangements- Yeah and lyrics better. I don't know why. I don't think that's purposeful, of course. It's probably just my taste. But I always find them to be, like, super fire. I, I don't know why. The, the B and C versions always kinda grab me, especially if... And here's another thing that I appreciate about the Psalter, as you know, is sometimes those B or C versions will be written in an alternate key or a minor key. Yeah. And that's even more awesome, because there's not a lot of, let's say, like, cla- I don't wanna say classic. Classic slash contemporary, uh, Christian music or wors- quote-unquote worship music that's written in minor keys. But it's good to lament, as we've talked about before. So- Yeah ... you're gonna get that full breath and scope in the Psalter there. [00:09:06] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:09:07] Beyond Music Styles [00:09:07] Tony Arsenal: A- and, you know, maybe let me put in one more little plug here. Um- I am not one of those people that is gonna say that there's like a particular style of music that's more godly than another. I've heard people try to make arguments that there's like certain kinds of rhythms or certain kinds of like beats that are- Right either, either more godly or somehow demonic or less godly. Um, I think there might be an argument to be made that some styles of worship are not suited well for congregational singing, so they may not be appropriate for like a, a congregational worship service. Like, you're probably not gonna go in and do a lot of hip hop and have the congregation be able to like stick with you. Right. That doesn't mean that you can't worship God through that or that it somehow is less like intrinsically beautiful. But, um, there are a lot of Let me just put it this way. In modern contemporary Western Christianity, uh, there's a lot of songs that are basically just the same thing musically. You know, you'll find, um, if you go to, like, YouTube, and, and maybe, like, be careful, 'cause sometimes some of these are, they're funny but they're a little bit crass. But if you look up, like, a video about how, like, every song is Pachel Bell's Canon. Right. Right? Every song follows the same basic arrangement of chords, and this gets even more pronounced when you're talking about modern worship music or contemporary mu- worship music, because it's designed to be able to be very simple and very easily played. Um, a lot of times worship directors are not super classically trained. Um, you think of, like, the youth pastor with the guitar around the campfire. Like, those kinds of songs have to be easy, 'cause they're not, like, classically trained guitar players. They probably picked up a chord book and figured out how to play a couple easy songs like Jesus, Lover of My Soul and things like that. That's how I learned how to play guitar. That's the extent of my skills, so I'm not, I'm not banging on that person. Um, but there are a lot, there's a lot more to music. Um, there's a lot more to singing, and there's a lot more to choral music than, you know, GCDC kind of like worship courses. Uh, and singing something like the Psalter, or even just singing out of a good hymnal- Right will actually expand your musical horizons. And there's something to be said about the creativity of our God being reflected in the creativity of His people that I do think we miss out on when we are locked into really simplistic worship styles. Um, again, like, I interpret Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to mean, like, sing in the vernacular of the people. Um, and I, you know, that's a different episode. We can talk about that sometime. But th- that, that requires the songs to be singable, and I think sometimes, uh, sometimes some of the song- some of the Psalters, some of the songs in the Psalter hymnals, and sometimes hymnals in general, are very difficult to sing. And so I think a congregation, the people leading in music need to be thoughtful of that. But I think you would do well to, like, open your horizons a little bit to something a little bit more challenging and a little bit off the beaten path. Like, this melody, I don't know the chords behind it. It may not be anything crazy, but that, like, musicality and that, that sort of, like, melody is not a typical... And this might be why it resonated with me. It's not a typical kind of melody you're gonna find in contemporary music. Um, it's, it's very different. It's older. It's more classically styled. The, it's, it's meant to sort of bring you up to these crescendos in ways that modern music is not necessarily. So enough about that. I don't know a lot about music theory, so I might be totally wrong and, and- ... people might be rolling their eyes. But I, I do think that there's something to it. Like, a lot of the older hymns- utilize chord progressions and melodies and harmonies and things like that that we're just not used to. You're not gonna get that listening to, you know, even something like, like the more musical kind, uh, more technically proficient music like something like Bethel or Hillsong, which is at times musically very good. Uh, I don't know that I would recommend listening to it, but the music is actually, like, technically very good in some instances. Uh, even there you're not gonna find a lot of this stuff. So instead of going there for, like, really nice sounding musical worship, just go to something like the Trinity Psalter app. You know, for $10 on a- on your iPhone you can sing with it. Um, yeah, enough about that. I, I, I could talk about how great the Psalms are and how great psalm singing is for an entire episode. We should do that episode- We should ... when we're done with the parables, 'cause I know we've done a lot of episodes on, like, uh, on, on, like, the regulative principle and- Right I, I think we're still both in the same spot that, like- Right ... exclusive psalmody is probably not where we would land. Right. But I think I'm coming to the conviction that the psalms should have a much greater portion of our worship diet, uh- Hmm ... than they do in most churches. Um, and I really only came to that conviction when I was in a church where psalm singing was the norm. Uh, I know that we try to have at least one s- one canonical psalm for every single worship service. Usually there's multiple, but, um, even in a, a, a setting where we normally wouldn't be so focused on that, we still try to have at least one, and it's been a, a really huge edifying thing to my soul. [00:14:06] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. I absolutely love that. You'll find no complaint from me on that. I think that that's a good reminder for all of us. [00:14:13] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:14:14] Book Sing Recommendation [00:14:14] Tony Arsenal: Jesse, what do you have? [00:14:15] Jesse Schwamb: Well, it's, we're not gonna stop this conversation, just so you know. Because we don't sync up on these things ever, but it just so happens that I'm affirming with a book that it's a really simple primer on congregational singing- There you go that has long been on my list and overdue to read, and I am coming in hot with a recommendation for this, and that is the book entitled Sing! How Worship Transforms Your Life, Family, and Church by Keith and Kristyn Getty. And really, it covers so many of the things that you already talked about. I, I think at the foremost, it's a reminder that God cares whether in what we sing, but he does not mind how well we sing. Yes. But it is, like, the, this... What's true is that our voices might not be of a professional standard, but they are of a confessional standard. Yeah. And so it is incumbent upon every Christian to sing. And if you need just, like, a little bit of inspiration, so to speak, or a reminder of why that's important, I highly commend this book to you. In fact, in the back they have what's called, like, these bonus tracks. It's like four or five separate chapters that they've written just to particular people in the church, pastors, laypeople, musicians, even the people that help produce the sound. I found that bit to be so lovely and pastoral. It, it's gentle, the tone is encouraging, but it is also strong, and I appreciate that. So a lot of it is some of the themes that we've just talked about, but my conviction grows all the time of just how important congregational singing is, and how everything you just said, the music, the liturgy that we bring forward- has to be of a deliberate kind to strengthen that exercise, to make it easy, so to speak. And that does come into practical things like if you look at the psalter, and I, I don't... I have it on my phone, but I don't know where my phone is, so I was gonna look at the one you were referencing. My guess is it's, it's in probably a key with a couple of sharps in it, because those are the ones that are easiest to sing. So even little things like that matter. What you hear on the radio often is, or radio? People still listen to the radio? What you hear, like, in, like, contemporary music, like, often is not necessarily for congregational singing just in its key, and, and that's okay. And so even in my own church, we transpose things to make it reasonable and approachable. But what I think was, like, the critical question put forward in this book that I absolutely loved as a great reminder was: how did the congregation sing? It's very interesting that they kind of bring forward this thesis that that's how you should be judging your music. How did the congregation sing? And I think if we started asking that, it might slightly tweak or maybe change altogether, to your point, the methods and the practices that we use when we undergo worship by way or through music. So this is really great. It's easily readable, and it's for everybody, and it, there's a chapter on family worship as well, how to bring singing into your home and music into your home all the time as an act of worship so that when you get to the Lord's Day, your kids are like, "Yeah, this is our jam." Uh, especially maybe even recognizing some of the pieces of music and be excited about that. So there was a lot that made me think about here. It's fantastic. And to your point, Tony, I would say the Gettys, especially in, like, "Christ Alone," some of the other things, this is probably the closest to what you're talking about, where they've taken and imported kind of the classical hymn structures- [00:17:26] Tony Arsenal: Yeah [00:17:27] Jesse Schwamb: but modernized a little bit just the language while without sacrificing any of the theological richness or the musicality that draws your ear to those beautiful rising and falling melodies, the swelling of the vocal there, without, like, distracting from anything that's going on there. It's not emotionalism- Yeah but it certainly is filled with the emotion of what it means to be a Christian and to sing in response as an act of praise to God. [00:17:50] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:17:52] Family Worship Singing [00:17:52] Tony Arsenal: Yeah, I mean, I can't underscore enough the importance of congregational singing. We, we've, we've actually talked about, about it in context of, like, how important it is for the men of the congregation to sing, which is something I, I really appreciate about my congregation, is, is the m- the men just go all out. Like, people are, like- Love it ... nobody is, nobody is ashamed of the fact that they squawk on a note that they're not used to or anything like that. And where this really pays out, um, at least in our congregation, but I'd, I'd be willing to bet if you go to any congregation where the, where the men particularly are passionate and active in musical worship, right? Um, I think where this plays out is you see the children very quickly picking up those songs and learning them and singing them. And the, the favorite part of my day, this is gon- any parent of toddlers is gonna be like, "What are you talking about?" Bedtime is one of my favorite times of day, not just because it means that, like, in a little while I'm gonna get a little peace and quiet. Like, that's part of it, too, but there are two songs that we sing almost every single night, and Augie leads them, which is really great. He always wants to start, and he always wants to sing, and it's the Doxology and the Gloria Patri. And these are songs that he has just picked up from being in the congregation, and, you know, I, I don't remember consciously teaching him any of these songs. And now, now Adeline, who is, uh, my two-year-old daughter, almost two, she's starting to pick those songs up, and she's starting to sing them, and she recognizes them, and she responds very differently to those songs than she does to other songs. Um, it's funny because I don't, I don't know where she got this. Neither my wife nor I are particularly, uh, charismatic, emotive people. Like, we don't raise our hands when we're singing, but she, she does. She, she, when we start singing- My girl ... the Gloria Patri or the Doxology, her hand is in the air, and she's looking at the sky, and she's waving her hands around. Yeah. And, um, she recognizes that those songs have a different place than a Miss Rachel song. She doesn't put her hands in the air and wave and look up at the ceiling when Miss Rachel comes on or when Baby Shark comes on. She knows those songs. She can sing those songs. Um, but she doesn't- Respond to those in the same way. And that is a direct result of the fact that congregational singing is an important thing in the life of our church and in the life of our family. And I think a book like Sing, I haven't read it, but I've heard very good things about it, and the, the Gettys are rock solid, like- Right ... theologically. Yes. Musically. They're, they're well within our Reformed tradition, at least broadly speaking. Um, and, and they have a, they have one of the strongest sort of theologies of praise music that you're gonna find. Mm-hmm. It's not quite like a liturgiology or something like that, but it's, it's, it's a theology of praise worship, praise and worship music. Right. Um, and that's not something that's super common, right? There's a lot of theology of liturgy. There's a lot of practical theology on liturgy. Um, the Gettys have developed a really unique kind of place in things in that they've really developed this idea that congregational singing has a specific theological import, and they've developed it in a way that's approachable. So yeah, I haven't read it and I sh- I probably should, but it, it sounds like a really great book. And, um, I c- just can't underscore it enough. And- Maybe this is my little plug. Like, uh, family worship is really tough, and it's not something I've mastered. Like, we don't, we, we don't have a regular rhythm. But what we do have is we have a consistent, uh, we consistently pray at night before bed, and we consistently sing one or both of those songs. And that by itself, like, the kids are learning and they are, they're absorbing that by osmosis. Um, they're picking up the phrasing, right? Augie can tell you who the three persons of the Trinity are, and that's partially 'cause we do catechism questions, but it's also partially, and I would actually argue probably more, because of the Trinitarian structure of those two songs. Right. He's picked up the language of the Father, the Spirit, and the Son from the Gloria Patri and from the doxology in ways that probably I wouldn't have been able to teach him otherwise. So yeah. Anyway, I, I just co-opted your affirmation. But, um, but yeah. I'm here for it. Congregational worship, family worship, singing, uh, to our Lord is commanded, and it's commanded for our good- Right and for his, his benefit and his blessing. Um, and so any book that is, is solid and will help you do that, I, I'm wholeheartedly behind. [00:22:17] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. This is... All that is fire. This is fire. [00:22:19] Reclaim Congregational Song [00:22:19] Jesse Schwamb: God designed our psyche for singing, and we're probably, uh, I would say contractually obligated since Reformed is in the name of the title of the podcast- to remind ourselves and everybody else that one of the things the Reformation did was reclaim the singing of God's word by his own people. Yes. Taking it out of that performatory space back into literally the voice boxes of the people who are sitting in worship together. So sometimes we might have to do that again. You know, there is a little bit, I think, of... There, there is in some places, not everywhere, this kind of tilting of that time of worship through music to be vouchsafed or relegated to those who are, uh, let's say, like, the most, like, talented in doing that, and somehow we participate merely by observing or by- Yeah just, uh, you know, being an audience spectator of that, and that's totally backwards. So I get it. The thing is- We're all singers. We may not all be very good singers, but we're all created to be singers nonetheless. This is what the Bible tells us. So we need to lean into that. We need to invest in that. Yeah. And so I, I like, of course, what you're doing with, uh, your kids because you're not only teaching them to sing, and this makes me so happy, but you're teaching them to love singing to the Lord. Yeah. And so that is, I think, what a lot of our congregations miss, is sometimes we do it, and I'm among them often, but grudgingly. And so to get to a place where we come excited that our reasonable response, our reasonable preparation on the Lord's day is to sing together, to hear that gospel message in melody in the ear of our... You know, the voice of our neighbor in our own ear is a wild thing. It's just, like, un- unheard of. And it's like, uh, we gotta stop, right? It's one of those things also that, like- ... we've, we've talked about how it's just kind of otherworldly. Not, not only in the sense that it gives us this really kind of foundational sense of God's, you know, kind of transcendence, of what it means to participate in the worship of someone who is transcendent because it is all these voices together, but also this is something that rarely happens in any other way, especially in the Western culture anymore. This coming together to express and to participate in something where we're all reading literally from the same sheet music is just an entirely different experience, increasingly relegated to this kind of experience. So we, we must protect it, not only because God says that we ought to, but also because, again, it is, it is our reasonable response. Yeah. And it is something, like you've just said, that brings Him glory and is certainly for our good. So, uh, this is the Singcast, so everybody- ... everybody get to it. You can make your own music. God has commanded us to sing. So the sooner we just understand, like, hey, it's, it's... You know. Uh, but... And the last thing I'll say is this is one of those things that's, like, practice too. A- and I get it. Like, you may say, like, "Listen, I can only hit two notes, and that's all I'm gonna hit no matter what the music is." Well, then belt the two notes, and also know that, like, the more you practice that kind of thing, honestly, the better that you'll get and the more comfortable that you'll become. The voice is an instrument like any other instrument that takes, like, a little bit of practice and a little bit of work. But even that can cause, I think, great benefits and build a little bit of confidence. But just the example of singing and doing it from a heart that is keen to worship God and that is filled with passion to respond to Him with gratitude and, you know, adoration is really the key thing. And so I, I'd rather have a entire group full of worshipers that are singing off-key but, like, with just resounding passion than to have this performance of just a handful of voices because they feel like they're the most capable to do it. Yeah. I think we'd, we'd rather have everybody else, and to hear the congregation mixed as one of those instruments. So sing. Yeah. [00:26:05] Everyone Can Sing [00:26:05] Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and y- you and I have made the point in the past, too, like- I, I don't think, uh, maybe I'm wrong. Uh, we are a top 50 healthcare podcast, so maybe some doctor- I'm sure you're correct ... is gonna... Right. Like, I don't think being tone deaf is actually a physical condition. Like- Mm. I, I mean, I, I mean, obviously, like, some people have hearing problems, and that means they have trouble singing. I hear what you're saying. But, like, the people who are like, "Well, I j- I just can't sing. I'm just not capable of that," uh, like, I think the, the physical conditions that would make you incapable of singing are not usually what people are talking about. Like- Right. Yeah ... you know, some people have, like, vocal fold disorders or they have hearing problems, and I guess maybe, like, if perfect pitch is a thing, which it, it is. Like, perfect pitch is a... I don't know what causes it, but some people are born with perfect pitch. I suppose in theory that means some people must be born with, like, the opposite of perfect pitch. But I think most people who say, like, "Well, I just, I'm just tone deaf. I can't carry a tone," that, that's probably not true. Like, it just means you need practice. Um, and some people's voices, like physically, their bodies are more, more designed by God to produce a pleasant sound than other people. But I, I think actually just about anybody with a little bit of practice, and mostly I think this is probably just the confidence to actually sing and a little bit of practice to learn how your body works, like how your voice works, um, could probably get to a point where singing is not only very relatively comfortable and easy, but it's something that is pleasant and is not overly challenging. This is actually something that I think we've lost in the church. We should... This, I mean, this is about to come the episode, but, um- ... something we've lost in the church when we have sort of changed from a true genuine congregational singing model, which was the norm- And I've heard people make arguments about the importance of hymnals, and I, I agree with those arguments, although I know some people have moved them into almost like a realm of, like, divine mandate- Right that you have to use hymnals because it trains people to teach. But we have lost something with both the sort of commercialization of worship music and the pro- like making it a professional thing, and we've lost congregational singing. The, the people in the church throughout history have learned to sing. Many of them have learned to read, learned the scriptures, learned theology, not in the seminary and not in the monastery, but in the pew as they sing God's word and as they sing- Right ... the great theological hymns of, of the church. There's so much you can learn through that process that I just think we've lost. And I think going back to something like a hymnal or the Trinity Psalter Hymnal or whatever, whatever standard music your church is gonna use, and I mean standard music. Like, whether this is a collection of worship choruses that has been curated for the church or it's a published hymnal or something like that, going back to something like that teaches the church how to sing. And I don't remember who wrote it, but the trellis and the vine, like the worship that we sing, I know Mike Horton makes this point. The worship that we sing is the tre- is the trellis that the vine of our wor- of our- Yes ... faith grows on, right? That's true. Like, what the, what the church lex credendi, lex orandi. Like, the church, what the church prays, the church believes. What the church sings, the church believes. So all of that to say, like, the, the importance of congregational singing can't be under-emphasized, and it's... I, I mean, I don't know that I would I don't know that most theologists say technically s- like, congregational singing is an element of worship, but praising the Lord through song certainly is. Yes. It's, it's evidence. Um, and, and so I think that's definitely something that the church has lost in general. Um, and I know there are churches... I- it's funny, when Ashley and I were between churches, uh, very briefly after, um, our previous church closed down, um, we went to a local sort of, like, high, high, uh, production, seeker-sensitive church, very Steven Furtick-esque, and we only lasted, like, 10 minutes in this, in this service. We went in and the production value was great, and the music sounded great, but we couldn't hear ourselves, we couldn't sing- Right ... and it was very performative, and we just left. We were only there for a few minutes, and we left. And I think that's something we've lost as we've sort of migrated worship to almost, like, a professional class. So yeah, bring it back to the pews. Bring it back to your- Bring it back ... bring it back to your house, bring it back to your kid's bedroom when you're tucking them in. Everywhere. Bring it back to the car on the way to work, in the bus. Right. Like, just let's everywhere we go, let's sing and worship the Lord. [00:30:30] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, that's right. [00:30:31] Train Your Voice [00:30:31] Jesse Schwamb: Uh, so as a final thing, let me compound your hot take and say that I agree with you, that I... And I think professionals would as well, and I'm gonna stand on a resource that I'm gonna recommend to everybody here in a second, that in fact the Getty say, "If you can speak, you can sing." And there are a f- a few conditions that would prevent you from doing that, of course. And even there, they wanna explore opportunities for you, for instance, signing, for instance, to ensure that you can participate in worship. Uh, the hot take is I do think that because the instrument that God has given us in the vocal cords is exactly that, that it can be trained, and that actually most people can sing. And if you're serious about that, if you think, "You know what? I'd like to be able to do that. How can I explore that?" Here's a book for you. It's called Set Your Voice Free by Roger Love. The full title is How to Get the Singing or Speaking Voice You Want. Roger Love is, like, this amazing behind-the-scenes vocal coach. He has coached, like, a ton of really talented recording artists, and this is his very contention in the book, is that everybody can sing. It's really about how much or little work you wanna put into it. And in fact, this book comes with, like, these exercises that you can listen to and then record yourself. And then he, from a distance basically, can give you some pointers based on allowing you to kinda evaluate what you hear in your own recording back. So if you really are the kind of person that's like, "Listen, I, I dare you. I cannot sing," I would challenge you, I would double dog dare you to get this book, Set Your Voice Free, and if you're really serious about wanting to try and see if it can make a difference, I, I think it can. And I've, I myself have enjoyed this book, gone back to it many times, use it in my own work and practice because I found it to be helpful. So there you go. Sing, sing, and sing again. [00:32:06] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:32:07] Singing Apps and Practice [00:32:07] Tony Arsenal: And if you're not a reader, first of all, why are you listening to the podcast? But second of all, if for some reason you're not a reader I'm, I'm joking. I'm sure there are people that are listening to the podcast who are not readers. That was, like, a super smug thing to say. How dare you. I'm sorry about that. How dare you. Um, if for some reason you don't wanna read that book or you're not a reader, um, y- you can do something as simple as looking up Yousician on your Yousician, Y-O-U- Yeah ... S-I, like the word musician, but U instead of, like, Y-O-U instead of, uh, musician. Um, there are plenty of apps out there. I just, I mention Yousician just because I've used that on, like, a free trial basis with some guitar teaching, and it's a reputable source. They also have a vocal module. So, like, if you wanna learn to sing, there are plenty of resources out there who can help you train your voice. A- and it- Again, I'm not a doctor, I'm not a vocal coach, I'm not a professional singer. I'm not even that great of a singer, and I, I probably could be a better singer if I wanted to devote the time to it. Um, it doesn't take much to, to be able- Right ... to become a competent singer. Um, I think most of us, you pick up one s- just like I learned guitar, you pick one or two songs that you really like and you wanna learn, and you learn to sing those songs, and then those skills will develop over time. So enough about that, Jesse. We've got, speaking of talents- ... we've got some talents to talk about. There it is. Boom, bazinga. Baza-bazom. I'm [00:33:27] Jesse Schwamb: back. There it is. Yeah, so- I was excited [00:33:31] Tony Arsenal: about that one ... [00:33:32] Jesse Schwamb: that, that was really good. And, and we should just h- honor everyone. That's it. [00:33:37] Tony Arsenal: That's it. Tip your waiters and waitresses, folks. It [00:33:39] Jesse Schwamb: was so good. We're here all week. [00:33:41] Parable Context Setup [00:33:41] Jesse Schwamb: So we're in Matthew 25, uh, verses 14 through 28, and this is at least gonna be a two-parter for us. This goes by the name you might be familiar of, which is The Parable of the Talents. But before we get to it, just a quick reminder that we've been speaking about this parable, not like in a special way, but hopefully in the more contextual sense. So this is the second of three eschatological parables in Matthew 25. So the first was The 10 Virgins, which we went through. We're in The Talents, and then we're coming up to everybody's favorite, The Sheep and the Goats. All three are part of this Olivet Discourse, which is, of course, Jesus' final teaching block before his Passion. And I think it h- behooves us so that we do not get distracted from, like, the center of gravity of this thing, that this is delivered in response to the disciples' question about the sign of his coming and the age to come. Because I've heard so many, like, little talks, maybe homilies is more the right word, on this particular parable that lack gravity. So little gravity that basically NASA could train their astronauts in it. So we wanna stay away from that and I think get into, like, the, the proper context. So Tony, do you have it in front of you by any chance? And would [00:34:50] Tony Arsenal: you- I do. I do, yeah. Yeah. Read it for us? I'll read it here. [00:34:52] Reading the Parable [00:34:52] Tony Arsenal: So this is, uh, starting in, uh, Matthew 25 verse 14, and I'm gonna read down through, uh, the end of verse 30 here. So it, it reads here, "For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted them, entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. Now after a long time, the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward bringing five talents more, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me five talents. Here I have made five talents more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.' And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, "Master, you delivered to me two talents. Here I have made two talents more." His master said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master." He also who had received one talent came forward, saying, "Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed. So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours." But his master answered him, "You wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming, I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him who gave it, who give it to him who has 10 talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. For, uh, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness in that place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." [00:36:56] Watchfulness and Stewardship [00:36:56] Jesse Schwamb: So it starts with that amazing connective, which we really spoke about in the last episode, in verse four- 14, starting with four. So it's tying, like we said, this parable directly to verse 13, which we know is in the, the parable of the ten virgins. But it's this idea of watchfulness. "Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour." So th- I think this is the point we really drove last time, that we really felt highly convicted about, that this parable is not like a detached economic lesson, but it's really like an expedition, exposition, not expedition- ... of what watchful discipleship actually looks like during the interval of the master's absence. Like, that's the whole setup here. So it's starting with this idea of like the master goes away, but here we have these slaves or these servants who are entrusted. And to me, again, that's like such a linchpin in this whole thing, 'cause it's, it's carrying the sense that of course, like, he's handing over stewardship. It's a deposit held on another's behal- I love this parable because it has some banking language in it. It's, it's a deposit held on another's behalf, and that's like the key covenant concept of the entire thing. Ownership remains with the master. The servants are stewards. They're not proprietors. And that language, I think, really anticipates, like, the entire New Testament theology of stewardship, which is developed by Paul. So like when Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful." So like all of that, that's like just one verse for me. Like, that's an incredible setup. [00:38:27] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. [00:38:28] Common Misreadings [00:38:28] Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and you know, I think it bears saying, too, um, I wanna be careful how I say this because I don't wanna impugn, uh, poor motives or anything like that on, on the, the people that I'm about to speak to. And I say this a little bit tongue in cheek, but also I say this as someone who used to be deeply involved in youth ministry. There's kind of like a, a youth ministry, um- international version of the Bible, I guess, if you wanna put it that way, where, like, there are certain, certain passages and parables that s- for some reason seem really prone to misapplication- Sure in, in some context. And I would say, like, youth ministry is the one I have in mind. Like, um, one of them is, like, in Matthew 18 where it's like, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in the midst of them." Like, that's a, that's a statement about God's, God's presence in the judgment of the church and excommunicating an un- like, a, an unrepentant, uh, person who identifies with Christ. And, and ironically here, maybe not ironically, but, like, casting them into the outer darkness of excommunication, which is representative of casting them out into the actual inner darkness of damnation. Right. Like, th- there's a, there's a misapplication of that, that like, well, you know, like, if only a couple people came to youth group tonight, like, it's still worth meeting because where two or three are gathered, there I am in the midst of them. Um, this, this parable has a very similar kind of misapplication that is maybe a, a little bit less of a misapplication. Like, I think there is something to say in this parable about the fact that God entrusts us with abilities, talents, treasure, t- our time. Like, He's entrusted us with resources, and He does expect us to use those resources, uh, in a way that is honoring to Him and beneficial for the, for the gospel and for the kingdom. Um, that's true in a broad sense, but I don't think actually that this is what that... But, like, that's not what this passage- Mm ... is teaching. Right. I think I, I kinda joked last time, but, like, I've heard more than one sermon that draws the parallel between the word talent here and our talents in terms of, like, our spiritual gifts or our ability to play guitar or, like, to bounce a basketball and, like, thr- like, throw a free throw. Like, that's not the kinda talent we're talking about here. So I wanna, I wanna sorta, like, point that out just to sort of exclude that from the conversation. Yes, God gifts His people, and He expects His people to use those gifts for His glory and for their own benefit. Um, but that's not what this parable is talking about. This is a parable about the fact that God has entrusted the kingdom of heaven on Earth to His people. [00:41:08] Jesse Schwamb: That's right. [00:41:08] Tony Arsenal: And He expects His people to make use of that in a way that expands the kingdom and also in a way that does not... And this is, this is, I actually think, the main point of the parable. In a way that properly understands the nature of the king. The, the punchline or the main point of the parable here, it, just to sort of, like, I don't know, give away the ending or, like, unbury the lead, I don't know, whatever that is. The point of this parable- It's not that, like, it's a really good thing to double what God has resourced you with. The point of the parable, the reason that, just like the, um, just like it wasn't the virgins falling asleep in the last parable that was the problem because everybody fell asleep, in this instance, uh, the amount of money or the amount of return on investment that the servants produce is not the point of the parable. That's not the real difference between them. The real difference is that the former servants understood that their master had trusted them with a task and expected something of them, and the, the unfaithful, wicked, lazy servant had a total misunderstanding of who the master was- Right ... and therefore what his role as the master's servant was. That's the point of this parable, and I think, this is the last thing I'll say before I, I, I take a breath here. There's a lot of people that would look at this parable and might read some sort of works righteousness or, um, and this is more understandable and I think has a place within the Reformed tradition, although I don't necessarily hold this view. But would look at this as sort of like a theology which would, would argue that we receive some sort of enhanced rewards in heaven based on our faithfulness. There's plenty of good, faithful Reformed Bible teachers that would hold that position. I actually think whether or not that's true, this is still also not what this passage is getting at. [00:43:00] Jesse Schwamb: I, I totally agree with you there. [00:43:02] Talents as Huge Wealth [00:43:02] Jesse Schwamb: I, I think one of the reasons that we know that is because we can look at some of these details and let the details speak to us about the magnitude in their representation, why they're given. So of course, whenever the scripture gives us detail, especially in a context like a parable, it can be helpful of cour- of course not to overanalyze them, but to respect their place in the context of the story, and that's why verse 15 I think is so important. So to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability, then he went away. Now, this, this varies slightly, but there's a lot of, I think, very common historicity here that points us to understanding, like, the talents as a unit of monetary weight, and there is some discrepancy about its exact weight. But what we can say for sure is this: that we're talking about, as I teased at the beginning, a huge sum of money. So in other words, like, this is a gift from God himself. It's a divine gift. Yeah. It's something that's not earned. It's something that's given and something that's entrusted. So in the first-century Roman world, a talent was roughly equivalent to, like, 6,000 denarii, depending on who you talk to, which would mean that a single talent represented approximately, like, 20 years on average of a laborer's wages. So the sums then here we're talking about are staggering even at the lowest one. So the five-talent servant is receiving essentially approximately equivalent of a century's wages, and the one-talent servant is receiving 20 years' worth. There's no such thing as a small gift in Christ's economy, I think is the point here, and even the least endowment is immense beyond our reckoning. Yeah. So the distribution also is deliberately unequal. It's five, one, two, and the text doesn't offer any apology for this inequality. The master distributes to each according to his ability, which as I say that, I realize that could probably be its own episode, that we could talk about what that even means. Yeah. But he is matching and entrusting to capacity, and that's not arbitrary. Of course, that's wise and personal, and even the Greek here for this idea of capacity or power suggests the master knows his servants intimately and calibrates the stewardship accordingly. But nonetheless, it proves the point you're making here, which is not just about, like, well, do you have some kind of innate ability that's above average that God has endowed you with here? That's not even what we're talking about. Again, the whole point of this is to answer the question eschatologically about what the end means and when the time is coming and what good discipleship looks like. And so in that way, we understand then these talents to be these divinely appointed and massively generous gifts of God, essentially, like you said, the stewarding of the gospel in the story of salvation itself unto his people, and then to make something of that, so to speak, by the power of the Holy Spirit that earns a return for the kingdom, that is all empowered by God, that is under the volition of the person, uh, the Christian who says, "As a disciple, it is my responsibility to steward these gifts." That is really what we're after. So we do kind of get in this place where when you take this and say, "Well, what are you doing with," let's say- your home, if you have a nice home, are you being hospitable enough? If you have, let's say, a good singing voice by talent, are you using that to make sure that you're on the, quote-unquote, "praise and worship team," is not, like, entirely wrong, but it's not right either- Yeah to use this passage- Yeah ... for that purpose. There's a bigger theme here. There is, there's a much stronger and widescale framework that God is drawing us to and examine, and it's about the stewardship of the church itself. [00:46:30] Tony Arsenal: Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:46:31] The Foolish Servant Exposed [00:46:31] Tony Arsenal: That's really key, and this is what struck me as, as you were speaking about that, is like we see in so many of the kinda like, uh, like the chump in the parable. Like, there's- Yeah ... a lot of these parables have like a chump- Right ... where like you're looking at and you're like, nothing about what you've decided to do makes any sense. We're talking about people who've been given, in the first case, 100 years worth of, worth of wages. Right. Right? Any one of these people, and again, we're talking about a timeframe where, like, you could just take that money and run and, like, nobody's gonna find you. There's no digital trail on any of this, right? If I stole, if I stole 100 years worth of labor from my manager or from my, my employer, they would find me, right? That's not the situation we're talking about. So even the chump who decided, "I'm not gonna do anything with this," he could've just take- taken off with the money and had 20 years worth of labor. Right. Just 20 years worth of wages. Right. This is a, this is a sum of money that makes all f- all three of these servants unimaginably wealthy instantly, right? The point of this is, in part, that the final servant has no idea the amazing blessing and responsibility that he's been given. And again, I come back to this. It's not because he is dumb or because he is, um, somehow less competent in a strict sense, right? It, it's so funny to me, like, we also gloss over the fact that, like, the guy who has five talents, he's got 100 years worth of money, 100 years worth of wages. Right. And he just goes and gets 100 more. Like- Right he just goes and trades and- Right ... comes up with 100 years worth of wages that he brings back. Like, that's, in itself is, like, phenomenally, amazingly outrageous. We ran into this too with the, um, the parable of the unmerciful servant, right? We've, we've got one guy who's got this unimaginable debt, like, like, thousands of years worth of, uh, worth of wages that he could never make up, and he thinks he's gonna somehow come up with it if you just give him enough time. It's kind of like the opposite here. This guy's got this unimaginable amount of instant wealth, and he just buries it in the ground. First of all, how much... We're also talking about an era where money was a physical, entirely physical. [00:48:53] Jesse Schwamb: Right. [00:48:53] Tony Arsenal: There were no, there were no digital banks. Like- No zeros and ones most of our money exists as ones and zeros in a computer program right now. Right. Like, in reality, like- Right ... my money doesn't exist. We don't have, like, a physical gold standard anymore in America. Jesse could probably s- I'm probably making dumb things up right now. No, that's that's- Like, it used- Right on to be that, like, every dollar that the United States government printed had, like, a piece of gold sitting at Fort Knox- Yes ... uh, like backing it up, but we just don't have that anymore. Most of the money that exists in our system is entirely imaginary. It's an entirely, like, made-up digital currency way before, like, Bitcoin was a thing. That's not the case in this timeframe. This dude who buried 20 years worth of money in the ground, that's a significant amount of labor in and of itself- Right ... to even be able to do that. So we're not talking about, like... And I think this is the thing we miss when we, when we read the word talents, and one, when we obscure it and we, like, we misappropriate the word talent to mean, like, abilities, 'cause it, that's a convenient, like, illustration tool. We're talking about a huge sum of probably gold or silver that this dude just buries in the ground, and then, like, digs it up when the master comes back. [00:50:01] Jesse Schwamb: Right. [00:50:01] Tony Arsenal: And I think, like- When we don't realize how much money this is, we miss the force of the master's like, "You stupid, dumb, wicked, slothful servant." Like, if you had even taken this money to the bank and done the least imaginable- Yes ... effort. Exactly. Like, if you had done anything at all, like how mu- how difficult, granted more difficult back in this age than it is now, but like if you had even done something as simple requiring as little labor as possible and just brought this to the bank and let them collect interest on it, we'd still be talking about a huge return. [00:50:35] Jesse Schwamb: That's right. [00:50:36] Tony Arsenal: And he doesn't even do that, and that's, that's the point. There's the people who do, and they gloss over this. The parable totally glosses over the amazing effort and work that it must have taken to take 100 years worth of la- of wages and turn it into 200 years worth of wages. Right. Or to take 40 years worth of wages and turn it into 80 years worth of wages. That's an amazing, probably almost miraculous return on, on investment. Whatever they did is amazing, and the parable's like, "Yeah, they did that." They just took it to the traders and they brought back five more talents. Like, it's nothing. And then this idiot, and I say idiot in like the most like, like exegetically sound, idios, like, like foolish idiot person. [00:51:20] Jesse Schwamb: Right. [00:51:20] Tony Arsenal: This idiot just buries it in the ground and doesn't even bother to bring it to the bank where he's gonna get some return on it. This is the picture of the fool who does not make use of the means of salvation. This is the picture of the fool who refuses to receive Christ as savior, who refuses to make use of the benefit and blessing of salvation that is available to all who will trust in Christ and turn to him. This is the same picture as the idiot virgins who didn't buy enough oil and just fell asleep when they knew that the bridegroom was coming, right? Right. It's not that they fell asleep, it's that they didn't do the most obvious, simple,
The Parable of the 10 Virgins that describe a wedding feast and betrothing process that is a prophetic picture of the preparation period we are in as Believers as we wait for our Bridegroom to return, Jesus Christ. Ps. Jenny unpacks the importance of spiritual preparedness through a consecrated life in order to maintain your overflow of oil supply. It is the oil supply that each individual carries that will be the factor of being let into the wedding ceremony, which is a prophetic picture of eternity with God.
Series: VBS (Summer 2026)Service: VBSType: SermonSpeaker: Shawn Jeffries
Hour 4: The guys get to the bottom of rumors that Konnor Griffin is injured. Ray Fittipaldo joins the show to go over the biggest Steelers stories of the day. And have any virgins ever played in the NFL?
507. Paradoxology: Truths that Make Us Sing - The Wise And Foolish Virgins (Week 5) // Janice Chiern by The City, Singapore
Are you truly ready for the Bridegroom, or are you assuming you will have time to get ready later? In this episode, Heather Sudbrock takes you deep into the Parable of the Ten Virgins and asks the question many believers avoid: do you actually have oil, or are you trying to borrow readiness from someone else? This conversation is about spiritual preparation, sanctification, and the cost of being ready when the Bridegroom comes. The wise virgins were not called wise because they had lamps. All ten had lamps. They were wise because they had enough oil. They had prepared before the moment of delay, before the midnight cry, before the door was shut. Heather walks through the sobering difference between the wise and foolish virgins and what this parable reveals about half-hearted faith, delayed obedience, and the danger of assuming proximity to the Kingdom is the same as being prepared for it. This episode will challenge you to examine whether your faith is casual, borrowed, emotional, or truly surrendered. It is a call to stop waiting until the last minute to seek God, stop living on the fumes of past encounters, and stop assuming you can prepare later for what God is calling you to obey now. You will be invited to consider the cost of discipleship, the necessity of sanctification, and the eternal weight of the choices you are making in this life. This is not a soft message. It is a warning, a call to readiness, and an invitation to return to total devotion before the door is shut. Chapters 00:00 Understanding the Parable of the Ten Virgins 04:12 The Cost of Preparation and Readiness 09:26 The Journey of Sanctification 13:54 The Call to Total Devotion 19:26 The Consequences of Half-Hearted Faith 24:50 The Importance of Full Commitment 29:18 The True Meaning of Discipleship 34:19 The Eternal Perspective 39:41 The Urgency of Seeking God 43:37 Final Call to Commitment
Die Diskussion, ob ein Kriegsfilm überhaupt als Anti-Kriegsfilm funktionieren kann, ist so alt wie das Kino selbst. Kaum ein Genre ringt so konsequent mit der Frage, wie sich Gewalt, Trauma und Menschlichkeit überhaupt darstellen lassen, ohne sie zu verharmlosen. Ein Werk, auf das sich viele in dieser Debatte einigen würden, ist Komm und sieh! von Regisseur Elem Klimov. Das brachiale Meisterwerk von 1985 gilt bis heute als ungeschöntes Mahnmal gegen den Krieg und den vollständigen Verlust von Menschlichkeit. Komm und sieh! erzählt die Geschichte des jungen Fljora, der im von deutschen Truppen besetzten Belarus während des Zweiten Weltkriegs zu den Partisanen stößt. Was als naive Hoffnung auf Abenteuer beginnt, verwandelt sich schnell in einen Albtraum aus Gewalt, Zerstörung und seelischer Auslöschung. Je tiefer Fljora in die Kriegsrealität gezogen wird, desto deutlicher zerfällt jede Form von Unschuld – bis am Ende kaum noch etwas von dem Jungen übrig ist, der einst voller Erwartungen in den Krieg zog. Im Unterschied zu anderen berühmten Kriegsfilmen wie Apocalypse Now (1979) oder Der Soldat James Ryan (1988) wird Komm und sieh! im öffentlichen Diskurs jedoch vergleichsweise selten genannt, obwohl seine Wirkung in ihrer Konsequenz kaum zu übertreffen ist. Genau das führte auch dazu, dass Filmfan Sandro vom Podcast Steven Spoilberg jahrelang einen Bogen um den Film machte. Gemeinsam mit Kühne, der den Film ebenfalls erstmals gesehen hat, diskutiert er nun, ob Klimovs Werk seinen Ruf als kompromissloses Meisterstück wirklich verdient – oder ob es sich um einen überhöhten Titel einer längst vergangenen Kinoära handelt.
In this message, we look at the parable of the 10 virgins in Matthew 25. Five of them were prepared, and the other five were not. We will look at the main differences between the two groups, and how we can be prepared as God's children.
We are studying the Bible to understand and apply God's Wisdom to our daily lives. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@findinggodswisdomBitChute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/GYMxeD3Xn8FB/Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-2051564Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ricky.killen/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1nUbCJXCSiDiEWUDavwNKCOdysee: https://odysee.com/@FindingGodsWisdom:aInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/killenricky/YouTube Handle: @findinggodswisdomPlease like and subscribe!Join in our study with comments below.God bless you and have a wonderful day!#God #Jesus #Bible
Released in 2024, Mike Campbell continued to grow his Dirty Knobs catalog with this latest full album release. While still a great straight forward rock and roll journey, there was the feeling of a little less variety on this album, then with the band's first two releases. Still, when you find some great straight forward rock and roll in this day and age...you take it! #mikecampbell #thedirtyknobs #vagabondsvirginsandmisfits #mikecampbellandthedirtyknobs #podcast #rockon - Spotify Playlist Link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2jXRXyGSLaiRubgu0jMcEB?si=D8md1X7RRPmU4LnYErCxXQ&pi=bvUs-0v0SMCxD
The Parable of the 10 Virgins by Mysteries of the Kingdom Inc.
Matthew 25 contains two parables and a final judgment that all seem works-oriented. How should we interpret this chapter in light of God's grace? My friend grew up Catholic and is into meditation and enlightenment. I've been talking to him about the gospel, but I wonder what you would tell him. Do you have any thoughts for him?
It's always fun to get some prize virgins on the phone!
In this episode, Nick talks about Kuwait's Oopsie, The Mullah Massacre, Terror In Austin, Moj Mahdara On Right Side, A Literal Garbage Man, Netflix/WB Deal Dead, A Horny Louisiana Mayor and A Bigger Mac! The FULL SHOW is live streaming & FREE-ONLY on Rumble! Join our LIVE CHAT at 6pm ET every Mon-Thu or watch the FULL EPISODE anytime on demand after 7pm ET. Follow my Channel and get notified! https://rumble.com/c/TheNickDiPaoloShow MERCH - Grab some mugs, hats, hoodies, shirts, stickers etc… https://shop.nickdip.com/ PERSONAL VIDEO FROM ME – Send someone a personal video from me! Go to https://shoutout.us/nickdipaolo or www.cameo.com/nickdipaolo SOCIALS/COMEDY- Follow me on Socials or Stream some of my Comedy! https://nickdipaolo.komi.io/
America's Operation Epic Fury and Israel's Roaring Lion were courageous feats that saved the world from a nuclear-armed Iran, the most dangerous state sponsor of terrorism. In today's episode, your Terrorist Therapist®, Carole Lieberman, M.D., takes you inside the Iran-America-Israel war: the secret intel for why it began when it did, why you can't negotiate with terrorists (except in some cases, like for the Israeli hostages), and more. Not all Iranians are dancing in the streets, some are crying on state TV over Khamenei's death. But, Iran'sregime is like a wounded animal now, literally raising the Red Flag of Revenge and striking back ferociously at Israel and American bases in the Middle East. You will hear how this is backfiring. Jihadists are willing to die and become martyrs for Allah… but wait until they reach the afterlife and discover it's '72 white raisins'… not virgins. (You'll understand when you listen.) However, the biggest threat may not be in the Middle East, it's likely to be at home in America… when the terror cells, and their ‘useful idiots' wake up to avenge Iran. (www.terroristtherapist.com)
A sermon from our series The Kingdom of Heaven is Like... - Jesus' parables in Matthew's gospel. Date: 02 February 2026 Speaker: Ben Smart Matthew 25:1-13 www.stmatthews.com.au/unichurch
Diana Nammi & Karen Attwood's book links:Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0FXY2S5W2Amazon USA: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXY2S5W2FB: / girlwithagunbook Diana on Xhttps://x.comDianaNammihttps://x.comIKWROwebsitehttps://iwkro.org.ukKaren on X: https://x.comKarenAAttwoodwebsite https://www.karenattwood.com#news #iran #politics
Zucchero - Diavolo In Me John Newman - Love Me Again (Ivan Santana remix) M People - Moving On Up Prince - Chelsea Rodgers Michael Jackson - P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) Billie Eilish - Lunch Imagine Dragons - Wake Up Benson Boone - Cry Fine Young Cannibals - She Drives Me Crazy Purple Disco Machine - Hypnotized Survivor - Eye Of The Tiger Men At Work - Down Under The Virgins - Rich Girls Queen - Another One Bites The Dust Talk Talk - Such A Shame Simply Red - Money's Too Tight To Mention P!nk - Never Gonna Not Dance Again Level 42 - Lessons In Love Hébergé par Audiomeans. Visitez audiomeans.fr/politique-de-confidentialite pour plus d'informations.
Welcome to our three year podcast anniversary and Valentine's Day special!Can you believe it?! No? Yeah, we can't either. We start with a Grammys recap before diving into a song draft, a blind ranking, and a conversation about Taylor Swift's iconic cameo in a Saturday Night Live digital short from Please Don't Destroy.Thank YOU for THREE WHOLE YEARS of Diary of a Swiftie. You have made these last few years very special for us and we are so excited for many more years with this fun community of pop culture fanatics. Check out our Instagram @diaryofaswiftiepodcast so you keep up to date on all things Taylor Swift (and more).Three years! WOW! :)
In the parable of the ten virgins, all ten appeared to belong and were waiting, but only five were truly prepared with oil. Preparation....not proximity.... distinguished who was recognized as His. The other five were present and looked the part, yet lacked what was required when the moment came, revealing that being near the bridegroom is not the same as being known by Him. Take a listen
In this episode, I will be covering Sonali and Deanna's stories from the beginning to the end.Please rate and subscribe to our podcast. You can rate us at either Apple Podcasts, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/realitea-times-two/id1689517536 or spotify, https://open.spotify.com/show/7rInYf1BD8YiFeCeOOx8gI. I will also start reading your 4 or 5-star ratings on the air!Patreon is here!!! Go join the Patreon at https://patreon.com/RealiteaTimesTwo?If you like us, please share with your friends.Please visit and follow us on:Facebook: https://facebook.com/realiteatimestwoIG: https://instagram.com/realiteatimestwoThreads: https://www.threads.net/@realiteatimestwoTwitter/X: https://twitter.com/RealiteaxTwoPodTik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@realiteaxtwopod?lang=enBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/realiteatimestwo.bsky.socialYou can also e-mail us at realiteaxtwo@hotmail.com. If you want to be a guest on the podcast, please e-mail at us at the above e-mail and please put in the subject line "Guesting on Your Podcast". Please also mention which show you would prefer to guest on.You can find us on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@realiteatimestwoFind us on Discord at realiteaxtwoFollow us on Reddit at https://www.reddit.com/r/realiteatimestwopod/Visit the website https://solo.to/realiteatimestwo where you can support the podcast and get access to all socials and ways to listen to the podcastListen to my new podcast with my friend Mikel called "Next Take Podcast" at the below YouTube link at: www.youtube.com/@NextTakePodcast/featured or by going to our website www.solo.to/nexttakepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode, I will be covering Alex and Rocha's stories from the beginning to the end. In part 2, I will be covering Sonali and the other one I don't like. Check back on January 16 at midnight EST for the next episode.Please rate and subscribe to our podcast. You can rate us at either Apple Podcasts, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/realitea-times-two/id1689517536 or spotify, https://open.spotify.com/show/7rInYf1BD8YiFeCeOOx8gI. I will also start reading your 4 or 5-star ratings on the air!Patreon is here!!! Go join the Patreon at https://patreon.com/RealiteaTimesTwo?If you like us, please share with your friends.Please visit and follow us on:Facebook: https://facebook.com/realiteatimestwoIG: https://instagram.com/realiteatimestwoThreads: https://www.threads.net/@realiteatimestwoTwitter/X: https://twitter.com/RealiteaxTwoPodTik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@realiteaxtwopod?lang=enBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/realiteatimestwo.bsky.socialYou can also e-mail us at realiteaxtwo@hotmail.com. If you want to be a guest on the podcast, please e-mail at us at the above e-mail and please put in the subject line "Guesting on Your Podcast". Please also mention which show you would prefer to guest on.You can find us on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/@realiteatimestwoFind us on Discord at realiteaxtwoFollow us on Reddit at https://www.reddit.com/r/realiteatimestwopod/Visit the website https://solo.to/realiteatimestwo where you can support the podcast and get access to all socials and ways to listen to the podcastListen to my new podcast with my friend Mikel called "Next Take Podcast" at the below YouTube link at: www.youtube.com/@NextTakePodcast/featured or by going to our website www.solo.to/nexttakepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Imam Mohammad Tawhidi breaks down the “72 virgins” narrative, explaining its historical, cultural, and symbolic context. He argues extremist interpretations exploit early societal realities, while Islam's core message remains ethics, piety, and moral responsibility, not fantasy rewards.
Corinne Fisher talks the long awaited return of show merch, some good news out of the Miami mayors office and more before getting into the biggest news of the week including Pete Hegseth calling to shoot on survivors in the water, the Taliban making a teen publicly execute the man who harmed his family, a disturbig cuties corner, The Heritage Foundations Project 2026, Bonie Blue facing possible jail time, Nick Fuentes on Piers Morgan, why everyone is reporting on this hateful troll and more!Original Air Date: 12/10/25You can watch Without A Country LIVE every Wednesday at 9PM on our YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjP3oJVS_BEgGXOPcVzlpVw!**PLEASE SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW ON iTUNES & SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL**Link To The Patreon!https://patreon.com/WithoutACountry?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLinkThis Week Corinne looks at a group in Los Angeles taking the worn out cross walk problem into their own handsWHERE YOU CAN ANNOY US:Corinne Fisher:Twitter: https://twitter.com/PhilanthropyGalInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/philanthropygalExecutive Producer: Mike HarringtonInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/themharrington/Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheMHarringtonTheme Song By Free VicesWebsite https://www.freevices.com/Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/artist/free-vices/1475846774Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/3fUw9W8zIj6RbibZN2b3kP?si=N8KzuFkvQXSnaejeDqVpIg&nd=1&dlsi=533dddc8672f46f0SoundCloud https://on.soundcloud.com/5sceVeUFADVBJr4P7YouTube https://youtube.com/channel/UCOsgEoQ2-czvD8eWctnxAAw?si=SL1RULNWVuJb8AONInstagram http://instagram.com/free_vicesMERCH IS HERE - https://superunison.co/collections/corinne-fisherFirst Dem Mayor in nearly 30 years in Miamihttps://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/09/miami-elects-first-woman-mayor-ends-gops-28-year-control-of-city-hall-00683878COULD BE WORSEhttps://www.the-independent.com/asia/south-asia/taliban-public-execution-teenager-afghanistan-b2876881.htmlCUTIES CORNERhttps://blog.whitecoatwaste.org/2025/12/03/kittengate-bhattacharyas-nih-funds-cruel-cat-colony-despite-phase-out-pledge/GUUUURLQUICK: Jasmine Crockett running for Senate in TexasProject 2026https://www.newsweek.com/project-2026-heritage-foundation-document-11183162Heritage: https://www.heritage.org/ICE airlineshttps://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15371947/kristi-noem-boeing-jet-deportations.htmlBonnie Blue Jail Timehttps://www.newsweek.com/bonnie-blue-15-years-bali-jail-alleged-porn-offenses-11184959Hitler Making a Comebackhttps://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/san-jose-branham-high-school-hate-incident-human-swastika-football-field/Charlie Kirk's Final Message to Americahttps://www.thefp.com/p/charlie-kirks-final-message-to-americaNetflix Buying Warner Brothershttps://variety.com/2025/film/news/why-netflix-buying-warner-bros-ted-sarandos-1236604802/Hepatitis B Vaccine (so no you'll be dumb and have Hepatitis B)https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/hepatitis-b-cdc-panel-guidance-babies-doctors-confusion-rcna247999BACKUP: https://www.aap.org/en/news-room/fact-checked/fact-checked-hepatitis-b-vaccine-given-to-newborns-reduces-risk-of-chronic-infection/?srsltid=AfmBOorTrzqfJC5OeRz4azVA7dyMKk5LbOR9fPTEtsIUoU3_PvOHut-GNICK FUENTES/PIERS MORGAN INTERVIEWLEFT: https://www.thedailybeast.com/woman-hating-podcaster-nick-fuentes-admits-hes-never-slept-with-a-woman/RIGHT: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/piers-morgan-fell-into-nick-fuentess-trap/SOMALI FRAUDBreitbart Headline: Minnesota: Nearly Every Somali Household with Children on WelfareFOX OP EDhttps://www.foxnews.com/opinion/how-misreading-somali-poverty-led-minnesota-its-largest-welfare-scandalNY Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/29/us/fraud-minnesota-somali.htmlWhite Househttps://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/12/yes-theres-something-wrong-with-walz-and-it-cost-taxpayers-1-billion/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
PLANE & BEER HATS HERE SPORT: G outdoes himself with the most boring weather chat possible. Josh & Harry hit the rodeo. Josh's new neighbour is an ACTUAL Hollywood Celeb. AFLW Grand Final pre-game entertainment shredded. Mitch Marsh & Adam Zampa talk schooner scorer, planes, & the spirit of cricket. NUFFS: Trains, tax funded strip club beers, & Virgins latest points scheme. F1: Piastri ROBBED. PAT CUMMINS & TRAVIS HEAD YOUTUBE INTERVIEW HERE
The Number Of MALE VIRGINS Age 25+ Is On The Rise | Meanwhile OF Breaks Records On College Campuses by Greg Adams
Why Do Men Prefer Virgins_ - MGTOWSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/mgtow/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
11.23.2025 | Last Days Parables of Jesus | Part 2: The 10 Virgins: Be Ready in Your Salvation | Pastor Jeff Wickwire What does it truly mean to be ready for Christ's return? In this eye-opening sermon, Pastor Jeff Wickwire breaks down the Parable of the Ten Virgins to reveal the crucial difference between religious activity and genuine salvation. Discover why having the Holy Spirit—not just church attendance—is the key to being prepared for His return. This message could be the most important wake-up call you'll ever hear.
11.23.2025 | Last Days Parables of Jesus | Part 2: The 10 Virgins: Be Ready in Your Salvation | Pastor Jeff Wickwire What does it truly mean to be ready for Christ's return? In this eye-opening sermon, Pastor Jeff Wickwire breaks down the Parable of the Ten Virgins to reveal the crucial difference between religious activity and genuine salvation. Discover why having the Holy Spirit—not just church attendance—is the key to being prepared for His return. This message could be the most important wake-up call you'll ever hear.
Hating vibrato and using “historical accuracy” to justify it is virgin behaviour, and I'm here to call it out (using historical accuracy.) Grma xInline G Merch ⭐️www.Inlineg.myshopify.comInline G Patreon ⭐️www.patreon.com/TheInlineGFlutePodcastInline G will ALWAYS be free of charge, but signing up to the Patreon helps let this podcast reach new heights, if you can afford it. You'll also get to ask questions to upcoming guests as well as get early access to some episodes. Or if you'd rather not spend money, subscribing to my YouTube channel and following me on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok is a HUGE way to support the podcast. It'll cost you nothing, and it really makes a difference to the algorithm gods. So please interact however you can; like, comment, or subscribe, and help keep this podcast lit xAnd finally; use the code “INLINEG” online or in person at Flute Center for; 5% off accessories, 10% off all sheet music, free shipping on new instruments and free shipping to trial instruments (USA only.)Chapters:0:00 - AI Cats2:52 - History of Vibrato12:38 - Roger Norrington and Cults21:51 - Money, Money, Money24:23 - A Love Letter to Vibrato
Aging quietly shapes everything - our economies, our politics, our families, and the horizon of what nations can become. Jacob and longevity expert Dylan Livingston, founder of the Alliance for Longevity Initiatives (A4LI), take a dive into the emerging science that treats aging not as fate, but as a solvable biological problem with staggering geopolitical consequences. The two explore how extending healthy human life could transform productivity, rebalance global power, upend healthcare economics, and challenge long-held assumptions about decline. At its core is a question: what happens when longevity becomes a public policy frontier, not a personal fantasy?--Timestamps:(00:00) - Introduction(00:21) - The Importance of Longevity(02:48) - Personal Journey into Longevity(04:48) - Historical Quest for Immortality(10:02) - Modern Longevity Science(13:13) - Challenges and Societal Implications(19:53) - A4LI's Mission and Achievements(27:38) - Policy and Future Goals(32:51) - FDA Guidance and Incentives for Therapeutics(34:01) - Supply Chain Concerns and American Manufacturing(35:32) - Political Perspectives on Longevity(37:13) - Bipartisan Efforts and Advocacy(41:55) - Challenges and Opportunities in Longevity Research(52:28) - Economic and Demographic Implications of Longevity(01:01:45) - Closing Remarks and Future Conversations--Referenced in the Show:A4LI - https://a4li.org/ --Jacob Shapiro Site: jacobshapiro.comJacob Shapiro LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jacob-l-s-a9337416Jacob Twitter: x.com/JacobShapJacob Shapiro Substack: jashap.substack.com/subscribe --The Jacob Shapiro Show is produced and edited by Audiographies LLC. More information at audiographies.com --Jacob Shapiro is a speaker, consultant, author, and researcher covering global politics and affairs, economics, markets, technology, history, and culture. He speaks to audiences of all sizes around the world, helps global multinationals make strategic decisions about political risks and opportunities, and works directly with investors to grow and protect their assets in today's volatile global environment. His insights help audiences across industries like finance, agriculture, and energy make sense of the world.--
In her scintillating new book, The Beauty of the Houri: Heavenly Virgins, Feminine Ideals (Oxford UP, 2021), Nerina Rustomji presents a fascinating and multilayered intellectual and cultural history of the category of the “Houri” and the multiple ideological projects in which it has been inserted over time and space. Nimbly moving between a vast range of discursive theaters including Western Islamophobic representations of the Houri in the post 9/11 context, early modern and modern French and English Literature, premodern Muslim intellectual traditions, and popular preachers on the internet, Rustomji shows the complexity of this category and its unavailability for a canonical definition. The Beauty of the Houri is intellectual history at its best that combines philological rigor with astute theoretical reflection. And all this Rustomji accomplishes in prose the delightfulness of which competes fiercely with its lucidity. SherAli Tareen is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Franklin and Marshall College. His research focuses on Muslim intellectual traditions and debates in early modern and modern South Asia. His book Defending Muhammad in Modernity (University of Notre Dame Press, 2020) received the American Institute of Pakistan Studies 2020 Book Prize and was selected as a finalist for the 2021 American Academy of Religion Book Award. His other academic publications are available here. He can be reached at sherali.tareen@fandm.edu. Listener feedback is most welcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network
In her scintillating new book, The Beauty of the Houri: Heavenly Virgins, Feminine Ideals (Oxford UP, 2021), Nerina Rustomji presents a fascinating and multilayered intellectual and cultural history of the category of the “Houri” and the multiple ideological projects in which it has been inserted over time and space. Nimbly moving between a vast range of discursive theaters including Western Islamophobic representations of the Houri in the post 9/11 context, early modern and modern French and English Literature, premodern Muslim intellectual traditions, and popular preachers on the internet, Rustomji shows the complexity of this category and its unavailability for a canonical definition. The Beauty of the Houri is intellectual history at its best that combines philological rigor with astute theoretical reflection. And all this Rustomji accomplishes in prose the delightfulness of which competes fiercely with its lucidity. SherAli Tareen is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Franklin and Marshall College. His research focuses on Muslim intellectual traditions and debates in early modern and modern South Asia. His book Defending Muhammad in Modernity (University of Notre Dame Press, 2020) received the American Institute of Pakistan Studies 2020 Book Prize and was selected as a finalist for the 2021 American Academy of Religion Book Award. His other academic publications are available here. He can be reached at sherali.tareen@fandm.edu. Listener feedback is most welcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies
In honor of Preator Badlands we dusted off an old podcast spin off and brought back Comic Book Virgins! A show where we read & review comics that someone on the crew hasn't read. In this case these are a first time for everyone.The Crew reads all 4 issues of each series. Predator Vs Wolverine, Spider-Man and Black PantherTHIS SATURDAY 8th 10AM PST for our 24 Hour Charity Stream For BC Children's HospitalDonate & See The Schedule At The Link Below!https://www.extra-life.org/participants/558436 -Get All Episodes Ad-Free Plus Exclusive & Early Access To Episodes On https://www.patreon.com/GeekVerse-When You Subscribe To Our Patreon You Help Us Grow The Podcast and Create New Content Guest On Shows, Pick Films For Us To Review, Send Topics & More!-GeekVerse.ca is where you can find all the info on the show and where you can find it! -Come Chat With The Hosts, Join Our Discord! https://discord.gg/R5dY4CwTBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/geekverse-podcast--4201268/support.
Stephanie an Jason are into swinger resorts, threesomes, hooking up with virgins and more and they called in to talk all about it. Tune in to hear all the details including how they wound up at their first swingers club and why it wasn't a great experience, their first couple swap experiences and how they both felt watching each other with other partners, their trip to Hedonism and how and why that changed things for the better for them, their trip to Desire Resort and the naughty photo shoot they took part in and what that led to, the virgin she hooked up with and what went down, how and why they decided to "do" a ton mjore virgins, how Stephanie enjoys their ffm theeesomes and solo hook ups with women, how and why Jason enjoys couple swapping the most, Stephanie's dvp and gangbang experience and what went down, the ages of the virgins they've been with and how many she's been with as of now plus a whole lot more. You can find them here: https://virginitysnatchers.com **To see HOT pics of STEPHANIE & JASON plus my other female guests + hear anonymous confessions + get all the episodes early and AD FREE, join my Patreon! It's only $7 a month and you can cancel at any time. You can sign up here: https://www.patreon.com/StrictlyAnonymousPodcast and when you join, I'll throw in a complimentary link to my private Discord! MY BOOK IS NOW OUT FOR PRE-ORDER!!!! Strictly Anonymous Confessions: Secret Sex Lives of Total Strangers. A bunch of short, super sexy, TRUE stories. GET YOUR COPY NOW: https://amzn.to/4i7hBCd To join SDC and get a FREE Trial! click here: https://www.sdc.com/?ref=37712 or go to SDC.com and use my code 37712 Want to be on the show? Email me at strictlyanonymouspodcast@gmail.com or go to http://www.strictlyanonymouspodcast.com and click on "Be on the Show" Have something quick you want to confess while remaining anonymous? Call the CONFESSIONS hotline at 347-420-3579. You can call 24/7. All voices are changed. Sponsors: https://bluechew.com Get your first month of the new Blewchew Max FREE! use code: STRICTLYANON https://beducate.me/pd2536-anonymous Use code: ANONYMOUS69 to get 50% off your yearly pass plus get a 14-day money-back guarantee https://brooklynbedding.com Use my promo code STRICTLY at checkout to get 30% off sitewide https://vb.health To get 10% off Drive Boost by VB Health use code: STRICTLY https://butterwellness.com/ Use the code “STRICTLY” at checkout for 20% off your entire order https://uberlube.com/discount/Strictly Use code: STRICTLY for 10% off Uberlube aka the BEST Lube EVER To get $15 OFF your female oxytocin arousal tablets and more, use code STRICTLY here: https://shamelesscare.sjv.io/xLQ3Jv Follow me! Instagram https://www.instagram.com/strictanonymous/ Twitter https://twitter.com/strictanonymous?lang=en Website: http://www.strictlyanonymouspodcast.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Hocus Pocus represents something special in cinema: proof that a film's legacy isn't written on opening weekend. It's a testament to how the right movie can find its audience, even if it takes decades to get there, to become one of the most beloved family Halloween classics of all time.Virgins! Get ready to light the black flame candle, and summon the iconic Sanderson Sisters, played by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy, who brought the sistahhhs to life with their unforgettable chemistry. It would lead to Hocus Pocus' eventual resurgence, with the Sanderson sisters as queer icons, and huge influences on the drag community. What started as a simple bedtime story evolved after years stuck in development hell. It would be The Divine Miss M herself who essentially got the movie greenlit, and Midler fully committed to the bit.But after a disappointing July 1993 release, VHS and DVD releases started to make it profitable and Hocus Pocus become a Halloween staple, as well as a cult classic.You could say it ran amok, Amok amok amok!I would love to hear your thoughts on Hocus Pocus !Verbal Diorama is now an award-winning podcast! Best Movie Podcast in the inaugural Ear Worthy Independent Podcast Awards and was nominated for the Earworm Award at the 2025 Golden Lobes.CONTACT.... Twitter @verbaldiorama Instagram @verbaldiorama Facebook @verbaldiorama Letterboxd @verbaldiorama Email verbaldiorama [at] gmail [dot] com Website verbaldiorama.comSUPPORT VERBAL DIORAMA....Give this podcast a five-star Rate & Review Join the Patreon | Send a Tip ABOUT VERBAL DIORAMAVerbal Diorama is hosted, produced, edited, researched, recorded and marketed by me, Em | This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free. Theme Music: Verbal Diorama Theme Song. Music by Chloe Enticott - Compositions by Chloe. Lyrics by Chloe Enticott (and me!) Production by Ellis Powell-Bevan of Ewenique StudioPatrons: Simon, Laurel, Derek, Cat, Andy, Mike, Luke, Michael, Scott, Brendan, Ian, Lisa, Sam, Jack, Stuart, Nicholas, Zo, Kev, Heather, Danny, Stu, Brett, Philip M, Xenos, Sean, Ryno, Philip K, Adam, Elaine, Kyle, Aaron and Conner.This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podscribe - https://podscribe.com/privacyOP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy
Topics: Your Salvation is the Life of Christ, You Were Reborn Supernaturally, Ongoing Faith Does not Keep You Saved, 2 Timothy 2:13, Who are the Ones Who Went Out from Us? (1 John 2:19), You Do not Have to Endure to the End to Be Saved, Jesus Will Never Blot a Christian's Name (Revelation 3:5), Falling from Grace is not Losing Salvation (Galatians 5:4), Hebrews 6:4-6 is not About a Christian, Dog Returning to Vomit is not a Christian, Work Out Your Salvation Explained (Philippians 2:12), The Lukewarm Passage is About Purposefulness (Revelation 3:16), Depart From Me I Never Knew You, Hebrews 10 Deliberate Sinning is not About You, 2 Peter 2 Describes False Teachers, The Wise and Foolish Virgins Explained, Your Salvation is the Life of Christ, Can You Be Unborn from God?, Putting Faith in Your Faith is a Dead End, Understanding 1 John 2:19 Context, Jesus Endured the Cross for You (Hebrews 12:2), Book of Life is Symbolic, Falling from Grace and Law Observance, Who were the Hebrews in Hebrews 6?, Who are the Dogs and Pigs in Scripture?, Working Out vs Working for Salvation, Lukewarm Means Purposeless, Who are the Workers of Lawlessness?, Does God Forgive Intentional Sins?, False Teachers in 2 Peter 2, The Oil in the Parable of the Virgins, Grace Latched Onto You, You are a New Creation, Hearing with Faith Strengthens You, Christ is Your Life Literally, Why Ongoing Confession isn't Needed for Forgiveness, Hebrews 9:22, The Man of Lawlessness Explained, The Primary Sin in Hebrews, You are a Saint Not a Dog, Fear and Trembling Explained, You are In His Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17), We are not Known by Our FruitSupport the showSign up for Matt's free daily devotional! https://mattmcmillen.com/newsletter
In episode 1944, Jack and Miles are joined by comedian and host of Rebrand, Mort Burke, to discuss… Alpha Hardcore Bad Ass Stephen Miller NOT Bothered, A Christian Counselor’s Conversion Therapy Tantrum Has Made It To The Supreme Court, Algorithms Ruining Hip-Hop? Barri Weiss’s 150 Million Blog Writes Creepy Ass Article About Tilly Norwood and more! Alpha Hardcore Bad Ass Stephen Miller NOT Bothered A Christian Counselor’s Conversion Therapy Tantrum Has Made It To The Supreme Court Christian therapist seeks right to counsel gay teens to change attraction US supreme court appears poised to overturn Colorado ban on ‘conversion therapy’ Alliance Defending Freedom: Staunch Enemy of Equality A Debate Over ‘Conversion Therapy,’ Once Widely Condemned, Is Back Barri Weiss’s 150 Million Blog Writes Creepy Ass Article About Tilly Norwood LISTEN: Together by Ruff SqwadSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Send us a textIn this episode of the Real Housewives of Miami (check out the visual on YouTube) we are still Virgins on the high seas! The boat may be rocking but Lisa and Larsa, Stephanie and Alexia have made amends... for now! Guerdy seeks therapy and Adriana struggles with aging! Support the show
Send us a textIn this episode ( check out the visual on YouTube) the girls are all Virgins again as they sail from Miami and back! Adriana has feels about her upcoming birthday and aging, Marysol and Stephanie speak about the jet of it all and Lisa wants to be a Mrs. again, but she's not in a rush! Let's get into it!Support the show
On this week's Fake the Nation, comedian and host Negin Farsad is joined by comedian/filmmaker Dani Faith Leonard and author/podcaster Elise Loehnen. Together they dive into the Cracker Barrel logo drama and a new reality TV shows about virgins. On the political front they wonder how should DC respond to its National Guard troop occupation, plus Trump's particular relationship to windmills. On the money front, they look at a new plan among some Gen Z'ers to get really stinkin' rich in your 20's so you can chill the rest of your life. Check out Negin's new TEDTalk! go.ted.com/neginfarsadSubscribe to our Patreon so you can get bonus episodes of Fake the Nation. Coming up, a high impact conversation on "Joyspan" with Arial Elias and Rachel Sklar.Follow everyone!@NeginFaarsad @danifleonard @eliseloehnenYou can see Negin's upcoming performance schedule at: NeginFarsad.com——Rate Fake The Nation 5-stars on Apple Podcasts and leave us a review!Follow Negin Farsad on TwitterEmail Negin fakethenationpodcast@gmail.comSupport her Patreon ——Host - Negin Farsad——Producer - Rob Heath——Theme Music - Gaby AlterSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Reality TV Star/Host Colton Underwood & E!'s Justin Sylvester join Jeff & Shane to talk about virgin dating shows, micropenises, and Jeff's improved attitude.• • • Want more Jeff Lewis? Click here to sign up for 3 free months of SiriusXM and listen weekdays to "Jeff Lewis Live" at 12pE/9aP and “Jeff Lewis Extended” at 1pE/10aP on Radio Andy Channel 102. Plus, tune into The Jeff Lewis Channel for even more Jeff content streaming exclusively on the SiriusXM app channel 789.• • • Host - Jeff LewisGuests - Colton Underwood, Justin Sylvester, & Shane DouglasExecutive Producer - Alyssa HeimrichSenior Producer & Editor - Jamison ScalaAssociate Producer – Oscar Beltran
There is an update on "Amy Bradley is Missing." Jax shows us why he had to leave "The Valley." A RHOBH housewife files for divorce. RHOC fans don't agree with a “storyline”. There are new dating shows for Virgins and Age Gaps. Meghan Markle's show was not a Netflix Hit. Then, I interview Galyna Saltkovska who is on the hit reality show “The McBee Dynasty”. I get into her relationship with Steven Sr. and how her best friend stole him! She shares how she came to America, fell in love, got divorced, fell in love again, got on a reality show, got betrayed and ended up on Juicy Scoop! Enjoy! • Match cakes, cookies, and candy in thousands of fun puzzles, when you download Cookie Jam today using the link:https://bit.ly/JamCityJuicyScoop • Get the best savings of the season during Boll & Branch's Annual Summer Event! Get 20% off plus free shipping on your first set of sheets at https://BollAndBranch.com/juicyscoop • Go to https://RO.CO/JUICYSCOOP for your free insurance check. • Give your summer closet an upgrade—with Quince. Go to https://quince.com/juicy for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day returns. • This year, skip breaking a sweat AND breaking the bank. Get this new customer offer and your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month at https://mintmobile.com/juicyscoop Stand Up Tickets and info: https://heathermcdonald.net Subscribe to Juicy Scoop with Heather McDonald and get extra juice on Patreon: https://bit.ly/JuicyScoopPod https://www.patreon.com/juicyscoop Shop Juicy Scoop Merch: https://juicyscoopshop.com Follow Me on Social Media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathermcdonald TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heathermcdonald Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices