Podcasts about Martin Luther

Who had the most lasting impact on Europe? Marx? Napoleon? Darwin? Einstein? Or was it Martin Luther?

Christian reflects on inherited ideas about salvation and the questions that arose when his beliefs didn't match his life. The guys explore justification, sanctification, and glorification, and why salvation is more than simply getting into heaven. They also challenge caricatures of opposing traditions and consider how Catholics and Protestants can find common ground despite theological differences. In this episode: Philippians 2:1–5; Colossians 2:13–15; 1 Corinthians 15:1–2; 1 Peter 2:5, 9; John 6:51; Genesis 1:28; 1 Thessalonians 4:3, 7; Romans 6:19; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2; Hebrews 10:26–29; John 16; Philippians 2:10–11 Today's conversation is about Lesson 8 of Theology 101: The Western Theological Tradition taught by various Hillsdale Professors. Take the course with us at no cost to you!  More about Theology 101: Examine the great questions of Western theology from the ancient Hebrews through today. The gift of speech, or reason, given by God to man, enables us to think about God and to worship Him.  This free online course pursues this purpose by examining the nature of God as revealed in the Bible, exploring the great theological questions and controversies of the early Christian church, studying the history of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, and much more.  We invite you to join us and explore the nature of the relationship between God and man, and how a proper understanding of this relationship can lead to a free and happy life. Sign up at ⁠http://unashamedforhillsdale.com/ Check out At Home with Phil Robertson, nearly 800 episodes of Phil's unfiltered wisdom, humor, and biblical truth, available for free for the first time! Get it on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, and anywhere you listen to podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-home-with-phil-robertson/id1835224621 Listen to Not Yet Now with Zach Dasher on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, or anywhere you get podcasts. Chapters 00:00 Martin Luther's Three Powers of Faith 07:36 How Indulgences Became an Economy of Sin 12:03 Why the Reformation Finally Boiled Over 15:32 Justification vs. Sanctification 19:04 Al's Works-Based View of Salvation 24:28 The Three Ps of Salvation 29:11 Can You Be Saved Without Changing? 34:26 Why Sin Changes the Way You See Truth 38:54 What Glorification Will Actually Be Like 43:20 Catholics, Protestants & Common Ground 47:08 The Council of Unashamed - Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Were women in the past completely uneducated — or worse, cruelly denied any meaningful opportunity to receive an education by their parents and society at large? Some modern scholars say so, but in this "back-to-school" edition of Rachel's Trivia Challenge, the Lutheran Ladies are revisiting key literary sources as they not only explore the history of women's education but also investigate whether the prevailing narrative of our day is truly just to those who came before us.   With questions drawn from Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, and other notable authors writing in and about their own times, this quiz will tickle the minds of literary mavens and education enthusiasts alike — even though, in the end, it may raise as many questions as it answers.   Sources referenced in this episode include ...  Gender in Cultural History: Gender and Education  Luther on education: arnold__lut_33_3.pdf  Martin Luther and female education. - Free Online Library  Martin Luther: A Sermon on Keeping Children in School (1530)  William Shakespeare, Much Ado about Nothing  Phillis Wheatley | The Poetry Foundation  Poems, by Phillis Wheatley   The Old Deluder Satan Act: deluder.html  Quote by Jane Austen: “It is amazing to me," said Bingley, "How young ...”  Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice; Mansfield Park   Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre  Social History of American Education | Education | Research Starters | EBSCO Research  The story of female education in the US: from illiterate to top of the class | World Economic Forum  ERIC - ED119389 - A History of Compulsory Education Laws. Fastback Series, No. 75. Bicentennial Series., 1976  Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn  John Dewey Quotes About Education | A-Z Quotes  Rosa Young - Wikipedia  Civil Rights Division | Sex Discrimination  Women Continue To Outpace Men In College Enrollment And Graduation  Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies' Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram! Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at lutheranladies@kfuo.org.

It's Wednesday, August 26th, A.D. 2026. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 140 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com. I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Somalian Muslims attack mother of 8 for trusting Christ Muslim extremists in Somalia, Africa attacked a mother of eight for converting from Islam to Christianity. Sophia Ibrahim came to Christ in April 2022. Several Muslim men beat her unconscious after they found her attending a Bible study this month. She was discharged from the hospital last week.  Ibrahim told Morning Star News, “I will continue serving [God] and making others know Him because of the everlasting life and the joy of knowing Christ.”   Somalia is ranked second on the Open Doors' World Watch List of the most dangerous countries worldwide to be a Christian.  In Philippians 3:8, the Apostle Paul wrote, “Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” Bible app expands footprint into Latin America The Bible app YouVersion is expanding its presence in Latin America. YouVersion leaders met in Mexico City last week to partner with churches and ministries. Among Latin American countries, Mexico and Colombia have some of the highest levels of Bible app usage. YouVersion CEO Bobby Gruenewald told Christian Daily International, “It took us 17 years to reach the first 1 billion devices. We believe the next billion will come in the next five years. There is a hunger for the Word of God at a global level.”   2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness.” Update on Trump's border wall The Trump administration is continuing to build the wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. The New American reported, “According to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, as of mid-August 2026, about 365 miles of primary border wall, 58 miles of replacement border wall, and 423 miles of secondary border wall either are now under construction or have been completed since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January 2025.” The Trump administration is seeking to build or finish 1,200 new miles of wall, as well as hundreds more miles of vehicle barriers and replacement wall. Funding for the continued border project mostly comes from Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed in 2025. President Trump rejected trans ideology and affirmed parental rights President Donald Trump addressed education at the White House on Monday as many students return to school this week.  The president specifically called out transgender ideology in schools. Listen. TRUMP: “Every public school in America is now on notice that if they tell a child that they are trapped in the wrong body, they are committing child abuse. … “Under the Trump administration, we're systematically ending every single one of these radical Left betrayals, and we're putting the parents back in charge. They're the ones that love our children. They're the ones that should be in charge.” (applause) Alliance Defending Freedom advances religious liberty in 250 bills Alliance Defending Freedom is helping to advance religious liberty through over 250 state and federal bills this year. These measures support core God-given freedoms. Dozens have already become law. The organization said it provided “legal analysis, bill review, and guidance on laws that curb radical gender ideology, end institutional censorship, and help secure parental rights.” 570th anniversary of Gutenberg Bible And finally, this week in history is commemorated as the anniversary of the Gutenberg Bible. It is named after Johannes Gutenberg, a German inventor and printer. The earliest date appearing on a copy of the completed Gutenberg Bible is August 24, 1456 – 570 years ago. This Bible represented the first work printed in Europe with moveable type. The new printing press would become invaluable for the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. It allowed teachers like Martin Luther to easily spread their writings on the Bible. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.'” Close And that's The Worldview on this Wednesday, August 26th, in the year of our Lord 2026. Subscribe for free by Spotify, Amazon Music, or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Plus, you can get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

Martin Luther's outrage over a corrupt church selling indulgences helped ignite the Reformation, but the beliefs that grew out of that upheaval still shape Christianity centuries later. Zach, Al, John Luke, and Christian trace Luther's struggle with righteousness through Romans, his controversial problem with the book of James, and the tension between faith and works that Christians still wrestle with today. The guys confront the limits of human understanding, exploring whether our obsession with certainty leads us to argue over mysteries we were never equipped to solve. In this episode: Romans 1:16-17, 20; Romans 3; Romans 4; Romans 6-8; Romans 10; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; James 2; Hebrews 11 Today's conversation is about Lesson 7 of Theology 101: The Western Theological Tradition taught by various Hillsdale Professors. Take the course with us at no cost to you!  More about Theology 101: Examine the great questions of Western theology from the ancient Hebrews through today. The gift of speech, or reason, given by God to man, enables us to think about God and to worship Him.  This free online course pursues this purpose by examining the nature of God as revealed in the Bible, exploring the great theological questions and controversies of the early Christian church, studying the history of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, and much more.  We invite you to join us and explore the nature of the relationship between God and man, and how a proper understanding of this relationship can lead to a free and happy life. Sign up at ⁠http://unashamedforhillsdale.com/ Check out At Home with Phil Robertson, nearly 800 episodes of Phil's unfiltered wisdom, humor, and biblical truth, available for free for the first time! Get it on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, and anywhere you listen to podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-home-with-phil-robertson/id1835224621 Listen to Not Yet Now with Zach Dasher on Apple, Spotify, iHeart, or anywhere you get podcasts. Chapters 00:00 The Hillsdale Homies  03:18 ‘Plain Reading' of Scripture Isn't So Plain 11:30 The Corruption Pushed Luther Too Far 18:21 Romans Changed Martin Luther's Theology 23:48 Why the Resurrection Matters as Much as the Cross 28:55 The Struggle Every Christian Faces 31:44 God the Giver & Man the Receiver 34:40 Luther's Problem With the Book of James 38:11 Some Questions Are Too Big to Answer 44:05 Faith Is More Than Believing the Right Things — Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Suicide Solution. In this episode, we sit with Martin Luther and C.S. Lewis to discuss the topic of self-murder ("suicide"). We talk about focusing on higher truth, how individualism leads to harmful consequences, and how Christians and churches may discuss this with others. This episode discusses suicide directly. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, US) — and reach out to a pastor, a friend, or family, not just a stranger on the internet. SHOW NOTES: C.S. Lewis and Martin Luther on Suicide, Rob Stroud, Mere Inkling — https://mereinkling.net/2017/02/14/c-s-lewis-and-martin-luther-on-suicide/ The Large Catechism, Martin Luther — https://bookofconcord.org/large-catechism/ The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis — https://www.amazon.com/Abolition-Man-C-S-Lewis/dp/0060652940 Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging, Sebastian Junger — https://www.amazon.com/Tribe-Homecoming-Belonging-Sebastian-Junger/dp/1455566381 Live Not by Lies, Rod Dreher — https://www.amazon.com/Live-Not-Lies-Christian-Dissidents/dp/0593086712 We've touched this subject before — full episodes at bannedbooks1517.org: ep. 4, 26, 27, 59, 79, 108, 169, 177, 202b, and 447. Full show notes and transcript: https://bannedbooks1517.org/episodes/ep-450 CONTACT and FOLLOW: Banned Books Wiki https://bannedbooks1517.org Email: BannedBooks@1517.org Instagram (Banned Books) https://www.instagram.com/bannedbooks1517 Facebook (Banned Books) https://www.facebook.com/BannedBooks1517/ Twitter (Banned Books) https://twitter.com/bannedbooks1517 Instagram (1517) https://www.instagram.com/1517org X/Twitter (1517) http://twitter.com/1517 Facebook (1517) http://www.facebook.com/1517org PODCAST: YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BannedBooks Rumble https://rumble.com/c/c-1223313 Odysee https://odysee.com/@bannedbooks:5 Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/banned-books/id1370993639 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2ahA20sZMpBxg9vgiRVQba Overcast https://overcast.fm/itunes1370993639/banned-books

This week we put on our nerd hats: what are the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, and why don't Protestant bibles include them? Turns out the answer involves the Septuagint, a guy named Jerome, Martin Luther, and the humbling realization that the 66-book Bible most of us grew up with is actually the minority position in global Christianity.It's a deep dive into biblical history — and a reminder that the real question was never which books made the cut, but what we do with the ones we've got.

QUOTES FOR REFLECTION “Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?”~D. Martin Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981), Welsh minister and medical doctor “Every week I preach justification by faith to my people, because every week they forget it.”~Martin Luther (1483-1546), German theologian “The central basis of Christian assurance is not how much our hearts are set on God, but how unshakably his heart is set on us.”~Tim Keller (1950-2023), American pastor and author “To preach the gospel to yourself, then, means that you continually face up to your own sinfulness and then flee to Jesus through faith in His shed blood and righteous life. It means that you appropriate, again by faith, the fact that Jesus fully satisfied the law of God, that He is your propitiation, and that God's holy wrath is no longer directed toward you.”~Jerry Bridges, American authorSERMON PASSAGEPsalm 103 (ESV)1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,   and all that is within me,   bless his holy name!2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,   and forget not all his benefits,3 who forgives all your iniquity,   who heals all your diseases,4 who redeems your life from the pit,   who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,5 who satisfies you with good   so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 6 The Lord works righteousness   and justice for all who are oppressed.7 He made known his ways to Moses,   his acts to the people of Israel.8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,   slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.9 He will not always chide,   nor will he keep his anger forever.10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,   nor repay us according to our iniquities.11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,   so great is his steadfast love  toward those who fear him;12 as far as the east is from the west,   so far does he remove our transgressions from us.13 As a father shows compassion to his children,   so the Lord shows compassion  to those who fear him.14 For he knows our frame;   he remembers that we are dust.15 As for man, his days are like grass;   he flourishes like a flower of the field;16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,   and its place knows it no more.17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from     everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,   and his righteousness to children's children,18 to those who keep his covenant   and remember to do his commandments.19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,   and his kingdom rules over all. 20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,   you mighty ones who do his word,   obeying the voice of his word!21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,   his ministers, who do his will!22 Bless the Lord, all his works,   in all places of his dominion.   Bless the Lord, O my soul!

n this episode of Conversations That Matter, Jon Harris examines one of the most controversial questions surrounding Martin Luther: Did Luther's writings inspire Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust?Luther unquestionably wrote deeply troubling things about Jews later in his life, particularly in On the Jews and Their Lies. But the historical story is considerably more complicated than simply drawing a straight line from Luther to Hitler.We look at Luther's earlier writings and his efforts to evangelize Jews, the change in his views, the German Christian movement, the Volkish appropriation of Luther, Hitler's actual references to Luther, and the ways Nazi Germany used Luther's image.The question is not whether Luther had serious faults. He did. The question is whether we should understand Luther as a spiritual ancestor of Nazism, or whether later movements distorted and selectively appropriated his legacy.The episode ultimately argues for taking Luther's entire theology and historical context seriously rather than allowing either his defenders or his critics to reduce him to a caricature.00:00 Introduction: Did Luther Inspire Hitler? 04:50 Why the Luther-Hitler Connection Matters 06:17 How Luther's Legacy Was Reinterpreted 10:29 Luther's Early Views of Jews 14:14 Why Luther's Views Changed 19:53 On the Jews and Their Lies 21:00 Luther, Conversion, and Medieval Christianity 31:59 How the Volkish Movement Appropriated Luther 34:25 What Did Hitler and the Nazis Actually Think of Luther? 59:31 The Historical Debate and Luther's LegacySupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/conversations-that-matter8971/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

It's been 14 years since Martin Luther McCoy has released an album but this past month he released "Welcome back Love" . Martin has been making music for the past 40 years. He's toured with The Roots, he's recorded and performed with folks like George Clinton, E-40, Too-short, and so many others. His newest album is reflection of all the experience and talent that he has accumulated over those years. Martin was nice enough to stop by the show and talk with us about his career. Doc and Martin talk about growing up in the Bay area, trying out for Questlove to play with The Roots, going to Morehouse for college, his first time ever hearing Prince, recording the new album and so much more! Meanwhile on the rest of the show Doc invites you to have a 1/3 pound burger...trust us it's bigger than a 1/4 pound burger. Introduction: 0:00:21 Birthday Suit 1: 12:31 Ripped from the Headlines: 19:57 Shoutouts: 26:07 Martin Luther McCoy Interview: 36:39 Mike C Top 3: 1:52:51 Birthday Suit 2: 2:15:29 Birthday Suit 3: 2:17:25

In this episode, host Elizabeth Pitman sits down with Andrew R. Jones to discuss his new book, Ten Treasures of Learning to Pray, the third and final installment in his trilogy built around Martin Luther's framework of oratio, meditatio, and tentatio. Andy walks through several of the treasures God deposits into our lives through prayer — from persistence and solitude to forgiveness — and shares the biblical prayer guides, like Hannah and Hagar, who have shaped his own life of faith.Episode Timestamps0:00 — Introduction & Welcoming Andy Jones Back1:15 — Andy's Feelings as the Trilogy Comes to a Close2:00 — Understanding Luther's Oratio, Meditatio, and Tentatio5:00 — What Sets Ten Treasures of Learning to Pray Apart7:00 — Why Prayer Is a Treasure9:00 — The Story of Andy's Grandfather and His Baseball Cards11:00 — The Treasure of Persistence14:00 — Solitude and Community as Paired Treasures17:00 — Forgiveness: A Treasure to Be Hoarded and Shared19:00 — Why We Can't Forgive Ourselves22:00 — Andy's Favorite Prayer Guides: Hannah and Hagar24:00 — How to Pray Using the Collect Format27:00 — A Prayer Practice to Try This Week29:00 — ClosingAbout the GuestAndrew R. Jones lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he enjoys running, hiking, and adventuring with his wife, Stephanie. He has served the church in a variety of roles and locations, utilizing the gifts of speaking, teaching, and writing. As a curious author and parish pastor, he is known for conveying deep spiritual concepts in ways everyone can understand. You can find his weekly writings on his Substack, Bible Curious.Resources MentionedTen Treasures of Learning to Pray by Andrew R. Jones — cph.orgTen Lies Satan Loves to Tell by Andrew R. Jones - cph.orgTen Questions to Ask Every Time You Read the Bible - cph.orgConcordia Publishing HouseBringing you God's enduring Word in a changing world.

Check us out: https://www.determinetruth.com What does James mean when he says that “faith without works is dead”? Christians—particularly Protestants—have wrestled with James 2 for centuries. Paul says that a person is justified by faith apart from works, while James says that a person is “justified by works and not by faith alone.” Are Paul and James contradicting each other? In this final episode of our study of James, we examine faith, works, justice, and what it actually means to live as the people of God. We argue that James isn't giving Christians a checklist of good behavior. His vision is much larger. Humanity was created to bear God's image, and God's people are called to reflect his character by embodying the values of his kingdom—love, mercy, justice, and sacrificial concern for others. That leads us into some much harder questions. What happens when Christians affirm the correct doctrines but fail to pursue justice? Have some Protestant traditions so emphasized salvation “by faith alone” that good works have become practically optional? And what happens when Christians use labels like liberal, progressive, woke, or communist to dismiss an argument without actually engaging it? The conversation becomes particularly personal as Rob reflects on his recent trip to Israel and Palestine and describes wrestling with the evangelical tradition in which he was raised. We discuss political tribalism, “othering,” Christian support for violence, the danger of allowing political movements to disciple the church, and why shutting down disagreement can become cult-like thinking. Throughout the episode, we return to James's central challenge: Faith that never produces action is dead. We explore: Humanity as God's image bearers The kingdom of God and biblical justice Why caring for the poor is central to James The Sermon on the Mount and the theology of James Faith and works in James 2 Paul vs. James on justification What Paul means by “works of the law” Martin Luther's struggle with James Ephesians 2:8–10 and good works Antinomianism and “free grace” theology Jesus' teaching about knowing people by their fruit Justice, mercy, and faithfulness in Matthew 23 Christianity and political identity The danger of labeling people instead of engaging arguments Cult-like thinking within Christian communities Israel, Palestine, and Rob's recent experience in the region Why Christians must be willing to examine their own traditions James's definition of “pure and undefiled religion” James refuses to separate what Christians believe from how Christians live. The question isn't merely whether we claim faith. What kind of people is that faith producing? Vinnie Angelo & Rob Dalrymple     FOLLOW THE PODCAST Subscribe to be notified of our new episodes (each Monday).  Want to help us expand the Gospel of the Kingdom? Leave a review, “like” the podcast, or share it with others.   CONNECT WITH DETERMINETRUTH MINISTRIES The Determinetruth Podcast is a ministry of Determinetruth Ministries. We offer free resources to equip pastors, leaders, and the body of Christ in the US and worldwide for service in the kingdom of God. You can visit us online at https://www.determinetruth.com   SUPPORT DETERMINETRUTH MINISTRIES Determinetruth is a non-profit 501(c)(3), and relies completely on the financial support of our partners around the world.  Please consider partnering with us and making a tax-deductible donation https://tithe.ly/give_new/www/#/tithely/give-one-time/3648601   Want a FREE CHAPTER from Rob's latest book? Sign up for email updates from Determinetruth.   https://mailchi.mp/5672d33f2b95/dt-podcast Music: “Love is Against the Grain” (Dime Store Prophets)

August 9, 2026 Today's Reading: Luke 19:41-48Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 25:1-22; 1 Corinthians 3:1-23“Would that you… had known on this day the things that make for peace!” (Luke 19:42)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Jesus sees His beloved city and her people carrying on in great busyness and happiness in preparation for the Passover celebration… so why does Jesus weep? Why the turning over of the money changers' tables? Because the people thought that maintaining longstanding traditions since the first Passover and making money was what made for peace. Was Jesus there just to kill the vibe of Passover, or to dampen the mood of the millions gathered in Jerusalem? Not in the least… although it kinda sounds like it when he drops the hammer of foretelling them that in 70 AD, His whole city would be leveled. Jesus is fully God, He is fully man; This God/man shows sorrow (His weeping), and He exhibits controlled wrath (casting the merchants out by His word), but it is His mercy that should not be overlooked. Martin Luther writes: “He who is true God weeps with true tears. He laments not for Himself but for those who would not have Him.” (AE 75:417) Jesus weeps for His people… His beloved… because of their unbelief, hardness of heart, and their spiritual blindness. They, and all sinners, believed that their riches, their busy lives, and their works made for peace. Jesus, in great love and mercy, enters the temple, made with hands, and kicks the ones who bought and sold out with His word, showing us that He'd come to us… how the strong man would be bound and cast out. Jesus is the ‘thing' that makes for peace… the time for peace was then, and peace would be won in the most terrible and wonderful manner, and still He came to dwell with His people through His Word. Even as He weeps, His cross is fully in view where He will be the true temple that will be torn down and built up again after three days… and that cleansing He provides will involve more than the turning over of tables and the casting out of merchants… it will be the event that overturns the world and casts out the enemies of sin, death and the Devil forever; the ‘thing' that makes for peace with God and our neighbor right here on earth. Jesus laments over unbelief and dies for unbelievers, making His dwelling among us in the Church, the bride, He died to save.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.“O Christ, cleanse the temple of our hearts. Let Your Word dwell richly within us. And grant that we may know, even now, the things that make for our peace — You, our Savior and our God.”Rev. Adam DeGroot, pastor of Calvary Lutheran Church in Rio Rancho, NM.

The sermon examines the profound impact of Pope Innocent III and the Fourth Lateran Council on medieval Christianity, highlighting key doctrinal developments such as transubstantiation and the mandatory annual confession for all believers. It details the formalization of the seven sacraments and the condemnation of heretical groups like the Waldensians and Albigensians, alongside the expansion of monastic orders like the Franciscans and Dominicans. The narrative further explores Innocent's authorization of crusades, including the controversial Fourth Crusade against Constantinople and the violent campaign against the Albigensians. Finally, the discussion transitions to Martin Luther's 95 Theses, identifying the abuse of indulgences as a primary catalyst for the Protestant Reformation and the subsequent shift toward the authority of Scripture alone.

In their 500th episode, Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb celebrate a decade of The Reformed Brotherhood by diving into one of Scripture's most overlooked parables — the Parable of the Growing Seed in Mark 4:26–29. Exclusive to Mark's Gospel, this four-verse passage packs a theological punch that is, as Tony and Jesse argue, unmistakably Reformed in its emphasis. The man scatters seed, goes about his life, and the earth produces — by itself — without his understanding or intervention. From this, the hosts draw out rich implications for evangelism, sanctification, ecclesiology, and eschatology. They argue that the kingdom of God advances by divine power alone, hidden from human sight, moving toward a certain consummation. The episode pairs deep theological reflection with the hosts' characteristic warmth, humor, and 10 years' worth of shared history. Key Takeaways Monergism is embedded in the parable itself. The growth of the seed is entirely God's doing. The man scatters and rests; the earth produces by itself — a picture of divine sovereignty that requires no human management or comprehension. The evangelist's only obligation is to scatter. This parable relieves believers of the anxious burden of producing spiritual fruit. Faithfulness in proclamation is the call; growth belongs to God. Sanctification is gradual, hidden, and God's work. The progression — blade, ear, full grain — mirrors the believer's sanctification, which proceeds by degrees imperceptible to the individual yet certain in God's design. The Kingdom of God is not dependent on any individual. Whether it's a ministry leader, a financial contributor, or a worship musician, no single human agent is load-bearing for the advance of God's kingdom. Primary and secondary causation work together without contradiction. God uses means — the farmer still sows, the earth still functions — but the means are instrumental, not efficient causes. God's providence encompasses and exceeds them. The harvest belongs to God, not the evangelist. Just as the man did not direct the growth, he is not the agent ultimately putting in the sickle. The consummation of the kingdom occurs in God's time and by God's initiative. This parable resists reduction. It cannot be flattened into a simple evangelism lesson or a single eschatological statement. It holds together personal sanctification, corporate ecclesiology, and cosmic eschatology within four verses. Key Concepts The Earth Produces By Itself: Monergism in the Parable The theological center of this parable is the Greek word automate — the earth produces "by itself," without external compulsion or human assistance. Tony and Jesse argue this is not incidental language but the thesis of the entire passage. The farmer is genuinely active — he scatters the seed — but his agency recedes almost immediately from view. He doesn't monitor the soil, apply nutrients, or trace the growth. He simply lives his life. This picture coheres precisely with the Reformed doctrine of monergism: that in regeneration and kingdom growth alike, the decisive cause lies entirely outside human capacity. As Jesse puts it, the mechanism of growth "belongs to God alone." The farmer's ignorance is not a failure — it is the point. We are not meant to understand the how; we are meant to trust the Who. Scatter, Then Rest: A Theology of Evangelism Without Anxiety One of the episode's most practically rich applications concerns the posture believers are called to adopt in evangelism. Tony observes that this parable is rarely preached as an encouragement to evangelists, yet that is precisely what it is. The sower's only active verb is scattering. After that, he sleeps and rises — the rhythms of ordinary life — while God does the work that no human strategy, method, or persistence can accomplish. This directly addresses what Tony calls the "anxiety around trying to ensure some sort of production." The Reformed vision of evangelism is not passive indifference but liberated faithfulness: scatter the seed of the gospel without bearing the impossible weight of manufactured outcomes. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3:6–7, "Neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth." Blade, Then Ear, Then Grain: The Patience of Providence The threefold progression Jesus describes — blade, then ear, then full grain — is not decorative agricultural detail. It is a theological statement about the character of God's work in the world and in the soul. Growth is gradual, ordered, and unhurried. Jesse draws the direct application to sanctification: the believer cannot fully trace the work of grace in his own heart, yet it is real and it is God's doing. This ought to produce, as Jesse summarizes, "patient confidence rather than human striving or anxiety." The church, too, matures through stages. Neither impatience with slowness nor despair at imperceptibility is warranted — both misread the nature of divine providence. God is not behind schedule. He is, as always, working through means, in His time, toward a consummation He has already appointed. Memorable Quotes The earth produces by itself — we might even say the kingdom of God produces by itself. It's not dependent on anything except God's sovereign will and his sovereignty to execute all that he desires. - Tony Arsenal The mechanism of growth is strangely hidden from the human agent, and it belongs to God alone. - Jesse Schwamb The kingdom of God advances by God's own hidden power toward a certain appointed consummation — and this ought to produce patient confidence rather than human striving or anxiety. - Jesse Schwamb Full Transcript Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to the 10th Pentacost episode of the [00:01:00] Reformed Brotherhood. It's number 500. I'm Jesse Tony Arsenal: and I'm Tony, and this is the podcast that's been going for 10 years. Hey, brother.  Jesse Schwamb: Hey, brother. A happy 500th episode to you.  Tony Arsenal: I know, man. It's kinda crazy. It's kinda crazy, and we're not gonna do anything special 'cause we don't do that, but it is crazy that this is the 500th episode. That's a lot of podcasting.  Jesse Schwamb: It's absolutely wild.  Podcast Memories And Mishaps Jesse Schwamb: And as with any milestone, as I was thinking about this one occurring, it did draw my mind to all the crazy things that have happened on this podcast, some known, some unknown. Of course, there is the very infamous time that I spilled a whole bottle of kombucha on the desk while we were recording, but everybody knows about that. But I was, I was also thinking about the, the lesser-known ones, like the time you and I sat in the downstairs church, like so close to each other on the same side of the table- Yeah ... to record a episode, or the time [00:02:00] that a tow truck showed up while we were recording and I had to go run out and direct the tow truck 'cause I'd called it for the car. Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: And you paused the episode so that we could go do that, or the time that we had our favorite Lutherans on the podcast in what I think was, like, the hottest environment, and I just remember the sweat trickling down Chad Bird's beard. Like, like, like air being- Like the oil gloss ... mixed with oil. Yeah. It was so hot. So those are the ones that come to my mind. I don't know if there are any ones that come to you. We- we've had some great episodes, and by the way, they all live out for free in the world on reformedbrotherhood.com. So don't take our word for it. You can go all the way back to the beginning if you really want to, and you can hear this incredible journey that God has had us on these some 10 years. So I'm curious, like, do any episodes, topics, conversations, weird things come to your mind after all this time?  Tony Arsenal: Uh, the one I remember is when we recorded with Dad and we were waiting for the snow, the [00:03:00]snowplow- ... and we had to, like, wrap the episode up real quick because the snowplow was there and we had to go move cars. That's right. So there's been a fair amount of episodes where it's like something has interrupted us and we need to just get it over with real quick. That's right. Um, hopefully the listener doesn't hear that too much.  Patreon Support Check In Tony Arsenal: The other thing I was thinking about, you know, just as we're kinda thinking about the back catalog, we're not great at this. Uh, we tend to do our, what, what's they call the call to action. The experts call it the call to action. We do it at the very end of our podcast episodes, which is the worst place to do it. Uh, but we're gonna try to land it in the beginning here. So we, we've been supported by a number of, of people, uh, for basically the entire podcast. I don't remember exactly how early on it was that we started doing Patreon, but it's, it's been a long time. And what I noticed the other day, I went in to, to check on a couple things and make sure everything was working the way it's supposed to. There was some, like, account merge I had to do, and I've noticed that several people who've been supporting us, um, pretty much since the beginning- have their accounts listed in a declined status. [00:04:00] And what that means is that their, probably their credit card that they use, uh, has expired, and so now they're not, no longer supporting the show even though they think they are. So if you are a person who believes you're supporting the show, particularly if you've been supporting the show for a long time, and you wanna continue to support the show, uh, we would really appreciate if you took a minute to go into your Patreon account, double-check that the, you know, that you've been, um, contributing for the last couple months. Uh, double-check that the credit card you have on file is not, uh, expired or suspended or anything like that. Um, again, if you've made a decision that it's time to stop, uh, stop the show, or if this is the point where you realize, "I don't care enough to re-support to the show," um, that's fine. We love you. We've appreciated your support. We hope you keep listening. Uh, but if you do wanna continue to contribute, please do check that. And if you've never taken a chance to think through whether or not you want to support the show, uh, Jesse and I are so thankful for all the support we have.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  Tony Arsenal: Uh, but things are getting more expensive, and, um, you know, that's, that's [00:05:00] just a reality for all of us, and that includes things like podcasting hosting fees. Um, the cost of our, our editing software that we use has gone up. That's a subscription. Uh, the cost of hosting space has gone up. Um, all of that, uh, all of that has gone up, and so even though we've had steady supporters, it's kinda like we have lost supporters, um, financially because the money doesn't go quite as far. So if you've ever thought, "Maybe I should, uh, maybe I should contribute to the podcast," please do think about it. Even if just, uh, half of our audience went in and contributed $1 a month, um, that would be a substantial amount. That would really help us to keep the podcast going. And there's actually a number of projects and things Jesse have I, and I have wanted to do, um, that we would love to be able to, you know, to take a step on. Uh, we just don't have funding to do it, uh- Right ... because the funding we have is enough to keep the podcast going but not enough to stretch to something else. So I don't wanna, like, preload that too much, 'cause who knows if it's gonna happen, but there's some things that we wanna do [00:06:00] that would involve a little bit of upfront capital that we would need- Right to get some contrib- contributions on. So please do consider that. We appreciate you so much if you've been a supporter. We appreciate you so much if you've even considered it. Uh, and we appreciate you so much just for listening, uh, especially- Yes ... if you've been with us, you know, this is episode 500. That's a lot of podcasting- Yeah, it is ... directly in your ear hole. So thank you so much for that.  Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, we're so grateful.  Why We Keep Doing This Jesse Schwamb: It's fun just to think how many episodes we recorded, but also how many interesting conversations and topics, all the inside jokes. It really is a community. That's in part why we started this, is to sit down together and to bring other brothers and sisters into the fray, as it were, or maybe to bring us into your fray a little bit and to encourage and edify the church, the brothers and sisters, the saints around the world. And it is an around the world kinda podcast, which is remarkable too. So- Yes ... we're just gonna keep being here. As long as the Lord tarries and He allows us to do this, we'll just keep doing it. And again, we've recorded in closets, in cars on the way to things. We've done it at [00:07:00] the beach, and we've done it in cold environs, and we've done it in hot environs. And you're right, you reminded me of that time where we were desperately waiting as we were getting snowed in for the plow to come. And then it was all hands on deck, and we just dropped the recording equipment and said, "We gotta get out of here." And more often than not, the p- joy of this podcast is it just kinda finds its way into our normal rhythm of life. But it- Yeah ... comes out of our life, and out of a life that's been transformed by Christ. And so that's really what we come back to.  Mark Only Parable Preview Jesse Schwamb: In fact, that's the whole thing that we're in right now. We're going through all these parables. And this episode, we can't stop, won't stop. We're gonna continue to hit you with the content that we love, which is talking about Jesus. And so we're in one of the few... Well, it's a Markan parable that only appears in Mark. That's why I called it Markan, I guess. So extra bonus points to you, that's both extra and bonus, if you know which one it is before I say it. But there's a lot for us to talk about- ... because we're getting into this really, really short little story, but it's really chock-full, of course, as Jesus likes to do with all [00:08:00] kinds of spiritual truth. It's about a farmer chucking a seed on the ground, and then he goes about his business. He eats, he sleeps, he binge-watches the Jane equivalent of Netflix. He sleeps again, he wakes up. And while he does this, the seed is doing entirely its own thing without his help or understanding. He didn't make it grow. He can't explain how it grows. He just shows up at the end with a sickle to collect what God has already finished. Man, if there isn't a Reformed theological parable, I don't know what one is. Yeah. So we're gonna get to all of that on this 500th episode. I mean, it's something to be saying that even the US is only 250 years old, and- we've already recorded twice as many podcasts as there are years of experience in the US. But besides all of that, it wouldn't be- It's like- ... Reformed Brotherhood-  Tony Arsenal: I don't know if you've seen this. That reminds me of those things online where it's like, like, "Elon Musk is a billi- is a trillionaire. That means he could give every person on earth $1 billion- Oh, yeah and still would be a multi-billionaire." And you're like, "That's, that's not mathematically true." 'Cause when [00:09:00]you said that, I was like, "You mean the podcast is older than the country?"  Jesse Schwamb: Oh, math. I have a feeling we're gonna come back to that. Oh, math.  Tony Arsenal: Oh, math.  Affirm Or Deny Segment Jesse Schwamb: Now, of course, if you listen for any length of time, you know it wouldn't be an episode if we didn't have a time of affirming with or denying against. Of course, that is that time where we pick something that we like, we think everybody should be a part of, that we wanna recommend, and we affirm with it. Or on the opposite, instead we say, "We deny against this thing because it's just no good." So Tony, on this 500th episode, I'm just gonna keep saying it over and over again, so lest the listeners forget, what are you affirming with or denying against? Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Scammer Payback Recommendation Tony Arsenal: I'm affirming, um, a little YouTube channel that I found. Uh, it takes a little bit of setup to explain it, but the, the channel is called Scammer Payback. Ooh. Um, and it's, it's a... I think most people have probably seen, like, the Gene Fieith- Gene Veith, um, like, where he, he gets a, some sort of scammer on the phone, and he sorta just, like, [00:10:00] trolls them and makes, kinda makes them sound dumb and, you know, pretends to play along just to see how long he can keep them on the phone. Those are really funny. These are funny, but they're on a whole different level of seriousness, which is a weird sentence. Um, basically what this is is a group of professional hackers, um, and there's, this is a serious kinda sting operation they have going. They don't use their real names on the channel. Um, there's one, there's one, um, where they interview, like, a social, um, a social engineer whose job is to... Her- she is a person who basically, uh, does social hacking, and she helps companies who, who their security people think, like, their executives are, um, susceptible to social engineering, social hacking. She'll actually call and, like, mess around with the CEOs and socially hack them. Um, they interviewed her, and the first thing she said when she sat down was the person she was talking to's first name, and the guy was just stunned. He's like, "I- we- we've never used my first name on the channel before." So they're very serious, and what they do is they identify [00:11:00] a scam or a g- usually a group of scammers, and they'll actually hack into and infiltrate the computer systems that they're using. And so they show you everything that they're doing. Um, they're, they're explaining the scam and how it's run. Um, and a lot of times they're actually actively intervening in, uh, in a scam, trying to stop a scam that's in progress because somebody is about to lose a lot of money. I mean, I think one of the things that's important about this is our audience, you know, mostly, mostly guys probably, like, age, I don't know, late 20s, early 30s, maybe early 40s, we kind of grew up and lived, lived in a world most of our adult lives or all of our adult lives where, like, fishing schemes and other kinds of, like, um, data s- data theft, like, that was just in the air. It was just normal. So we're... It's not like we're immune to it, but we're used to it, and we're ready for it, and we're looking for it. That means that most of us have parents that are in a generation who are particularly susceptible to this. [00:12:00] So I think it would be worth, worth people's time to take a look at this, uh, just as a educational piece, and then, yes, share it with your family members who are in this era. People get taken for a ton of money. Yeah. The reason that these older generation sort of bu- builder Boomer generations are targeted is not just because they're somewhat soft targets, but they also have the money. Um, most of, most of the wealth in our country is possessed by people in that generation. It's just an economic fact in a lot of places and a lot of areas, and so that's why they're targeted. So take a little bit of time, watch the show. It's... And it's entertaining. It's really well produced. It's funny. These are non-Christians, you know, who are, are being non-Christian, so there's a fair amount of salty language, especially when they're interacting directly with the scammers that they absolutely hate. Um, but it's, it's worth watching. And, and it... I think it'll... I think it's entertaining. Most of the time it's like a 15-minute video, so it's not too much of your time. Pop that on two times [00:13:00] speed on YouTube and, and you're all set.  Jesse Schwamb: And when you say salty you're not talking about Salty the Singing Songbook, right? Tony Arsenal: Correct. Yeah. Not P-S-A-L-T-Y. S-A-L-T-Y.  Jesse Schwamb: Just in case. I wouldn't want any of the loved ones to go and just be waiting for Salty to show up, like, in the mid- Which would be kind of epic in the midst of this, like, scamming shutdown, the sting operation. Like, Salty s- pops up and starts singing about restorative justice and- Yeah what it means that God restores all things. I mean, that would have a good place in this, but I just want that just to be clear. We don't, we don't want anybody to, to at us on that.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah, for sure. Well, Jesse, what are you affirming or denying tonight?  Jesse Loves Algebra Jesse Schwamb: I'm going to return to that beautiful intro you gave about mathematics and the whole Elon Musk thing. And so my affirmation is simply, like, just do... Just enjoy all the math you can. Use all the math that you know. So my wife and I were watching some kind of program on YouTube, and it was a program in which there are a couple [00:14:00]people competing in this kind of escape room situation, and as escape rooms are want to do, there came some kind of small math problem. And it goes something like this, is the best I can remember it. It was what number between one and nine when it is tripled and five is added to it is the same as that number being doubled and having one added to it? Now, as soon as that problem was read, we were watching intently, and I turned to my wife and I said, "Why do they need to say it's between, like, one and nine?" And she goes, "Well, how else would they know what the number was?" And I was like, "Well, like, this is a beautiful little algebra thing, like se- series of equations. Like, you have two equations here." And she's like... Just gave me a blank look. So I was like, "Oh, man." So she's like, "Okay. Do it then. Do it." So I was like, "Give me a piece of paper." So I, I was just like, this is gonna be such a beautiful thing. So I was like, "All this is, is, like, it's basically 3x minus five equals 2x plus one. You're solving for whatever this missing number is, and they've given you this beautiful setup, [00:15:00] which you rarely get in real life, but this beautiful setup is a system of equations. We have two things you know are gonna turn out to be the same. They've just been said in different ways, and that allows you enough space to figure out how to solve for them using a little bit of algebra." So I realized then this is why they said between one and nine, because the contestants then proceeded just to iteratively pick numbers until they found the answer, which is not a bad way. Like, that's a way to use, like, all the math you have. Certainly, that's a way. But I showed her how it was like, this is the answer, six, and you don't even need to know where to start because you don't need to start anywhere. You can actually figure this out. Still not really impressed. And then she said something to me that just, like, kind of rocked my world. I said, like, "Well, I'm sure this is familiar to, with, to you." And she's like, "Oh, yeah. Like, I learned algebra." And she goes, "Yeah, I, I know algebra. I just don't do it anymore. I just don't use it anymore." And I was like What, what I heard was, like, basically her saying to me, "I used to brush my teeth, but I just don't do it [00:16:00] anymore." 'Cause I was like, "This is such a beautiful thing." So then I got it in my head, well, well here's the problem. It's just a matter of seeing the results. So I was like, "Well, here's the amazing thing is yes, these are abstract concepts. Yes, it's like each of those is a function. It's, it's a representation of what he just said in the problem. But," and this is my grave mistake, Tony. But I was like, "Really, Descartes showed us that we can think about these not as abstractions, but we can plot them geometrically as lines on a Cartesian plane." And so I was like, "Really we can show that these are two lines and they have a relationship together." And then I was like, "Guess where they intersect? Guess where they intersect?" And she's like, "I w- that's impossible to even know. I have no idea where they intersect." I was like, "No, no. Just, just based on what we're saying, the beauty of this is they have a relationship. They're gonna come together at some point, like you and I in life. They're gonna, they're gonna come together. Guess where that would be?" And she's like, "That would be impossible to know." And I was like, "It's not, actually." So I showed her that, you know, left and right, up and down, X and Y, however you wanna speak [00:17:00] about it, those two lines are gonna intersect, at least on the X. The X spot is gonna be the number six. It's the same thing. Still nothing. So after all of that, I just appreciate my wife is such a brilliant lady, that she just doesn't need algebra. She goes through life just, like, crushing problems without... Like, because she'd like to do it, I think, just the, the more challenging, difficult, iterative way. And, uh, she doesn't use algebra anymore. Just no need for it. So in many ways I respect that. In other ways, again, the affirmation is like, use all the math you have available to you because it's a beautiful thing. I think basically at the end of that I ended up in, like, a very supreme place of doxology, and my wife was like, "Can we just go back to watching TV now?" So but I, I have to say, like, and I, I know you, you share my appreciation for math and stuff like this. Like, it's not even just puzzles. It's just the beauty that, like, we can do this, and that there's such a created order, like a supremely created order, that these rules of ma- mathematics aren't just impounded. They're like the fabric in which God has, [00:18:00] has basically woven all of reality such that we can do this kind of thing, and that even a simple problem in escape room can lead us to appreciate how intensely ordered and beautiful the world is, that we can go after knowledge and solve for explicit things that seem abstract beyond our comprehension and reason to begin with, but have been brought to a place we might understand them. That is, like, an insanely glorious thing to me. So algebra is great, loved ones. I've recommended before, but the side affirmation is go to Khan Academy if you wanna brush up on your algebra skills. I think algebra is, like, some of the most beautiful and intensely practical math ever. I love calculus, but calculus you don't get a lot of, like, use. You can use algebra to solve all kinds of things, whether it's like tips or... Like, it's gonna save you so much time. If you're ever in escape room, I'm just telling you, do not do this iteratively. Just get the, your system of equations down, and you will be, like, tearing out of that room, and then you'll look like a hero. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah.  Math In Everyday Life Tony Arsenal: I mean, I think, like, even the f- even the, the... How do I wanna say this delicately? Uh, [00:19:00] even the idea that we, quote, "don't use algebra" means people don't actually understand that we're using algebra all the  Jesse Schwamb: time.  Tony Arsenal: Exactly. Right. Like, I could buy I don't use calculus or I don't use trigonometry- Right or even I don't use geometry. Um, but to say I don't use algebra, like just basic. I mean, I know like basic equations are, I guess, technically arithmetic, but like how many times does someone have to, have to go, "All right, the tip, the, the bill is X number of dollars. The bill is-" Right ..."$100, and I wanna give a 15% tip, so what's the outcome?" Like, that's an algebraic equation, right? That's right. Um, or a more, I think a more common one would be like, "All right, the bill is this amount. I want my, uh, my final amount that I give billed to me to be an even number."  Jesse Schwamb: Right. " Tony Arsenal: And I also want to give at least 15%, 20%, whatever percent, so what's the number I need to use in order to get to a bill that is, or a [00:20:00] tip that is both 15% or higher and results..." Like, all of those things are algebraic equations.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  Tony Arsenal: So I think, yeah. I mean, even like, "I need to get to work by such and such a time. What time do I need to leave?" Right. "I know it takes-" Exactly. "... a certain amount of time." Right. So I think we, we all use algebra a lot more than we, we probably realize, and I think you're right. Like, when people say, "Well, I don't use my math anymore," what they're saying is like, "I don't use, I don't use the stuff that I had to show my work on anymore." Right. "I don't use the stuff that I have to do on paper anymore." But, um, it's funny, we had a, a conversation, by the way, Reformed Tele- Reformed Brotherhood Telegram chat is a thing. Uh, we had a conversation in the Reformed Brotherhood Telegram chat a little while ago. One of our members was trying to figure out some sort of, like- And it was a problem having to do with like a, an air conditioning throttle or whatever it's called. Some sort of like programming in an air conditioner. And we went through it, we figured out that one of the like relatively complex parts of the equation that he was trying to figure out actually no matter what values you [00:21:00] put in, uh, equated to one. And then the other one was like it was ti- and then it was times one. So it was like whatever you put in ended up to that times one was the rest of the equation. It was like a huge, or like a relatively large equation that resolved down to one. So it was like you're trying to figure out all this complicated math and really like that entire, uh, that entire complicated equation was doing nothing in the rest of the equation. Nice. It was doing absolutely nothing. Um, so we were able to sort of like figure out, all right, well now all we need to do is figure out what, what this relationship does. Right. Um, and even something like in that particular situation, there were some values that the equation couldn't possibly balance. Which again, you could plot that on a graph and see like there's a spot... I don't, I'm, I'm making this up, but I think this is probably not wrong. There's a spot where it's like this is a parabolic equation, and so at some point the parable, or the par- parable, I didn't even mean to do that. There we go. At some point the [00:22:00] parabola goes back up, and so like there is no point- Right ... when it reaches this number. So values that would be in that, in that zone or in that range- Right ... they, they don't work in the equation. So yeah, I think math, uh, algebra is, uh, you know, basic arithmetic obviously is, is relatively straightforward. Algebra's probably the most simple, uh, form of math that your average person uses on a regular basis.  Jesse Schwamb: For sure.  Trigonometry And Design Tony Arsenal: But it's funny, I remember the first time, um, the very first time that I realized trigonometry was not just some abstract thing that we would never use. And it's so funny, 'cause it's like the nerdiest, the nerdiest example. I was playing a tabletop RPG with my friends, we were in high school, and we were, we were learning trigonometry at the time. I was playing a tabletop RPG, and we were trying to figure out- Um, it was a, it was like a futuristic tabletop RPG, so we were using like, like laser guns or something like that that have a certain range. And we were trying to figure out if the thing that was flying in the air from us was within range or not.  Jesse Schwamb: Nice.  Tony Arsenal: And what we realized [00:23:00] is that's just a quadratic equation, right? Right, it is. I just need to calculate. I know how far away it is from me in a straight line, I know how high in the air it is, so I need to just- Right now I need to... Or not, not the quadratic. That's Pythagoras' theorem, right? Yep. I need to calculate the Pythag- or the, um, the hypotenuse.  Jesse Schwamb: I'm with you. I  Tony Arsenal: knew where you were going. Yeah. So, like, I remember distinctly, I, I mean, I remember where I was sitting in my friend's basement going, "Oh, my goodness, trigonometry actually has a practical application here." Um, you know, whether that's figuring out how much rope I need to be able to, to attach to a tree and still be able... Like, all of these different things ultimately are math, and, or as the, the Brits say, are maths. And, uh, the, it, it's just a beautiful thing. And I think you're right, like, this is evidence that the universe has a structure- And a designer because- Right you can describe the universe using this- Nice ... sort of universal numerical language that, um, in, for the most part, describes everything we can [00:24:00] see. I mean, obviously, like, they're still learning things. They're still figuring things out. But what we can see with our senses, we can also describe with math on some level. Even something like the colors that we see can be reduced to a, a number, a frequency, a wavelength. So yeah, I'm with you. Use your algebra. Find ways to use it.  Jesse Schwamb: Use it. It's the... I like what you said, that we're using it. We just don't realize it. There's a spiritual lesson in there, I think, as well, that it's, it's present all around us, and it's... I like what you said. It's, like, the, the most, like, grabbable. It's the thing that's pretty easy to grasp, yet has, like, some beautiful outworkings that are super complex. All the time I love to, like, mess with people, even people who are, like, say, like, "Oh, I'm not into math." I'm like, "That's okay." Like, it's... You're, you're living in a mathematical world, and you're certainly using it, but that, that's okay.  Imaginary Numbers Wonder Jesse Schwamb: But like, sometimes I'll just say to somebody, like, "How do you know, like actually know that, like a negative number times a negative number is a positive number?" Like, who came up with that, and how do you know? And why are we just trusting him? Why can't somebody just say, "You know what? For me, it's not. I'm gonna make that a [00:25:00] negative number"? And w- the reason is because algebra provides... There's a lot of proofs, but algebra provides the most simple, beautiful proof. And then once you, once you basically contravene that law, like, everything falls apart. I- it's... And the question we should be asking is why does everything fall apart if we contravene one simple law, wh- which is two negative numbers multiplied, the product of them has to be, must be, is always a positive number. And that's, like, not even getting into, like, the more crazy things. Like, everybody should go look up, like, what imaginary numbers are. That will kind of mess with your mind, but then we found ways to use imaginary numbers, which are exactly what they sound like- Yeah ... to solve, like, incredible problems. Where does that come from? It comes from the Lord. It comes from God's, like, creative ability that He's placed in mankind to go after and to take a dominion over the knowledge and the creative order in such a complex and creative way. It mimics and mirrors the creativity of our Heavenly Father, and it is altogether beautiful. So on this- Yeah ... 500 episode that has a lot of numbers associated with it, I [00:26:00] say go love the numbers. Go enjoy them. Wherever you are in life, whatever your enjoyment of math is, big or small, go try to find some way to enjoy it today. Tony Arsenal: Can I, can I throw in a, a weird relevant sub-affirmation to your affirmation? I  Jesse Schwamb: mean, please.  Tony Arsenal: This is our show, so I'll do what I want to. You can do what you want. First, when you say we live in a mathematical world, all I could think of was some Perry song of Material Girl. Material  Jesse Schwamb: World?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Odd Squad Math Tony Arsenal: I am a mathematical boy, and I live in a ma- Anyway, um, there is a show that I watch with August, my son, who is almost five. Uh, he'll be five in March. And, um, it's called Odd Squad. And what Odd Squad is, is it's a sort of a s- like a spy-themed kids show with a touch of like, uh, almost like Twilight Zone. Like, there's so- It's they manage odd. Like, they're the Odd Squad because they, they respond to odd emergencies, so it's a lot of like weird monsters and aliens and like time travel paradoxes and strange stuff. But the answer [00:27:00] to the problem is always related somehow to a math principle. So they will talk about how like multiplication is just addition like many times over.  Jesse Schwamb: Sure.  Tony Arsenal: And that's actually why multiplying a negative number times a negative number is a positive number or, you know, like, or multiplying by a negative number is a negative number, right? And that's because like really what you're doing if you multiply two, uh, two times negative three is you're subjecting, you're subtracting two from two from two, which gives you, you know- Right ... a negative number. So it's, it's not, uh, it, it's for kids, but I actually have realized that I understand math better- because of watching the show.  Jesse Schwamb: I  Tony Arsenal: love it. And it's because they break it down in, you know, the, the audience- Yes ... the target audience is a little bit older than August. I think the target audience is probably like six to seven, maybe eight years old. Um, and so they're talking about math principles geared towards those groups. But they'll talk about things like [00:28:00] using a number line to be able to understand math, and so like visualizing it. Or they'll talk about how multiplication is really just groups of things. So yeah, check it out.  Why Math Matters Tony Arsenal: And again- Algebra is probably the most, uh, easy to grab of the disciplines, but that's because that's the one we are using every day all the time. Tony Arsenal: And we don't realize it. But again, like, calculus is a beautiful, a beautiful thing. Um, and there are some amazing things that exist in the world that can really only be understood and described in a certain sense by something like calculus or trigonometry. Um, my favorite, I, I wish I had, like, kept it up, but one of my favorites is geometry 'cause I think a lot of it is, that's, like, the closest to puzzles. Yes. Um, uh, so, like, I, I used to love doing proofs and axioms and stuff. So, and then of course logic is technically related to math. It's a related discipline to math- It is ... in that it, it's, it's actually, like, the language that underlies a lot of the mathematics is [00:29:00] logical formulas. So it's all relevant. It's all beautiful. It all describes God's creation, and it all redounds to His glory.  Jesse Schwamb: You got that right.  Mark Growing Seed Jesse Schwamb: And speaking of both His creation and His glory, and Jesus teaching of both of those things, we are, as we promised, hanging out in the Book of Mark, and we've got just four sentences. And what I love about this parable that we're about to read is it fits in so perfectly with something I think you and I have been saying from the very beginning, which is it's tempting when we think about the parables to consider, like, a single element or to distill them down to, like, a single word and say, "We hear the kingdom of God is this thing, this noun, this object, this person." But instead, the case we've been making is it's actually generally a series of verbs, or in this case, it's the whole four verses that Jesus is gonna give to us here. So let me just read Mark 4:26-29. That's all it is, loved ones. And it's a good thing because we're already knee-deep into this 500th episode. So this goes by various names. I've heard it called, [00:30:00] like, the Parable of the Growing Seed, or sometimes people call it, like, the Parable of the, The Secret Seed. I'm not sure that's really secret, but I suppose the increase is secret in a way, and that's really what Jesus is communicating to us in these verses. So Mark 4:26: "And Jesus was saying, 'The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil, and he sleeps and he rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows, how he himself does not know. The soil produces crops by itself, first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, he immediately puts in the sickle because the harvest has come.'" Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, this is, um, an interesting parable, and I'll be the first to admit, like, when you said, "Well, why don't we do the king- the parable of the growth next?" I was like, "I don't actually know what Jesse's talking about." So if you're in the same boat as I am and [00:31:00] you, uh, you are like, "Wait, there's the... This is a parable? Like, this exists in the Bible?" Um, you're not alone, and I think part of the reason is that, one, it's so short, but it also sort of, like, connects into the next parable thematically. I don't know necessarily- Hmm ... about the content and the meaning, but thematically it sort of blends into the next parable, which is the parab- Mark's version of, um, of the parable of the mustard seed. So it's, it's hard to delineate unless you're really thinking about it, but I'm glad that we're talking about it because I think this is probably one of those parables that doesn't get a lot of attention because it's so short and because it is, um, it is sort of thematically in a spot where I think it does sort of, I don't know, like seep into the next- Right parable.  Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, there's a tendency because you're right, it's sandwiched between the Parable of the Sower and the Parable of the Mustard Seed, both of which we've talked about from Matthew's perspective, that it seems like maybe the theme is redundant, but [00:32:00] it is altogether different with the emphasis. Uh, there, it's true I guess that all three of these parables are addressing that same underlying question the disciples in the early church were asking, which is, if Jesus truly inaugurates the Kingdom of God, then why does it seem so impressive? Why is it so slow or hidden in contrast to all the expectations that the Jews had for what they thought would be this dramatic, immediately visible rain? And so I like that there is a lot said within four verses. And again, from our perspective, this thing seems so distinctly reformed in its under- Yeah of course the whole Bible is that way, but maybe nothing more so than this, especially because we'll get to it, but the center of this parable being, and there's various translations, that this guy doesn't even know. He doesn't understand. He's totally ignorant to what is going on, and isn't that... I, I mean, I can only speak for my own test- that's the story of my life, uh, spiritually and otherwise. That again, if you wanna talk about God doing all the verbs, I guess Mark had it first. I thought maybe I coined that, but [00:33:00] turns out that Mark, well, actually Jesus, the Son of God himself, says it best here. So let, let's get into this because the beautiful thing is you and I can handle theoretically in the time allotted here, like three or four verses. That, that's theoretically possible for us to do, but we, we're only gonna h- see how far it goes. Um-  Tony Arsenal: Yeah ...  Hidden Kingdom Growth Jesse Schwamb: I think the first thing to say here is that we get that beautiful characteristic, like formula, like the controlling paradigm. It's that Kingdom of God again. And a- as I kinda set up, it's the Kingdom of God, though, launched into a bunch of, uh, verbs. Uh, this idea of like him casting, and then him sleeping, and then him waiting, and then him getting up, and then the growth happens, and then he comes again at the end, this character, this farmer, into kind of the consummation of that kingdom. And I think there's a lot here that's maybe to explain that tension. The kingdom is real and active. It's irresistibly moving towards some kind of fixed end, but it does not appear in its final glory, and that is something you kind of get with the other two parables. [00:34:00] But here it's just like so lovely. It's right in front of you. That, that's like the whole emphasis and thrust of what Jesus seems to be saying in this. Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and I think this one's interesting because, you know, generally in the parables, at least in, in... I, I would have to do a little bit more study to know if this is, like, distinctly Markan or whatnot. But in the, the, um, Matthew's parables, um, or Christ's parables reported in Matthew, um, primarily the main figure of the parable is, uh, is generally is God or, or more specifically is often Jesus himself. Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: Right? But in this parable, it wouldn't make sense for us to say that somehow g- you know, God or Jesus scatters seed, and then He doesn't know that it sprouts. Right. Right? So, so the, the parable implies that the one scattering seed, and again, we don't wanna over-interpret parables. Generally speaking, parables are teaching kind of a principle of some sort, a comparison of some sort, not, it's not an allegory. [00:35:00] In, in most cases it's not an allegory where each element has a direct representation of some sort. But it wouldn't make sense for this to be talking about God's perspective on scattering or Christ's perspective on scattering, 'cause obviously God and Jesus, even, even if we're talking about Jesus according to His humanity, um, has some sort of awareness of the workings of the Kingdom of God that is not the ignorance that the parable here seems- Right to present of the one scattering.  Scatter Then Rest Tony Arsenal: So I, I really do think this parable has more to say to us about- Our own perspectives on evangelism and on how the Kingdom of God will propagate. And I think, um, both in terms of, like, evangelism, there's an element here, an encouraging element of, you know, all your s- your job... And what's really funny is I, I don't recall this parable being used in my experience to sort of [00:36:00] encourage people that all, your own, your job is just to scatter. You don't need to worry about the growth. Mm-hmm. There's a, there's a passage in Paul about one person scatters, one person waters, and God brings the growth that is often used to sort of say, like, it's not your responsibility to make sure that the, the, the, um, the bud is, you know, c- comes to flowering and to fruiting. It's just your job to be faithful to scatter or to water or whatever step it's on. This, I think, has even more encouragement for us in that the one who scatters, um, i- is obviously God, but there's also this element that, like, we're scattering. The one scattering is not omniscient. But the one scattering, uh, he doesn't even know how or why or even that, I think, that the, um, that the f- the growth is occurring, and that's the most- Right remarkable part of this. Like, we're not talking about a normal farmer who is aware of how growth [00:37:00] occurs, is aware of the timing. He's constantly checking. He's making sure that he's checking the soil, that he's applying manure, that he's watering the crops. This is literally like some dude who just throws seed out, and then, then just goes back to his daily business of sleeping and rising and going about his day. And then all of the sudden, the earth, quote, "by itself produces." And I think that's the real key here is- There's something about the Kingdom of God and the seed that the Kingdom of God scatters. It's almost like the Kingdom of God itself is the one scattering here.  Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: Yep. The Kingdom of God and the seed that is scattered in and as a result of the Kingdom of God, it produces the outcome autonomously. It doesn't require us to input into it, at least in the context of this parable. Now, again, the Parable of the Talents would be very clear to us that we can't just rest on our loyals- laurels. God expects us to work and to be fruitful for the kingdom. [00:38:00] But there is this element here of, like, you are not the one responsible for the production of the seed and the fruiting and flowering of the seed. In fact, you're not even responsible for being aware that it occurs or how it occurs. Your only responsibility, the only active verb in this whole thing is... Well, there's a couple. The, the, the main active verb is the scattering. The other active verb is the sleeping. So, like- Right ... we, we scatter, and then we, we rest and we trust that God is going to do His work. Jesse Schwamb: Right. Even on the face, there's so much in this that does seem mysterious. Like, if you just take this parable and think about the act of agriculture, and I sometimes think about this because I do love plants, and we have a bunch of plants in our house, and I'm horrible at trying to get them to grow. And I think about what still a mystery it is. With all we know about science, just that you can still plant something, a seed, and water it, and the sugars will break down, and the seed will take root, and that something will grow and flower, and you think, "Oh, who is doing that?" And, and w- [00:39:00] I think we'll get into this, the first and second principles, first and second causes here, which are, I think, certainly something that Christ intends for us to consider here. But there is this idea that the man's action is simple and passive relative to what follows. He, like you said, just scatters the seed. And he's a real agent, but as the parable unfolds, it's almost like his entire agency recedes entirely from view. And that's what kind of sets for me, like this whole trajectory of the parable. It's that the mechanism of growth is strangely hidden from the human agent, and it belongs to God alone. And so you already stole it from me, but I'm gonna read 1 Corinthians 3:6-7, which is, coheres directly with what's happening, I think, in this parable. And this reads, or Paul writes, "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. Neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth." And so there is like an extension, I think, of that application inward though as well. Kind of like when you were speaking about that, what occurred to me is that we see in the [00:40:00] farmer's like day and night unawareness, this picture, I think, of this often gradual, imperceptible work of grace in our own hearts, in every believer's heart. Like that, that sanctification process, it proceeds by these degrees, and the Christian cannot fully trace even in himself, yet it is definitely real, and it's definitely God's doing. And then I think as well we might pull out a thread of this, you know, ecclesiological truth. You know, the church's growth is God's work, not the fruit of human strategy. And then by application even further into that, it's based upon a soteriological one, which is like the ordo salutis, which is maybe half of every episode we've recorded talks about the ordo salutis in some ways. That too is unfolding by this divine power, and it's hidden from the creature's full comprehension, and that's consistent in this parable and in all of Scripture, that this regeneration precedes and produces faith rather than the reverse. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, and I, I think too there's also an element in this passage, you know, when you think about... Uh, [00:41:00] I'm not a farmer, uh, and I, I don't know that many farmers, but when you think about how f- how modern farming works, it's very different than, uh, ancient farming, right? Historically, ancient farming was, uh, I think probably a lot of just trusting the world to do what the world does and, and trusting God to do what, what God does. A- and I think that's probably why a lot of like- When you look at, um, pagan religion, the, the fertility cults and the sort of goddesses and gods of the harvest were all related because there was this mystery to it. And so the reason that there's so much, uh, cultic worship around fertility and harvest is because it is so mysterious, and you just kinda have to, like, trust that it's gonna happen. Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: Right? You sow your seed in, you sow the seed of your field in, you know, the fall, uh, and, or in the, the, you know, the summer, and then you wait several [00:42:00] months and just hope that the crop comes in. And our modern agricultural world is not all that different. We have better tools and we can measure things that, like the soil, the nutrients in the soil. We can, you know, we can do all sorts of different imaging to see of what's happening underground. But at the end of the day, even with all of the advances we have, the farmer still can't make the crop come in.  Jesse Schwamb: That's right.  Tony Arsenal: Either the crop comes in or it doesn't. And I, I think there's this element of trust here that I think is really useful for us. And again, I think you're right. This is like, uh, it feels almost wrong to say it this way, but it's like this is a super distinctively Reformed parable. Like, of all, all of the parables in the, the Gospels, this one is like, on the face of it, a Calvinist parable. Yeah. Exactly. Like, it's like God just grows the kingdom- Yes and nobody does anything about it.  Jesse Schwamb: Amen.  Tony Arsenal: And I don't need to go into more details than that. But there is this element for us, I think, as, uh, as those [00:43:00] who want to share the gospel, there can be an anxiety around trying to ensure some sort of production, some sort of produce, uh, and productivity from that, that is just not healthy. And I think, you know, we, we have a responsibility as Christians, um, to be faithful and diligent in doing what God has called us to do. But if, if we read this parable as the one who scatters is sort of like the evangelist, then the only responsibility we have as evangelists, and all of us are evangelists, right, lowercase E evangelists, um, all of us, the only responsibility we have is to scatter the seed of the gospel. Jesse Schwamb: That's  Tony Arsenal: right. And we're not responsible for the growth. We're not responsible for even really understanding how growth happens, uh, or even, even doing much about it until it's time to harvest that growth. And I think that's, we need to talk about what that means too, because again, like [00:44:00] this is a parable that I think is maybe not as, as clean and clear as some of the, uh, Methanian parables where it really does seem like there's a pretty clear symbolic representation on some things. This one feels like it's maybe a little muddier in that, um, the main character and the role of the s- the one who's scattering seems to sort of almost shift throughout the parable, which is crazy to say because it's only like four verses long.  Tony Arsenal: But it, it does seem like at some points the scatterer is God, at other points it can't be God, and then it seems like, well, who's harvesting? It's not really us, so it's gotta be God. So I think it's, it's important for us to hold this parable as more of a general principle about the Kingdom of God than it is about any sort of like really direct one-to-one teaching on the, on the Kingdom of God.  Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. That's a interesting distinction.  Providence And Causes Jesse Schwamb: Here's what I would say about that, I think, is let's equate this to, like, coffee. You like a good cup of coffee. I do. I like a good cup of coffee. I think if we were to take, let's [00:45:00] say, the Parable of the Prodigal, that would be for me like a big Dunkin' Donuts coffee. Like, it's delicious, mild-bodied, maybe a little bit light. This parable is like two shots of espresso- Yeah ... 'cause there's a lot in there, and we could probably take a lot of time even t- speaking about, like you're saying, the more shadowy eschatological truths that appear in verse 29 because those, this idea of, like, a sickle in the harvest, I mean, that's imagery drawn from Old Testament eschatological judgment texts. So that could be pretty heavy in its own right. I think what's critical, before we get to that, is to, like, tease out something you said, which is there is a lot in here about this doctrine of providence, like, this spontaneous self-originating action apart from external human causation. And we've talked a lot, like, we distinguish between primary and second causation. You know, the Earth is genuinely or generally has second- secondary causes, like an ordinary means through which God's ordinary providence operates, but the ultimate primary [00:46:00] cause of growth is God himself. And so here we see that. Like, there's no exclusion of the farmer's agency as an explanatory cause. The soil does what it does because God has ordained the natural order to function in this way. That is his prerogative. And so that threefold progression then, blade, ear, full grain, which by the way I had to look up because my understanding of, like, all kinds of different types of grains is very thin and I'm out of my depth here. But- ... I'm led to believe That that development is gradual, and of course it's ordered, but it's not instantaneous. And so the application here, I think, has traditionally been applied in this corporate individual spiritual growth we're talking about. Like, the church advances through stages of maturity, and so does the individual believer's sanctification, without warranting either impatience or despair at the process's slowness. This is how God works. He does it in His gracious and kind way. And again, He's using this, all of this agriculture to illustrate that purpose. So there's, like, this buildup, I think, [00:47:00] in verse 28 about the incredible providence of God, both like corporatively, personally, in His world, how He is the primary cause, but also uses secondary causes, not in a disjointed or divorced way, but in a way that encapsulates and magnifies His glory. And that is then what leads to or will lead to the reemergence in verse 29 of this whole deal of, like, well, if farmer comes back in, and now he returns, but only at the point of consummation, not at the point of growth.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Harvest And Timing Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and, you know, we won't go into all of the ways that this ties into the other parables, but it's worth, uh, it's worth mentioning that in, in both, uh, the parable of the mustard seed, which follows this, and then also the parable of the sort of sower or the seeds, um, there is this element of this, the one who is sowing seeds is not fully cognizant or aware or, and, and absolutely not in [00:48:00] control of the outcome, right? In the parable of the sower, um, he scatters the seed promiscuously, right? And the- Right ... the outcome depends on what kind of ground the seed falls on. And in the parable of the mustard seed, it, it's more of a, like, idea that the, uh, the sower sows a seed that seems so small, but it, the growth of the seed is explosive and expansive because of the nature of the seed, not because of the skill of the sower. Jesse Schwamb: That's  Tony Arsenal: right. Right? In this instance, um- The only thing, again, the only thing that initially the sower is responsible for is the sowing of the seed, the scattering of the seed. But what I also think is interesting is then there is a point where the one who scatters the seed is now responsible to act once he's observed the seed coming to fruition, right? Now, now what exactly that means and how exactly that applies, I think there's a lot of different things we could talk about. Um, but again, [00:49:00] this is a parable that we have to be careful not to, uh, not to restrict just sort of crassly to, like, evangelism. Right. Exactly. Or, or even just to sort of, like, the eschatological harvest. Right. That's what's tricky about this parable, I think, that bears ... And I don't think we'll do it, we'll do it necessarily on the show. It'd be worth having more conversations about. But for our own personal study, it bears deeper reflection because this parable cannot be simply reduced to an eschatology parable about what God does in the end. Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: And it can't be simply reduced to a parable about evangelism because strictly speaking, like, we're not really the ones that harvest when the harvest comes in, right? I've, I have heard this parable, um, preached, you know, like I said, although I acknowledge that I, um, like forgot that it existed. I have heard this parable preached as though, like, "Well, our responsibility is to scatter seed. We're not responsible for [00:50:00] making it grow or making it take root. But when we see that it's taking root, we're responsible for jumping in and harvesting at the right time." I don't think we should draw that conclusion here. Although the, the harvester does see that the ear is ripe, that the grain is ripe, and he harvests it, it would be a weird sort of like shift in the parable to go from the person who scattered seed isn't responsible for its growth, doesn't even know that the growth is happening, but is actually responsible for knowing exactly when to harvest the grain. Right. So we have to think about this again in gen- in terms of general principles of how the Kingdom of God functions. And w- how it functions is it's mysterious, it is, uh, consistent, it happens on a, a scale and on a predictable outcome that we as individuals don't understand and don't have visibility to, and the harvest will occur in its [00:51:00] time, and it will h- occur consistently and reliably. So again, like this is... I hope that maybe like the one or two non-Reformed people that listen to the show aren't terribly offended at this, but like this just is Reformed theology, right? There, there is a seed that is sown, God is responsible for the growth, and the harvest necessarily will help it happen when it's supposed to happen, right? When the r- when the fruit is ripe, it will be harvested. That doesn't mean I'm responsible as the one who sows seed or scatters or m- witnesses to people from making sure that the, quote, "sickle is put in at the right time," or anything like that.  Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: The fact is that the sickle will always come in at the right time. The person who has the final kinda piece of the puzzle in evangelism, I think that's how it often happens. Someone hears the gospel repeatedly from multiple places. They have contacts and relationships that tie into how they [00:52:00]ultimately come to accept the gospel and trust Christ. But ultimately it's the Holy Spirit who brings all that into some sort of coherent, um, execution and application of redemption That will happen in God's time. So I wanna be careful not to, like, put too much responsibility on us. Right. And again, this is just a parable that I think bears a lot more reflection, that I think because, um, I think Mark in general, because it's so short, uh, gets, it gets overlooked by Christians. I think we would all do well to spend a little bit more time in Mark. But especially some of these really short pericopes. I think we just read through it, and it's like we read a chapter of Mark, like Mark 4 comes up in our Bible reading plan. Right. And if we're reading the Bible in a year, like, Mark 4 is one of three or four chapters that we read, and this is four verses of that. Right. We just read over it quick and we c- we just, we don't appropriate any of it.  Jesse Schwamb: Right. It sounds like he's just reiterating a point or he's recapitulating something that he's already said or is about to say, and you're like, "Okay, get on with it." But I'm with [00:53:00] you. This parable, like all of them, is for us. It's for our joy. It's for our satisfaction and our comfort. And I think from this, there is, like, a single controlling point that's emerging from our conversation, which is the Kingdom of God advances by God's own hidden power toward a certain appointed consummation. And this ought to produce, like, patient confidence rather than human striving or a- anxiety. In order to give us a sense of calm, a reminder that God's providence is real in all areas of life. Remarkably, we've gotten this far in the conversation, and neither of us has just, has used the M word, which just came to me, and I think we're contractually obligated to say it as a Reformed podcast, and that is this is a prime example of monergism and the sovereignty of grace. And as in regeneration, the decisive cause of kingdom growth lies outside human capacity and comprehension. I think sometimes the latter part of that seems wrong to us. It makes us fearful because we don't understand it. But the former part should make us feel very happy and [00:54:00] relieved, that the capacity belongs to God and God alone. That doesn't depend on me or you or anybody else that we know. And this parable, I think, is often been paired with John's image of the wind blowing where it wishes as this picture of the Holy

When Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to a church door in 1517, he wasn't trying to start hundreds of denominations. He was calling the Church to reform. Yet within a century, Europe would be divided by competing confessions, devastating religious wars, and a growing realization that Christians would have to learn how to live with theological differences.In this episode of HIStory Through the Eyes of Faith, we explore how what began as a debate over authority, salvation, and church practice soon became intertwined with politics, national identity, and the ambitions of kings and princes. The result was more than a theological disagreement—it was a century of upheaval that culminated in some of the bloodiest conflicts in European history.Out of these struggles emerged something new. As governments gradually abandoned the dream of a single unified Christian society, denominations became a way for believers to organize around shared convictions without resorting to constant conflict...enter the age of denominational Christianity.

Martin Luther grew concerned about the selling of indulgences—giving money to supposedly reduce time in purgatory. Today, R.C. Sproul explains how Luther's response unintentionally sparked the flames of the Reformation. Get R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Justified by Faith Alone on DVD with your donation. You'll also receive the companion digital study guide to enhance your learning: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the digital study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

Desiderius Erasmus was one of the greatest intellectuals of the Renaissance—a brilliant scholar, prolific writer and tireless traveller whose ideas shaped the course of European history. Living at a time of immense religious and political change, he became famous across the continent for his humanist learning, his bestselling works and his calls for reform within the Church, while carefully avoiding the more radical path taken by Martin Luther. His remarkable life brought him into contact with kings, popes and some of the greatest minds of the age, including the young Henry VIII. To explore the life, travels, influence and enduring legacy of this extraordinary man, I'm delighted to be joined today by historian Amy McElroy, whose recent book, Desiderius Erasmus: The Folly or Far Sightedness of Renaissance Europe's Greatest Mind acts as the basis for our conversation

Martin Luther was haunted by guilt for his sins. But everything changed when he encountered the gospel. Today, R.C. Sproul shows how the life of this German monk helps us understand the significance of the Protestant Reformation. Get R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Justified by Faith Alone on DVD with your donation. You'll also receive the companion digital study guide to enhance your learning: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the digital study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

Martin Luther described our sinful condition as being "incurvatus in se," turned in on itself. Today, Sinclair Ferguson identifies the damaging effects of living for ourselves and the transformative way that Christ reshapes us. Read the transcript: https://ligonier.org/podcasts/things-unseen-with-sinclair-ferguson/turned-in-on-ourselves/ A donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Donate: https://donate.ligonier.org/ Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

This week at our Perdido Key Campus, Senior Pastor Kyle Valaer concludes our new short series, Heroes—a journey through the lives of faithful men and women from Scripture and church history whose examples ultimately point us to the true Hero, Jesus Christ.We pray this message is a blessing to you.For more information about The Point Church, visit us online at www.tothepoint.church.Scripture: Romans 3:20-26

This week at our Jackson Campus, our Associate Pastor, Nick Shadday, concludes our new short sermon series, Heroes—a journey through the lives of faithful men and women from Scripture and church history whose examples ultimately point us to the true Hero, Jesus Christ.We pray this message is a blessing to you.For more information about The Point Church, visit us online at www.tothepoint.church.Scripture:  Romans 3:20-26Takeaway: God's Righteousness Isn't Achieved, but Received

Year A – Pentecost 10; Lectionary 18 – August 2, 2026 Pastor Megan Floyd             Romans 9:1-5   Grace and peace to you from God, who is faithful and trustworthy, from the Holy Spirit, who is with us always, and from Jesus Christ, the source of our salvation. Amen. *** In that passage from Romans that Tabitha just read… could you hear the heartbreak in Paul's words? Could you hear his anguish over his Jewish siblings who had not come to follow Christ? He muses on the possibility of giving up his own place with Jesus… if only it meant they would not be forgotten. Just as Moses tried to offer himself up as a sacrifice for his people after the regrettable golden calf incident… Paul offers himself. Except… God's gifts are not ours to trade, and his sacrifice is not needed, for our God is full of compassion, and God's promises are grounded in mercy. This brief passage from Romans marks the beginning of Paul's lengthy theological wrestling with how God's covenant with Israel remains trustworthy even as he has been called to proclaim the risen Christ to the Gentiles. It comes immediately after one of the most beloved passages in all of Scripture—that triumphant declaration that nothing in all of creation can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. And then… almost without warning, Paul is overcome with sorrow. He doesn't launch the next theological point with an argument… He begins with tears. This past Thursday evening, the book study group spent some time talking about Abraham Lincoln, which got me thinking. History reminds us that Lincoln's views on slavery developed over time. Early in the Civil War, he often spoke of preserving the Union as his highest constitutional duty. Yet after years of unimaginable suffering, after hundreds of thousands of lives had been lost, he stood before the nation at his Second Inaugural Address and called the country not to vengeance, but to healing: "With malice toward none; with charity for all." Winning the war was one thing, but… healing the nation was another. There is an enormous difference between winning an argument and loving people. Paul could have begun Romans 9 by praising himself for being on the right team… but instead, he says, "I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart." That is what the love of Christ looks like. …Paul's anguish is not rooted in judgment. It is rooted in love. He is a Jewish man whose heart is breaking because the people he loves most have not come to know Christ as he has… He has not stopped loving them. He has not written them off… He has not declared them beyond God's reach. His heart aches because they are still his family… and isn't that a feeling we know? Perhaps your heart aches for a child who no longer comes to church. A spouse who once believed but no longer does. …A sibling who walked away after being hurt. A dear friend whose faith quietly faded. Maybe you have sat in worship and instinctively looked toward the place where someone used to sit. There is grief in those empty places. Sometimes people leave because life pulls them in different directions. Sometimes they leave because they no longer recognize Christ in the church. And sometimes… and we must confess this honestly… sometimes they leave because the church has pushed them away. Our LGBTQIA+ siblings. People living with disabilities whose gifts were overlooked. People who asked hard questions. …People who never quite fit the mold. We print "All Are Welcome" on our signs... We proclaim it from our pulpits. But sometimes… unintentionally… our actions tell another story. However a person leaves… it hurts. …Paul understands that pain. But beneath Paul's grief is an even deeper question. Can God be trusted? If God's chosen people have not all embraced Christ, have God's promises somehow failed? That is the question Paul spends the next three chapters wrestling with. Truthfully, it is our question too. Can I trust God? …Can I trust grace? Can I trust forgiveness? …Can I trust that God's promises really are for me… or do I still have to prove myself? We live in a world that teaches us every blessing must be earned. Work harder. …Do better. …Be more successful. Even in the church, we quietly slip back into believing that if we pray enough, serve enough, forgive enough, then maybe God will be pleased with us. We do this… even as we know better. We preach grace… and yet we keep trying to earn what has always been God's gift. This is what drove Martin Luther nearly mad until he followed Paul's writing through the theological working out that finally led him… to grace. (…and a complete, unintended reformation of the Catholic church) Paul wrote, "I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people." It is a breathtaking statement… but Paul cannot save them any more than we save the people we love. Because Christ already has. Paul says, "I wish I could offer myself." …and Jesus says, "I already have." That is the Gospel… right there in a nutshell. Christ has already carried the burden we cannot carry. Christ has already accomplished the salvation we could never accomplish. Which means the fate of those we love does not rest on our shoulders. It rests in the hands of the God whose mercy is deeper than our understanding and whose faithfulness is greater than our fears. As theologian Mary Beth Anton reminds us, Paul ultimately must place his beloved people into God's hands… and so must we. Perhaps that is why I love what happens every time we share the meal of holy communion. The bread is broken, the wine is poured… Christ gathers us together. And yet… I suspect… every one of us can think of someone we wish were here with us. Someone whose voice used to join ours in singing. …Someone who drifted away. Maybe someone who was wounded by the church… or someone who is angry with God. Every Communion table has empty places we wish were filled. …Paul knows exactly what that feels like. But this table also reminds us of something else. This table does not belong to us. It belongs to Christ, and it is Christ who invites us… who welcomes us… and it is Christ who feeds us. Jesus Christ… who gives himself for the life of the world. The promises made here do not depend upon our worthiness. …They depend upon God's faithfulness. That is why Paul continues his wrestling all the way through Romans 11 before arriving at one of the most beautiful conclusions: "The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." (Rom 11:29) Not temporary or conditional. They are irrevocable. And then he goes even further: "For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that God may be merciful to all." (Rom 11:32) Paul does not say God is merciful only to those who have earned it… He says God's mercy is for all… because every one of us stands in need of it. Our Jewish ancestors were the first recipients of God's covenants, God's promises, God's steadfast love. Through Christ, we have been graciously grafted into that same family tree. We have not replaced them; we have been welcomed alongside them into God's unfolding story of salvation. And the God who was faithful to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah is the same faithful God who remains true to every promise made in Christ. That is why theology should never become detached from compassion. If our understanding of God does not make us love more deeply, then we have misunderstood God.    (x2) Every page of Scripture tells the story of our God whose mercy continually reaches farther than we imagined. It tells of our God in Christ who feeds the hungry because he has compassion for them… stories of our God who refuses to abandon God's people. Story after story of our God whose love is stronger than our failures… whose promises are trustworthy even when we cannot yet see how they will be fulfilled. So today, we come to this table with gratitude, carrying the names of people we love. We bring our grief and our questions… and even our doubts. We come wondering how God is still at work in lives we cannot control. And Christ places bread into our hands and says, "This is my body, given for you." Not because we earned it, or because we understood everything. …But because mercy is who God is. And when we leave this place, we'll go… trusting what Paul finally came to trust: that the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable… and that nothing will ever separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. And because that promise is true, we can live with hope instead of despair, and with hearts that are continually shaped by the mercy we ourselves have received. Amen.

Subscribe to get access to the full episode, the episode reading list, and all premium episodes! www.patreon.com/OrdinaryUnhappinessThe Ordinary Unhappiness journey through the origins of narcissism arrives at the early modern period and a Europe in full-blown crisis. It's a world where the hegemony of the Roman Catholic Church no longer holds sway, where political and market forces have created new communities and dislocated old ones, and where traditional familiar theological answers fail to satisfy ever-more urgent existential questions. Working their way through the history of the Reformation and the theologies of Martin Luther and John Calvin, Abby and Patrick trace the contours of this world's emerging conception of selfhood and its many anxieties over interiority, predestination, success, luxury, conformity, modesty, pleasure, and more. They then unpack the particular implications of how this new order views sexual difference, turning to the work of Mary Wollstonecraft and her remarkable account of why “the thoughts of women ever hover around their persons.”Have you noticed that Freud is back? Got questions about psychoanalysis? Or maybe you've traversed the fantasy and lived to tell the tale? Leave us a voicemail! (646) 450-0847  A podcast about psychoanalysis, politics, pop culture, and the ways we suffer now. New episodes on Saturdays. Find us online:  http://www.ordinaryunhappiness.com X: @UnhappinessPod Instagram: @OrdinaryUnhappiness Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/OrdinaryUnhappiness Theme song: Formal Chicken - Gnossienne No. 1 https://open.spotify.com/album/2MIIYnbyLqriV3vrpUTxxO Provided by Fruits Music

The Babylonian Captivity of the Church by Martin Luther is a treatise that examines how errors in the sacramental system kept people laboring under a system of works rather than promise. In this episode, Evan Gaertner and Mike Yagley discuss Luther’s critique of the medieval Catholic view of the sacraments of penance and confirmation. Luther identifies that a reliance on human works and priestly control is destructive to a person’s relationship with God. Screenshot Beer Break We review the Abbey Ale from Brewery Ommegang, Cooperstown, New York. This dubbel focuses on licorice root, orange peel, and spices.

The inaugural episode with Vicar Keith! In this episode, the crew discusses various questions involving Star Wars, theology, and ethics. Can androids be baptised? Did the Jedi need a Martin Luther figure/Reformation? What should the New Republic have done with Darth Vader if he had survived? And which Jedi would be the worst pastor? Plus—pastors using Heelys!   ------------- For more of our shenanigans, be sure to follow us on social media! YouTube: RELC Hilliard TikTok: @churchinspace Instagram: @churchinspace_relc X/Twitter: @churchnspace ------------- Credits: Co-Producers & Co-Hosts: Dave Kamphuis & Drew Nelsen Special Guest Vicar: Keith Monroe Producer & Plucky Sidekick: Dan Mushalko Editor: Devon Mushalko

July 31, 2026Today's Reading: 1 Samuel 16:1-23Daily Lectionary: 1 Samuel 16:1-23; Acts 25:13-27“Whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him.” (1 Samuel 16:23)In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Martin Luther once observed that God's gift of music was second only to His gift of theology. For no other discipline could drive away the devil with his temptations, accusations, discouragement, and cunning. Theology could, as you would expect. But music does, too. We see that with David, whose music drove away the harmful spirit that troubled Saul.Luther was right in calling music a powerful gift of God. Seeing how music can drive away sadness (and harmful spirits, too!), just think how much more powerful music is when it joins God's Word. To prove this, go hear hymns sung at Higher Things conferences online. That's power. But the power of music is nothing compared to the Word, for God the Holy Spirit has promised He will work by the Word to bring people to faith in Christ. He has not promised this for music in itself.Music in the church can be a fine vehicle for the Word to come in, but the Word always must be the driver. Like a car rolling down the road without a driver, so music leads to wrecks when theology doesn't guide it. Therefore, church music promotes Jesus and His true teaching. It does not promote the performers, the soloist, or itself. This is why musicians were traditionally placed in the back of the church or in a special side section of the sanctuary. The focus was not on the musicians, in other words. It was on Christ and His Word. This is also why we don't clap in church. The music is for God's glory, not man's. God can clap if He wants to.The best church music strengthens faith by its excellent teaching. Faith clings to Jesus who lived perfectly for you, died in your place, and rose from the dead. Church music should be churchly. It should gladly proclaim the free justification of sinners. Even in its notes and rhythms, church music should resemble our Lord who was not part of His culture, but ran counter to what His culture said. So music for God should be countercultural, reflecting the culture of heaven. We do not want music in the church to sound like what's popular now - we want music that's timeless. Does your favorite hymn sing Christ boldly? I hope so! I hope the music in your church supports the teaching of God's Word and doesn't water it down. That way, God's Word is taught even better, and the devil must flee.In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.Alleluia! Sing to Jesus, His the scepter, His the throne; Alleluia! His the triumph, His the victory alone. Hark! The songs of peaceful Zion Thunder like a mighty flood: ‘Jesus out of ev'ry nation Has redeemed us by His blood.' (LSB 821:1)Rev. Robert Mayes, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church and Zion St. John Lutheran Church, Beemer and Wisner, NE.

Season 2, Episode 130In this episode, Michael and Zach return to their series on cults and religious movements to respond to comments generated by their recent episodes on Roman Catholicism. Rather than mocking commenters or attempting to settle every Catholic-Protestant disagreement, they address several recurring objections concerning biblical authority, church history, the canon of Scripture, Martin Luther, justification by faith alone, good works, and James 2. Along the way, they clarify frequently misunderstood Protestant beliefs and emphasize the importance of representing opposing views fairly, listening carefully, and pursuing truth without theological tribalism.Find our videocast here: https://youtu.be/R-DXowRaxSoMerch here: https://take-2-podcast.printify.me/Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):⁠https://uppbeat.io/t/reakt-music/deep-stone⁠License code: 2QZOZ2YHZ5UTE7C8Find more Take 2 Theology content at http://www.take2theology.com

Kevin Kelly has spent over 30 years experiencing the edge of new technology: from the earliest days of the internet to the first years of Burning Man. But he's always treated the frontier as a place to visit, not somewhere to live. It's partially how he's been able to stay grounded through tech's various hype cycles.As founding executive editor of Wired and author of The Inevitable, Kelly spends as much time analyzing the latest in AI as he does reading about significant moments in history. It's a discipline he traces back to his work with the Long Now Foundation, which he cofounded to encourage long-term thinking, reaching from the last 10,000 years to the next. On this week's AI & I, Dan Shipper revisits his conversation with Kelly. They get into why historians can be the best futurists, and how our bid to understand what intelligence is has parallels with early scientists' attempts to figure out electricity. Kelly also describes the joy he found in creating an AI-generated saga featuring Leonardo Da Vinci, Christopher Columbus, and Martin Luther—one that will only ever be read and enjoyed by him.If you found this episode interesting, please like, subscribe, comment, and share!To hear more from Dan Shipper:Subscribe to Every: https://every.to/subscribeFollow him on X: https://twitter.com/danshipperTimestamps for YouTube:0:00 Start 0:50 Introduction 1:10 Why Dan and Kelly love Annie Dillard 12:52 How to predict the future like Kelly16:10 What the history of electricity can teach us about AI 20:13 How Kelly thinks about the nature of intelligence 25:44 Kelly's advice on discovering your competitive advantage 29:33 How Kelly assembled a bench of star writers for Wired 34:43 How Kelly used ChatGPT to co-create a book 39:12 Using AI as a mirror for your mind 43:43 What Kelly learned from betting on VR in the 1980sLinks to resources mentioned in the episode:Kevin Kelly on X: https://twitter.com/kevin2kellyThe Inevitable by Kevin Kelly: https://www.amazon.com/Inevitable-Understanding-Technological-Forces-Future/dp/0525428089Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard: https://www.amazon.com/Pilgrim-Tinker-Harper-Perennial-Classics/dp/00612333231,000 True Fans by Kevin Kelly: https://www.amazon.com/1000-True-Fans-Kellys-Simple-ebook/dp/B01N9P9O4GFull episode transcript: https://every.to/podcast/transcript-be243312-ea22-4193-8c56-b9cd45a79a87

QUOTES FOR REFLECTION“We all are born into the world looking for someone looking for us, and…we remain in this mode of searching for the rest of our lives.”~Curt Thompson, psychiatrist and author “Instructions for living a life.Pay attention.Be astonished.Tell about it.”~Mary Oliver (1935-2019), Pulitzer Prize-winning poet “What you pay attention to shapes what you care about. And what you care about shapes what you become.”~Jonathan Haidt, social psychologist and professor at New York University “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You.” ~Augustine (354-430), North African theologian “It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak.”~C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) in “The Weight of Glory” “There is no duty we so much underrated as the duty of being happy.”~Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), Scottish writer “…if we doubt or do not believe that God is gracious to us and is pleased with us, or if we presumptuously expect to please Him only through and after our works, then it is all pure deception, outwardly honoring God, but inwardly setting up self as a false god…. [God] has promised His grace freely, and wills that we begin by trusting that grace, and in it perform all works, whatever they may be.”~Martin Luther (1483-1546) in his “Treatise on Good Works” “God wants so much to be trusted.”~David Wilkerson (1931-2011), Christian leader and founder of Teen Challenge SERMON PASSAGEPsalm 67 (NASB95)1 God be gracious to us and bless us, And cause His face to shine upon us—   Selah.2 That Your way may be known on the earth, Your salvation among all nations.3 Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. 4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy; For You will judge the peoples with uprightness And guide the nations on the earth.          Selah.5 Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. 6 The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God, blesses us.7 God blesses us, That all the ends of the earth may fear Him. Numbers 6 (NASB95)22 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, ‘Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:24 The Lord bless you, and keep you;25 The Lord make His face shine on you,And be gracious to you;26 The Lord lift up His countenance on you,And give you peace.'27 So they shall invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them.” 

ROMANS – Certain Truth for Uncertain TimesPaul was speaking at a very evil time in history. Tyrants ruled, and the immoral culture of the day seemed to be falling deeper into chaos. People were looking for meaning in life and freedom from the shame of their immorality. Paul knew that the only way a person or a society can be healed from the sickness of sin is through the blood of Jesus Christ.Lesson 3Romans 2:1-3:8. Martin Luther once said: “We are saved by faith alone, but not a faith that is alone.” In other words, genuine faith leads to obedience, because our love for Christ is made obvious by what we do!To learn more about Michele or to support this international ministry please visit https://intheword.com

This week, Mike and Tony sit down for a Friday night podcast with rapper, bassist, songwriter, frontman, educator, fashion maverick, and free thinker, Avery Jacob! Avery returns for his 4th (or 5th?) appearance, and we cover a lot of ground on this one. We get into AI music — Suno, stolen beats, an AI R&B liver commercial that may or may not be racist, and a viral "AI song" that turned out to be a human cover of an AI song (yes, really). We also covered comedy that dabbles in politics, hay allergies, strongman bellies, Martin Luther's surprisingly unhinged side, and Avery's “what Jesus would look like if he dressed fly” approach to fashion. Come for the culture talk, stay for the "come on, man" method. It works. Come on in and join us!Cheers,m&t

In this book club recap conversation, Sarah, Erin, and Rachel talk through themes and ideas in Ryan P. Tinetti's new book The Quiet Ambition: Scripture's Surprising Antidote to Our Restless Lives.   Where do we see examples of quiet desperation — whether it manifests itself as restlessness or resignation — in our own lives, as well as in our families, churches, and communities? What is “the quiet ambition” Paul speaks of in 1 Thessalonians. What does it look like for Christians to be “quietly ambitious” in the real world? What practical steps can we take to let go of our “blasphemous anxiety” and learn to live quietly in our Savior's grace?   At the end of the episode, Rachel reveals the Ladies' Reformation Read for 2026: Martin Luther's The Smalcald Articles.   Read The Smalcald Articles online for free.  Order a standalone hard copy from CPH.   Check out Robert Kolb's new book, The Smalcald Articles as Martin Luther's Framework for Witness to Fellow Christians.  Connect with the Lutheran Ladies on social media in The Lutheran Ladies' Lounge Facebook discussion group (facebook.com/groups/LutheranLadiesLounge) and on Instagram @lutheranladieslounge. Follow Sarah (@hymnnerd), Rachel (@rachbomberger), and Erin (@erinaltered) on Instagram! Sign up for the Lutheran Ladies' Lounge monthly e-newsletter here, and email the Ladies at lutheranladies@kfuo.org.

In this episode of Music Matters, host Darrell Craig Harris welcomes the multi-talented Martin Luther McCoy for an engaging conversation about his remarkable career in music, film, and television.  Martin shares the stories behind his journey as a recording artist, acclaimed actor, songwriter, and composer, discussing the experiences that have shaped his creative path. From performing on some of the world's biggest stages to appearing in major film and television productions, he offers an inside look at the dedication, resilience, and passion required to build a lasting career in the entertainment industry. Whether you're a fan of music, filmmaking, acting, or the creative process, this episode is filled with inspiring insights, memorable stories, and valuable advice for artists at every stage of their careers. Website www.MartinLutherMcCoy.com Social Media www.Instagram.com/martinluthermccoy  Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/6FdIwdTYtfGSULGl1JA9OJ?si=26771d7bd6f64ebe  About Music Matters with Darrell Craig Harris The Music Matters Podcast is hosted by Darrell Craig Harris, a globally published music journalist, professional musician, and Sports Illustrated photographer. Music Matters is now available on Spotify, iTunes, Podbean, and more. Each week, Darrell interviews renowned artists, musicians, music journalists, and insiders from the music industry. Currently, over 1.2 million global downloads in 40 countries. Visit us at: www.MusicMattersPodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: www.Twitter.com/musicmattersdh  Instagram: www.Instagram.com/musicmatterspodcastofficial For inquiries, contact: musicmatterspodcastshow@gmail.com Support our mission via PayPal: www.paypal.me/payDarrell Episode editing and Voice intro by Nigel J. Farmer of Voice Wrap Studios Representation:  Yvette Morales | YM & Associates PR Beverly Hills, CA YM-PR.com Email: YMoralesY@ym-pr.com            

If you think your flaws and failures automatically make you a better, more "authentic" leader, you've completely misunderstood the lesson of Moses. Most civilizations turned their founders into saints. The Hebrew Bible does the opposite. Abraham falters. Jacob deceives. David sins. Moses—the greatest prophet in Judaism—is denied entry into the Promised Land. This isn't a bug in the Torah. It's one of its most revolutionary ideas. In this episode of Madlik, Geoffrey Stern and Rabbi Adam Mintz explore why Judaism insists that greatness and imperfection can coexist—but never confuses failure with virtue. Along the way they examine the Torah's portrait of Moses, the Beatitudes, Isaiah, Jonathan Sacks, Nahum Sarna, David Flusser, Martin Luther, Bret Stephens, and the surprising connection between biblical leadership and today's culture of authenticity, victimhood, and populism. Can a society acknowledge human weakness without celebrating it? That question may be as relevant today as it was in the wilderness. Key Takeaways The Torah Tells the Truth About Greatness - Unlike most ancient cultures, the Hebrew Bible doesn't turn its heroes into flawless saints. Moses, Abraham, Jacob, and David are remembered in all their greatness—and all their humanity. Their failures don't diminish them; they make their greatness credible. Flaws Are Lessons, Not Credentials - Judaism teaches us to acknowledge weakness, learn from it, and overcome it. There is a profound difference between recognizing imperfection and celebrating it. The Torah preserves failure to cultivate humility—not to make failure itself a virtue. Leadership Is Measured by Character, Not Victimhood Moses never reaches the Promised Land, yet he remains Judaism's greatest leader because of his faithfulness, courage, and willingness to serve a mission larger than himself. In an age that often confuses authenticity with virtue and grievance with authority, the Torah reminds us that true leadership is earned by responsibility, not by imperfection alone. Timestamps [00:00] Flawed Heroes Thesis [01:14] Parsha Setup and Welcome [02:07] Moses Pleads to Enter [04:37] Rav Lachem Midrash [06:49] Vetchanan and Human Limits [07:43] Mythic Moses Rejected [11:02] Sacks on Mortality and Mistakes [18:31] Flaws Versus Virtue [19:11] Beatitudes and Isaiah [25:58] Essenes and Poverty Ideal [31:09] Modern Populism and Privilege [32:58] Closing Shabbat Shalom Links & Learnings Sign up for free and get more from our weekly newsletter https://madlik.com/ Sefaria Source Sheet: https://voices.sefaria.org/sheets/739882 Transcript here: https://madlik.substack.com/  

As America prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, #1 New York Times bestselling author Eric Metaxas—author of Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther, and Amazing Grace—joins us to discuss his new book, Revolution: The Birth of the Greatest Nation in the History of the World. Together, we revisit the famous—and often forgotten—heroes of the American Revolution and explore why Metaxas believes the indispensable role of Judeo-Christian ideas in America's founding has too often been overlooked. REVOLUTION: THE BIRTH OF THE GREATEST NATION IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD https://www.amazon.com/Revolution-Birth-Greatest-Nation-History/dp/1631440888/ JOIN PREMIUM Listen ad-free for only $5/month at www.bit.ly/TAPpremium BUY US A COFFEE buymeacoffee.com/thisamericanpresident FOLLOW US:www.thisamericanpresident.com/ CREDITSHost: Richard LimProducer: Michael NealCover Art: Nip Rogers, www.NipRogers.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My first reaction: "No way." Then, "It's true...and it's awful." A man asleep in the middle of the night. Suddenly, what has been determined to be an approximately 60-foot sinkhole opens up beneath the house and literally sucks the man, the bed, and the bedroom in with it. The home has since been demolished, and the next door neighbors were given 30 minutes to grab what they could and evacuate. There was even speculation that the owners of the other two homes would never return. Sinkholes seem to be a lot more common than we realize. I mean, certain soil-rock-and-moisture combinations apparently can erode over time and then suddenly collapse beneath you. There's ground that looks like it's safe to build on, but one day it just caves in under you. I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Building on Ground That's Going Down." There's a feeling too many of us know all too well. "Hey, I thought this would support me. It just collapsed." Beginning in the fall of 2008, so many friends of mine saw their financial security suddenly disappear into a sinkhole as the ground just shifted overnight. A Wall Street veteran told me, "You know, if you had asked any of us Christian guys here what we were trusting in, we would have said, 'Well, we're trusting In the Lord, of course.' Until we suddenly lost what we were really trusting in." As they say on the news, sinkholes are all over the place. The person who once said, "Til death do us part" is suddenly gone. The children you lived for left the nest empty. The church or organization you did so much for let you down. The company you served for so long doesn't need you anymore. The friends you gave so much for moved on without you. The plans you made vanished with one visit to a doctor's office. The people you lived to please turned their backs on you. So many sinkholes! Ground you build on that you can't depend on. Yesterday's dream; now today's nightmare. The family who lost their home and their loved one in that sinkhole did find one consolation – the family Bible the demolition crew managed to retrieve. One family member stood in front of the rubble, just hugging that Bible for all she was worth. Well, I'll tell you, that's the only ground I know that will never cave in beneath you. It's what Martin Luther was counting on when he stood against the mightiest religious forces of his day and insisted knowing God was by faith alone. As all other ground around him was collapsing, he stood firm on a Biblical bedrock that is our word for today from the Word of God. Listen, "Your Word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens" (Psalm 119:89). Firm in the heavens. Truth you can stake your life on; a foundation that can never be shaken. It's where Paul told Timothy to plant his feet when it seems as if everyone - including God's people - are adrift. "But as for you," he said, "continue in what you have learned...you have known the Holy Scriptures...All Scripture is God-breathed" (2 Timothy 3:14-16). Sometimes, it means standing with a holy defiance of the culture, the crowd, the consensus, both feet firmly planted on God's Word. "God has spoken. That settles it." Jesus told about two men - one whose house "collapsed" when the torrent came, and one whose house "could not be shaken." The first one, he says, built on "ground without a foundation." The other "dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock." He said the sinkable man "hears My words and does not put them into practice." The unsinkable man, he said, "hears My words and puts them into practice" (Luke 6:47-49). So sitting in church just soaking up Christian beliefs is not enough to sustain you when your world's collapsing. Compartmentalized faith is collapsible faith. You have to do God's Word, not just know God's Word. King David posed this question for a sinkhole moment: "When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?" That's a good question. Here's the answer: "The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His heavenly throne" (Psalm 11:3-4). When your world caves in, God's Throne hasn't moved. His Word is unchanged, and your God still reigns.

Ever wonder why God doesn't just fix your problems for you?In this Psalms 42-49 Bible study, we kick off Book 2 of Psalms by diving into the powerful redemption story of the Sons of Korah, a family literally swallowed by the earth for rebelling against God.Whether you are dealing with unanswered prayers, emotional distress, or wondering why God allows suffering, these chapters offer profound comfort and timeless prayers. We explore a lament that echoes Job's struggles, a prophetic royal wedding song about Jesus, and the exact scripture that inspired Martin Luther's famous hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God."In our Psalms 42-49 Bible study, we cover:[4:48] Psalm 42: Family Redemption — How the Sons of Korah went from disgraced rebels to Israel's worship leaders.[12:12] Psalm 43: Reacting to Sorrow — How to pull yourself out of the haze of grief, hardship, loss, and stress.[18:07] Psalm 44: Unanswered Prayer — Why God sometimes seems asleep when His people are suffering.[22:36] Psalm 45-46: Messianic Prophecy — How a royal wedding song perfectly foreshadows Christ and the church (as quoted in Hebrews) and the inspiration behind Martin Luther's "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God."[33:27] Psalm 47 & 48: The City of Zion — Why God's dwelling place is more than a place on a map.[36:41] Psalm 49: Money and Mortality — Why wealth can't buy life, but Jesus already paid the ransom you couldn't afford.Psalms Show Notes:Psalms RoadmapPsalms Prayer ListPsalms Playlist on Apple MusicPsalms Playlist on SpotifyPhil Wickham - Psalm 8 (Hallé) [Official Music Video]ACTS Prayer GuideGroup Discussion Questions for Psalms 42-49:[12:24] When you're downcast or disturbed, Psalms 42 suggests you intentionally turn your attention to all the good God has done for you. What's one thing you could do right now to help you remember to do that? For example, memorize a prayer or Bible verse you can turn to that focuses your attention on God's gifts or protection, put a sign on your bathroom mirror, hang pictures of your loved ones, etc.[18:11] Can you relate to Psalm 44 when the psalmist did not feel rescued despite his faithfulness? How do you respond when you don't get the outcome you hoped for?[36:48] Psalm 49 reminds us that wealth cannot buy life. Is there an area of your life where you feel tempted to chase "more" than you need or are called to, even though we can't take anything with us when we die? Ex. cars, the latest technology, respect, work titles, etc.Contact Bible Book Club!Social: Instagram or FacebookWebsite: Bible Book ClubReview Us: Apple Podcast or SpotifyJoin the Fun: DONATE or Buy merchThis episode is part of our ongoing Bible Book Club series, starting with Genesis and journeying all the way through the Bible. Thanks for listening!

James 1: Does James Contradict Paul?   Check us out: https://www.determinetruth.com Does the book of James contradict Paul—or have Christians misunderstood James for centuries?   In this episode of the Determined Truth Podcast, we begin our study of the book of James by examining one of the most debated books in the New Testament. We explore why Martin Luther famously questioned James, how faith and works actually fit together, and why James is deeply rooted in the teachings of Jesus.   Topics include:   Why Martin Luther called James an "epistle of straw" Does James contradict Paul's teaching on salvation? Faith vs. works—or faith that works? What is the "Royal Law"? The Shema and the Greatest Commandment Loving your neighbor as yourself The Good Samaritan and redefining "neighbor" James' concern for the poor and marginalized Covenantal nomism and Second Temple Judaism Why James echoes the Sermon on the Mount James, the brother of Jesus, and his remarkable transformation Why understanding the Gospels is essential for understanding Paul   We also discuss how the church can faithfully apply James today by pursuing justice, mercy, and genuine love for others rather than merely professing faith.   If you've ever wrestled with James 2, "faith without works is dead," or wondered how James and Paul fit together, this episode provides historical, biblical, and theological context.  

In this episode of Thinking Fellows, Adam, Bruce, and Caleb explore whether Martin Luther can be trusted, responding to modern critiques that question his character, motives, and mental state as a way of dismissing the Reformation. They argue that while Luther was at times emotional, outspoken, and flawed, his theology should be judged by how faithfully it interprets Scripture rather than by speculative psychological diagnoses or personal attacks. Along the way, they discuss how Luther's humanity, historical context, and extensive writings have fueled both serious scholarship and polemical caricatures, encouraging listeners to evaluate his teaching on its biblical merits. More from 1517: Support the work at 1517 1517 on Youtube 1517 Podcast Network on Apple Podcasts 1517 Events Schedule 1517 Academy - Free Theological Education New Books from 1517 Publishing: The Turk at the Door by Adam Francisco Luther and the Lion: A Narnian Catechism by Samuel Schuldheisz By Water and the Word by Brian Thomas Being Family by Dr. Scott Keith More from the hosts: Caleb Keith Scott Keith Adam Francisco Bruce Hilman Follow 1517:  Instagram X/Twitter Facebook  

In this episode of The Reformed Brotherhood, Tony Arsenal and Jesse Schwamb bring their extended series on the parables of Matthew to a powerful climax with the passage most listeners have been waiting for: the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25:31–46). Far from a checklist of works required for salvation, this text is unpacked as the master parable of Christ's entire parabolic ministry — a sovereign declaration of divine election, not a merit-based audit of individual performance. Tony and Jesse explore why this passage has been chronically misread as a call to works righteousness, why the language of inheritance and predestination is front and center, and how a Reformed reading liberates rather than burdens the conscience. Along the way, they weigh in on Herman Bavinck's prescient warning about media distraction, and Jesse recommends a Puritan gem on anxiety worth picking up immediately. Key Takeaways The Sheep and Goats is best understood as a parable, or at minimum parable-adjacent. The Greek construction in verse 31 mirrors the same comparative language Christ uses throughout his parabolic ministry, placing this text firmly within that tradition rather than outside it. The kingdom was prepared before any works were done — this is election language. The phrase "inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (v. 34) is not a reward for performance; it is the language of sovereign predestination preceding all human action. The works of the sheep are diagnostic, not causative. What the righteous did reveals who they already were — sheep — rather than being the mechanism by which they became sheep. The beak doesn't make the bird. Both groups are surprised, and that surprise is the parabolic punchline. Neither the sheep nor the goats anticipated the verdict they received, which undermines any reading that frames this text as an encouragement to accumulate saving merit. This passage is a recapitulation of the wheat and tares parable. Sheep and goats co-mingled until the moment of final separation, just as wheat and tares grow together until the harvest — the judgment reveals what was always true. Any theology that requires a human contribution to activate or complete salvation misreads this text.Whether Roman Catholic, Arminian, or Mormon in flavor, every view that makes God's preparation of the kingdom contingent on foreseen human merit fundamentally inverts the logic of the passage. The scope of judgment — "all nations" (ta ethnos) — would have been scandalous to first-century Jewish ears. This language deliberately expands the kingdom beyond ethnic Israel, fulfilling the Abrahamic covenant promise and confounding the assumptions of the religious elite. Key Concepts The Kingdom Prepared Before Your Works: Sovereign Election, Not Merit When the King says to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Matthew 25:34), the theological weight of that single sentence is staggering. The kingdom was not prepared in response to anything the sheep did. It was prepared before time, before works, before choice — which means the works that follow in the passage cannot be the grounds of that inheritance. Only a Calvinistic understanding of election can sustain this logic without remainder. Arminian views require God to foresee a qualifying human response; Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox views require some degree of meritorious participation; even certain Lutheran frameworks lean on non-resistance to grace. Reformed theology alone places the entire cause within God's sovereign, unconditional decree — and this passage, read plainly, says exactly that. Works as Evidence, Not Ground: The Diagnostic Function of This Parable The great pastoral error in preaching this passage is treating it as a performance rubric — a list of charitable acts that, if completed, qualify a person for eternal life. But Christ does not separate the sheep from the goats because of what they did or failed to do. He separates them, and then describes the activity that characterized each group. The works are revelatory. They surface what was already true of each person's nature, just as a bird's beak reveals its species rather than constituting it. This reframing is liberating precisely because it means assurance does not rest on tallying acts of charity. It rests on the sovereign act of a Father who prepared a kingdom and the regenerating work of the Spirit who produces, in those He has claimed, a life that looks like the one described here. "All Nations": The Scandal of an Ethnically Inclusive Kingdom The Greek phrase ta ethnē — translated "all nations" in most English Bibles — would have landed very differently on first-century Jewish ears, particularly those of the Pharisees and Sadducees who comprised a significant portion of Christ's audience throughout Matthew 24–25. To them, ta ethnē meant the Gentiles, the peoples out there, those outside the covenant. The implicit effect of Christ's language is to place every people group — including Israel — within a single undifferentiated mass standing before his throne, with no ethnic group receiving preferential standing at the bar of judgment. This is entirely consistent with the Abrahamic promise of blessing to all families of the earth (Genesis 12:3), the vision of Psalm 2, and the missionary thrust of the Great Commission. The scandal is not incidental — it is the point. The kingdom Christ is ushering in is not the ethnic-nationalist kingdom the religious establishment expected. Memorable Quotes The kingdom of heaven was prepared for those whom Christ has elected before the foundation of the world, and it was the preparation of that kingdom that brought you through this such that you did the good works that you did... That is caused by the fact that God prepared a kingdom for you in advance, not that you somehow caused this kingdom to be prepared for you. - Tony It's not the beak that makes it the sparrow, it's the sparrow that makes it the kind of beak it is. That's the kind of classification we're talking about in this parable. - Tony The best freedom is the one that turns over all things to God and takes him at his word when he says, 'In love you were predestined to inherit this as sons and daughters of the kingdom,' so that he does all the work, because we do not want to have any of that work our own. - Jesse Full Transcript [00:01:11] Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to episode 498 of the Reformed Brotherhood. I'm Jesse  [00:01:19] Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony, and this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey, brother.  [00:01:24] Jesse Schwamb: Hey, brother. They said it couldn't be done. They said we couldn't come back. We wouldn't come back and continue in Matthew 25. But here we are, and we're ending this chapter in this whole section about sheep and goats. Everybody was clamoring for it. Everybody wanted to know, what about the sheep and the goats? And I think the last time we all chatted together, we prefaced it by saying it's parable adjacent. Or let's just say- Yes ... we just stacked up these three other parables, lots of things going on, and then Jesus resolves this or brings all these parables to a culmination by speaking about the end times, the end of all things, and the sheep and the goats. Yeah. And so we gotta go there  [00:02:06] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, I'm stoked.  [00:02:07] What Counts Parable [00:02:07] Tony Arsenal: And y- you know, I, I was talking with a brother at, um, at church yesterday on the Lord's day, and he was asking how the podcast's going and what we're doing. And, you know, I was kind of thinking, like, I was talking about the parables and how we're kind of moving forward, and we were gonna do some of the I am sayings in John. And, and I was thinking, like, what is a parable anyways? And who decides what a parable is and what a parable isn't? Right. Um, some of the parables Christ calls a parable, others he doesn't. Uh, we'll probably talk a little bit about that when we get to, uh, some of the back half of Luke. But this, this episode I think is gonna be really, really the payoff and really the culmination of not just these, like, this trio of or trilogy of parables that we've talked about, but I think really, like, the payout of all of the parables in Matthew. It's really, like, the summary of all of Christ's parabolic teachings. So it's, it's a good place for us to round out Matthew, and then we'll, we'll dip into the parables in the other gospels, probably have a couple more months of, of, uh, parable talk before we move on to the next thing. But, uh, it's been great, and I'm super, super stoked for this. This is one of my favorite passages, actually, and there's so much to dig into. I, I, I'm just gonna say now, we probably won't make it through the whole thing- Right ... uh, because there's a lot there. But we'll see. We'll see how we do. Maybe Jesse and I will be super efficient tonight, uh, but we usually aren't, so. [00:03:27] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, that's never happened. We, we take it low and slow. Not only that- ... it was reminding me as you spoke about that kind of proverb generally of if you wanna go build a wall, you assess what you need, how many stones, and then you go gather those stones. Yeah. You should double it, or if you're gonna go out and fight an army, take stock of that army. That's basically what we do, but in reverse. Anytime, like, you just... I just heard you say- ... like, "It'll probably take us a couple more months," you should double that. That's probably how long- Yeah ... it's actually gonna take us.  [00:03:50] Faith Works Assurance [00:03:50] Jesse Schwamb: Even in this- Yeah ... conversation, I think we're gonna get stuck in the best way possible speaking about things like faith, works, and assurance because there's a lot of language here- Yeah that could seem on the surface to sit in this tension with justification by faith alone. And I think the key to resolving all that tension, as I hopefully think we'll see, lies in the readings of works as the evidence of living faith rather than its ground, and I think that's what- Yes ... Christ is leading us through all of these parables, actually, whether it goes back. And you should listen to all those episodes. In fact, I gotta ask. Th- I mean, this brother you were talking to, it just strikes me as that question had already be answered for him if you were listening to the podcast. So-  [00:04:29] Tony Arsenal: Yeah, I don't think he does. No, I don't think he does- ... listen to the podcast. Uh, he knows that I do the podcast, and he's very gracious to ask me about it. Tom. And I think he's probably listened to the podcast before. Got it. Um, and he's, he's just a very kind, gracious brother who, who is concerned and wants to know what I'm doing. And, um, he has, he has his own sort of, like, production stuff that he does that he enjoys that I'm, I'm not super keyed into. But, uh, it was just nice. But, but it did get me thinking, like, I was trying to explain to him where we were in the progress of the parables, and I was like, "I can't really... I don't really know," because, like, it's hard to even understand and fully... There's no, like, full comprehensive universal list of what is a parable- Right ... and what's not. And I think what we've found as we've been going through this is sometimes, sometimes you come up against a portion of a text that is often taught sort of separate from the, the rest of it. Parables get taught discreet from other parables. But then you have these sort of, like, intervening texts, or this one's kind of a summary text, that's so integrated to what the parable means you really can't do a series on these parables without also treating this text. Which is gonna be interesting, 'cause I've never, I've never encountered somebody who really roots this teaching here of Christ in the context of the parables, despite its proximity. So it'll be fun. We're gonna figure it out in real time, and, and it'll be good.  [00:05:47] Jesse Schwamb: No, it's gonna be fun.  [00:05:48] Deny Doomscrolling Bavinck [00:05:48] Jesse Schwamb: And speaking of fun, we're so glad that you're listening, and we know that you're waiting with bated breath to hear about affirmations or denials. It's of course that part of the conversation where we either affirm with something that we think is fantastic, maybe by way of recommendation, or conversely, we deny against something that isn't that great. So Tony, as is our custom in the liturgy of the Reformed Brotherhood podcast, I ask you once again, are you affirming with or deny against? [00:06:15] Tony Arsenal: I am denying against something, and I'm gonna do that by affirming a Herman Bavinck quote. Uh, so I'm gonna read it for you. This, uh... Some of the guys in the Facebook group have put... or the Facebook group, the Telegram chat, have put together a, uh, like, a reading group to work through Bavinck's, uh, Wonderful Works of God, which is great, and I'm loving it. I haven't been able to participate in the conversation as much as I would like to, but just being part of a reading group, uh, sort of keeps you on schedule, which is great. So I've been reading through Wonderful Works of God, and on the Kindle edition, on page 34, uh, which I think is still the, I think is still the, uh, introduction, he says, quote, "The reading of daily and weekly newspapers, of magazines and brochures, devours our every blink. There's a lack of desire and opportunity for the investigation of scripture and the study of old theological works," end quote. And when I read that, it just really struck me as like- If that was true like 70 years ago, 80 years ago when Bavinck was writing this, right? And all there was was hard, hard copy media. There was no, uh, there was no digital media. There was radio, but there wasn't a lot of programming. Uh, I don't think that there was much in the way of television broadcasting. If there was, it was, it was very, very limited and very rudimentary. Um, even then he was saying the daily news cycle and all of this extra stuff that is out there is consuming our, quote, "Every blink," which I thought was a really interesting phrase. Um, it's basically like it's so ingrained in us, we're so invested and obsessed with the news cycle. Uh, or you might translate that to like to our Twitter feed or our Facebook feed or our Instagram reels or whatever it might be, and dare I say it, the podcasts we listen to.  [00:08:05] Jesse Schwamb: Right.  [00:08:05] Tony Arsenal: Um, that we don't save time for scripture and other theological works. And I think it's funny too is that the, the eternal, uh, the eternal contemporary statement of the Reformed world is like we don't read enough old theological works. Even Bavinck, who I'm reading as one of the old... I mean, not like super old, but like one of the old theological works, is saying, "Hey, we don't read enough old theological works." So I'm denying this sort of like obsession we have with the daily news cycle and with constantly being up to date and like constantly consuming all of that. Um, we've talked about how like our modern global news cycle sort of, uh, is built around the deception that we can be sort of pseudo omnipotent and know all things about everything. And, um- There's a lot of work that's been done to show that, like, the world's not really that much, not that much more of a violent place than it was 100 years ago. We just know a lot more about what's going on- Right ... in other parts of the world. And there's pros and cons to that. But I think the main con is, like, we, we feel suddenly that we have to be, you know, deeply involved in the goings on of a church on the other side of the country that we never would've even known existed otherwise. It- there's just a, there's a sense of omnipotence and omnipresence that's just not becoming for the creature that I think we try to take on. So Bavinck knew it. Uh, we've talked about it. Lots and lots of people have talked about it. This isn't new. I'm not, I'm not e- engineering anything new on this. But that quote really struck me when I was reading. I was like, "Dang, man, he, he got it right 100 years ago or, or 80 years ago, and we're still struggling with it." And I think probably, like, if you go back and you look at the, I don't know, more occasional writings of people like Martin Luther and John Calvin, um, as they're interacting with, like, people in the Reformed community or the Protestant community, I bet you would find statements like this too about how, like, we really spend a lot of time reading, like, silly things and not spending- Right our time studying the scripture or studying, um, theological works. So that's my denial. I'm sticking to it, and if that means you feel like you need to turn this podcast off and go read some John Calvin or some Herman Bavinck, then by all means. Uh, I think you're probably going to be edified by what we have to talk about. But, uh, th- the Bible's better, so if you gotta go do it, if you only got- That's true ... an hour today to study scripture or listen to this podcast, please go study scripture. Yeah. Uh, hopefully we can do a little bit of both with this podcast. But Herman Bavinck said it best. Our every blink is consumed with pamphlets and newspapers and it just is- It's true it's pretty silly.  [00:10:41] Jesse Schwamb: It's true.  [00:10:42] Meme Detour Reading Groups [00:10:42] Jesse Schwamb: I gotta take us all the way back to where you started there, and I'm going to betray, to nobody's surprise, my really strong naivete when it comes- ... to social media, and memes in particular. But this is what occurred to me, and I'm gonna try it. This is, like, what classically makes really good podcasting. Let me try to describe a meme to you that I'm not even sure I actually understand or know. So this will be great. I think, you tell me, Tony, 'cause you may have seen this. It's an old meme too, so I'm not even, like, on the cutting edge here. I think it's a meme of two panels showing, like, two pictures of Drake. In know one he's kinda, like, pushing away as if to say, like, "Get that outta here," and the other one's like, "Oh yeah, that's the stuff." Do you know what I'm talking about? Yeah. Is that accurate?  [00:11:21] Tony Arsenal: I do. I think you're gonna use it wrong, but yeah.  [00:11:23] Jesse Schwamb: Is that Drake? Okay, all  [00:11:24] Tony Arsenal: right. Yeah, that's, that's the meme.  [00:11:25] Jesse Schwamb: Okay, okay. And usually, if I understand it correctly, it's kind of like a faux juxtaposition of two things, right? Like, okay. So like here, let me try it. Uh, uh, let me just try it on everybody. Here we go. I'm gonna describe to you how I just interpret this based on what you said, 'cause something cracked me up that you said, Tony. If I were gonna make this meme just based on how you opened that up, the first panel would be like Drake pushing away the idea or being like, "That's no good," book club. The second one would be reading group, as in like, like the reading group is like the new cool way of like just kind of... Did I use it properly? Am I close?  [00:11:59] Tony Arsenal: I think the problem with this is that there's like a, there's like an ironic way to use it, and then there's like a more direct way to use it. Mm. Yeah. The direct way would be like some- like Drake's pushing away something that's bad, and he's- Yeah ... like accepting something that's good. That'd be like the direct way. Yes. The more ironic one is where like Drake is pushing away something that's actually pretty, actually pretty good, and he's- Yeah ... accepting the one that's pretty silly. Oh, okay. Um, there's a lot of memes that have that basic format. Never mind. There's one with like Jordi LaForge. I think there's a Michael Scott one. I tried. I tried. But yeah, no, I, I think yours is valid, it's just, I think it's an older usage of the meme. That's like the, that's like the middle English version of that meme. The Shakespearean use of that meme.  [00:12:36] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. I'll take that. It's the old English style. I love a good book club or a reading group. A, a reading group just, it does have that sound like maybe somebody in the group has a monocle, or you guys have tea. Either way- Yeah ... I absolutely love it. And yes, what are our beautiful quotes. You kind of hear that general conception recapitulated among like theologians almost in every era. But it does make you think, what would Bavinck say about, like doom scrolling on the smartphone? Like- Yeah ... he's beside himself, right? It would just be beside himself. So I'm with you. I, it, there's gonna be a condemnation in every generation. Maybe I say this with some degree of like chronological snobbery, especially in ours, when it comes to not, like you said, I think kind of like not carving out or not prioritizing time in the scriptures. Yeah. There's not gonna be any excuse of like, "Well, I just didn't have time." Right. Or, "There were too many things to read." It's just, it's not gonna cut it. So I'm with you. I think you and I have talked about this at length, even just like the news media like you and I consume, like just s- set aside social media for a second. Just like how i- how much value is there in a lot of like what we cons- used to consider to be like well-informed reporting? How valuable is that to us? Yeah. And I'm certainly not saying like that everybody should be like unconcerned and uninterested in the world, but I think it's to what degree and what fascination we have with that, and how it fits into our priority as we consume information each day. That's the thing that's tricky, and there's no really-  [00:14:02] Tony Arsenal: Yeah ...  [00:14:02] Jesse Schwamb: good answer except to weigh out with the spiritual discernment- Yeah ... how we ought to consume that stuff. But certainly I think, without question, we need to be prioritizing time in prayer, time in the scriptures. I imagine if we were all doing that with a great deal of attention, that all of the other things would kind of find their way into the right place. Or let's say they would just find their way out of our lives in a significant way- Yeah ... that would remove us from distraction and anxiety, instead bring us back into the providence of God.  [00:14:31] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. And I'm not, I'm not gonna be the guy that tells you you can never s- you can never scroll Instagram or TikTok or whatever. Um, I, I think that's a decision that's between you and the Holy Spirit as far as how you spend your time. But I, I do think, um, I think you're right- We are accountable for the decisions we make and how- Right ... we choose to divide up our time. And I- God, I mean, God is the inventor of fun. He's the inventor of leisure, and he is, uh, I think he's pleased and honored when we, we make good use of our time f- for things that are restful and rejuvenating. Um, he doesn't expect us to just slavishly read scripture all day, every day, like every minute. That's not, that's not the biblical expectation. Um, and so I think it's fine if you wanna sit down and watch a fun show, or if you wanna watch some YouTube videos, or listen to a silly podcast, or listen to a serious podcast. Um, but I do, I agree. Like, we, we really need to be thoughtful. And I think where, where Bavinck's quote, uh, is strong is it's not so much about, "Don't read these things." Right. He, he's talking about these things consume our every blink. Like, m- he's treating blink... He's using the word blink as sort of a fill-in for like our, our finite resource of time and attention, and these things have consumed all of them. There's a very strong use of that word consume. Uh, and I, I think that's really the, the point that I'm trying to make is we often allow, either intentionally or unintentionally, we, we just let our time get all sucked up, uh, on things that maybe are good but are not pr- properly proportioned. Um- Like I said, it's, it's fine to spend some time on Twitter and to get into a debate once in a while, or to check in on your friends on Facebook, your old high school, college buddies or whatever, but we can definitely take it too far. So I think it's a good corrective for all of us to at least make a stop and think about how we're spending our time, and whether we are affording the appropriate amount of time to things like scripture, theological study, catechesis of our children, um, family worship, all of those good things. So we don't have to go much more into that. I think the point has been made. Uh, so Jesse, what are you affirming and/or denying tonight?  [00:16:43] Affirm Puritan Anxiety Cure [00:16:43] Jesse Schwamb: Perfect segue, because speaking of reading old things, you know me, I've always got some kind of Puritan work in the rotation, and the one I just finished is the one I'm affirming, which is called Special Providence for Anxious Souls by Obadiah Sedgwick, who I think is kinda... Like, people are sleeping on Sedgwick, you know? Mm-hmm. He's, he's kinda like, he's there in the wings, but we need to take him off the bench. And I came across this book and I thought, "Who doesn't want a title like that in their lives?" Like, we got some anxiety in all of our souls. And I'm affirming this because, uh, hi- his definitions, his writing is, are on point. But here's what I thought. I was embarrassed that I picked this up expecting one thing, and then in typical puritanical fashion, was delivered something else that was far better. And I was thinking about this title as you might see it, like, in your modern bookstore today, whether it's, like, in Barnes & Nobles or at any of the periodicals we were just kind of mentioning or implying that are out there. And I was expecting to get some kind of, I don't know, six or seven things, I mean, that's Puritan style, but six or seven things that would really help you diagnose the psychology, and then going back to the scripture in ways, all, all the ways we'd expect about how God loves us and cares for us, and all those things are true. And yet the only way I could describe how this book ministered to me is, like, how you might go to a physical therapist for some kind of ailment, which I have many as I get older, and have recently been to one. And the ailment I had was, um, basically like tarsal tunnel, which is like carpal tunnel for your foot. And so there was some nerves that were inflamed and causing some pain and some weirdness in my feet. And here's what I do know about physical therapy now that I think the Puritans also do for our souls, and that is the physical therapist gave me this full workup. They prodded me and poked me and rubbed things and made things hurt- And in the course of doing that, they clearly could figure out what was wrong with my foot. And so when he gave me the diagnosis, after, again, rubbing that part and, like, doing one of those things where he's like, you know, they tap on your hard and they're like, "Does that hurt?" I'm like, "Yes, it does hurt." And I presume that's because you know anatomy. And, you know, he's, he's ta- tapping on my ankle and it's causing my foot underneath to hurt. And after all that, you know, I run on a treadmill. He d- takes all this video, and this is what he says to me. He goes, "Yeah, so this is actually pretty straightforward." And I was like, "Great, so what are we talking about? Like exercises, uh, splints, like massage?" He's like, "You have a weak butt." And I was like- "I'm sorry, let's talk about that for a second." And this is what I've learned about physical therapy, is it's rarely about the thing that's actually bothering you or the thing that's hurt, right? It's something- Yeah ... far different. It's something almost seemingly, like, disjointed or removed or divorced from the very thing, maybe even non-contiguous, if only in our minds, maybe even logically. And so what I love about this is the first half of the book is just speaking about the province of God before it even gets into this idea of anxiety. And then the treatment on anxiety and worry is, he goes through, like, six or seven things in particular, are just absolutely glorious. So good that I want you to read it. I don't even want to talk about it. Uh, that, that's my admonishment to you, is that you should just go pick it up. So I'm affirming again that the Puritans in particular do this thing where there's, there's no cheap advice here. It's not even hide advice. It's really good advice, but it's the kind that says, "You have a weak butt" when you're concerned that your ankle- is messed up. Yeah. And that's sometimes what you need to hear. And in my case, after... Let's make this super weirdly spiritual. After doing a bunch of squats, I don't know what the spiritual equivalent is of that. After doing a bunch of squats, my ankle and my foot was so much better. And it, because I had somebody who cared enough for me to go through and actually diagnose the root of it, that was the reason that inevitably there was healing. So I've, this has given me so much to think about, this tiny little treatise. So much to put into practice. It's so rich, so good, so practical, and yet I think you'll find in many ways joyfully unexpected. So I highly affirm to everybody listening, and even those who aren't, Special Providence for Anxious Souls, Obadiah Sedgwick. You'll, you'll love it  [00:20:49] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:20:49] Physical Therapy Spiritual Practice [00:20:49] Tony Arsenal: So two thoughts. Uh, one, uh, I can confirm Jesse has a weak butt, um, flat as a board. So it's probably, probably better after, after doing some squats. Wow. Uh, two- Wow. ... uh, I can say I also am in some physical therapy right now, and I've been a little bit of a slacker. And what I will contribute to the conversation is just like in physical therapy, they can give you all of the exercises- Yeah uh, that you want. If you don't do the work, you're not going to get better. Yeah. And so whether it's Jesse doing squats or me not finding time to stretch and to do some, like, arm exercises with a, with a s- uh, like a TheraBand, uh, the same holds true. And, and maybe to unify our, uh, affir- our denials/affirmations into one mega, mega recommendation, um, the same holds true in that, one, we can take a book like this from, uh, Sedgwick, and we can turn it into the same thing we do with media where we're just... it's just devouring our blinks. Right. And we're just using it as a way to sort of, like, feed our eye hole Get better. You won't improve. Um, and that's actually the same with scripture. Like y-you can- Right ... turn scripture into, uh, into a snack food that you, you don't actually use to be nutritious. Um, I think there's probably more benefit to reading scripture sort of rote and, and almost mechanically than there is to reading anything else. But, um, but at the end of the day, you can also consume your blinks with scripture and not get a lot out of it if all you're doing is passing your eyes over text. So get in there. I think that's great. I haven't read that one. I mean, I think there's... I think there are probably many, I can't think of one off the top of my head, but I'm sure there are many, many Puritan treaties that- treatises that are similar in theme and tone and have the same kind of like spiritual antidote or spiritual medicine, um, prescribed by these guys that is good and wholesome. And again, like, like you're saying, like it's not that complicated. It's not that hard. Right. It just takes- Right ... you just actually have to do the work. Um, it's funny, my physical therapy thing is my, my shoulder has been really ba- really messed up, and I went in, I expected him to give me all these, all these shoulder exercises, and he's like, "Uh Really what you need to do is you fix your neck, uh, 'cause your shoulder is, is being in- injured because you're sleeping- Okay on that side because you're trying to stay off the other side. So, like, you really gotta fix your neck so you can sleep on the other side of your body. And I was like, "So I'm just, like, sleeping wrong?" Like, it's funny, there's a joke, it's like in your 20s you can do anything you want, in your 30s, like, you gotta be a little bit careful, and in your 40s, like, you hurt yourself just sleeping. Right. Just getting out of bed is dangerous.  [00:23:46] Jesse Schwamb: It's  [00:23:46] Tony Arsenal: true.  [00:23:47] Jesse Schwamb: It's true. So. It's a tough world. But  [00:23:48] Tony Arsenal: it's true. I feel like a really old man saying that.  [00:23:51] Read Matthew 25 Aloud [00:23:51] Jesse Schwamb: You know, it strikes me that you're right, of course, that there's so much here we always have to put into practice. There's so much here that we have to trust with God. There's a faith that works. And so I think actually that is the most lovely inroad into this final passage of Matthew, because there's a lot here for us to talk about with all of those things, and to understand it in this proper context. So as you've already set us up, Tony, the best part of our podcast is the scripture, for sure, 100%. So let's go there. So we're in Matthew 25 in case you're just joining us. And for some reason I went into, like, a full radio mode, as if this, like, this is being broadcast live, and you just came into the program. We're in Matthew 25, uh, starting in verse 31, and I'm gonna read until the end of the chapter. There's so much here that of course we're not gonna get to all of it, but in the spirit of literally having the full context of the scripture in front of us, and to hear it all, I think it's important. It w- b- better yet, you should go back and read the entire chapter and then tune in right now. But let me start at verse 31. "But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom which has been prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me in, naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me.  [00:25:32] Judgment Scene Read [00:25:32] Jesse Schwamb: I was in prison, and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him saying, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? And when did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and come to you?" And the King will answer and say to them, "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of mine, even the least of them, you did it to me." Then he will say to those on his left, "Depart from me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angers-- angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me." Then they will themselves also answer saying, "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not take care of you?" Then he will answer them saying, "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me." And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life  [00:26:47] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:26:49] Parable Not Fear [00:26:49] Tony Arsenal: Yeah, it's, it's, um, it's a sobering passage. And just as I think we've seen in a lot of the other parables, um These eschatological parables and these eschatological sayings of Christ, uh, as you kind of alluded to earlier, I, I think they are really, really, um... They are not prone to being misinterpreted. Right. The church has been prone to misinterpreting and misapplying these, um, in a, in a way that's used to make, make the Christian fearful and to, uh, undermine their assurance rather than to call them to action or to accountability.  [00:27:33] Why It's A Parable [00:27:33] Tony Arsenal: Um, and I think a- as I've been reading through this and I've been sort of glancing at the Greek as we're reading, I actually think I'm on... I, I stumbled on much more better ground to treat this as a parable than I even originally thought I did. You know, I, I had this whole lead-up that this isn't technically a parable, but when you read here, when it says, in verse 31, it says, "When the Son of Man comes in glory and the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates- Right ... the sheep from the goats." If you go back to verse 14, when it says, "For it will be like a man," uh, that, that first word of verse 14 in the Greek is the same word as is used when it says, um, uh, "He separates people one from another as a shepherd." That same word is used as there, it's just translated differently because of where it comes in the, um, in the text. So Christ is still making this comparison, so it would be as though he said, um, you know, like the common, most common, at least so far, most common kind of parabolic introduction is like, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like." Um, this is the same basic language he's using here to introduce what the eschaton will be like. Right? The ga- the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them. It says people in the ESV, but will separate them one from another. You could also say the, the nations or the peoples will be gathered before him. Right. He will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep. So the parable here is the s- the shepherd separating the sheep from the goats, this whole process of the separation and this, this, um, frankly, like it's, it feels and smells like a parable, right? It does. This, this, um, figure, this shepherd in the parable or the shepherd in the saying is saying these sort of like parabolic statements. He's using this language that's kind of like shocking punchline statement. Like we've talked about how in parables there's often this sort of unexpected turn of events, or there's this unexpected kind of shocking language, and this whole like twist at the end in both, sort of both s- chunks here, where like the sheep don't really understand, like they didn't really recognize that they were doing sheepy things, and the goats didn't really understand that they were being goats. That's like the parabolic twist or the parabolic punchline here. So the, the kingdom of heaven is like, basically it's like the Son of Man will come in his glory and it will be like this. It will be like a shepherd separating the sheep from the goats. That's the parabolic connection here. Mm-hmm. So I actually think that, that linguistically we're on, we're on pretty solid ground not just to treat this as a summary of all the parables, um- I think of for sure these three parables, but it, it really is like the master parable, and I think probably the master parable that kinda governs and constrains and explains all of the parabolic ministry of Christ. So I'm, I'm stoked for us to really dig into the details a little bit, but I think linguistically we're on super good ground to, to treat this as a parable. I agree. At the very least, it's stronger than just parable adjacent.  [00:30:44] Jesse Schwamb: Right.  [00:30:44] Tony Arsenal: It- but even if we aren't saying it's a parable proper, it's stronger than that. It still is using this kinda comparative ministry, comparative language that Christ has used throughout the parabolic, um, sayings of Christ.  [00:30:57] Jesse Schwamb: The construction seems a little bit less veiled because here we have Jesus implanting himself directly into the account.  [00:31:03] Tony Arsenal: Mm-hmm.  [00:31:04] Shepherd Imagery Stakes [00:31:04] Jesse Schwamb: At the same time, though, he's drawing on all the things you just said he does, especially with this allusion to shepherding, which would've been, of course, common throughout. So it seems to me a lovely bridge to all of the overt parables he's just told, but now he's bringing them all together and placing himself clearly as, like, the interpreter, as the identifier of all the things, as the one to seal up all of the edges, as it were. So it's clear that this is about the end times. All of these were all about the end times and about Jesus' role in them. And so of course here he identifies himself as the eschatological judge just to make it clear. He's the one who sits on his glorious throne, and that's significant, and that's why I think we sometimes feel like, well, this is not a parable because he's, he's being very, like, Christologically certain and direct here. You know, throughout scripture the final judgment is God's prerogative alone, but the Father has committed all that judgment to the Son, and here's Jesus affirming that. And so again, like Reformed theology, in all our conversations we've consistently emphasized that this text is in many ways, like, proof of Christ's full deity and his role as mediatorial king, and he's exercising his office as the judge at his return in glory. And though, like you said, at the same time, here's the cool parable kind of scent or flavor is you get all these nations, every person who has ever lived, not merely Israel or merely the church. And how does Jesus describe this? He goes back into parabolic language. And we got the shepherd imagery that- Yeah is, like, similar to Ezekiel 34 where God himself is judging between the sheep of his flock. And that separation, the shockingness of it, it's immediate, it's binary. There's no third category. There's only two eternal destinies. There's no purgatory, no middle ground, no post-mortem opportunity for repentance. So all that's at stake. And then again, the beauty of the language itself or the setup of the construction of the story as it unfolds is that both groups- Get the same speech with a change in do or do not, but they both ask the same question from, like, wildly different perspectives and standings. And that's the beautiful- Yeah thing to make reconciliation over is what does all this mean then? How is all this established and how is this final judgment come to be such that there are sheep and goats if, in fact, they're both doing the same things theoretically, or they're at least both asking the same questions of, well, when did this ever actually occur? That, that's what's for us to unpack either way.  [00:33:29] All Nations Gathered [00:33:29] Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and b- before we jump into, um, into the parable itself and start to unpack that, the other element that I think is worth, uh, and this just came to me so hopefully I'm not on too far of a, of a limb here. But the other element that I think is worth at least commenting on, um, we've, we've remarked, especially in these last three eschatological, um, parables, how much these are directed at the religious leaders, right? Right. The, the, the people are, um, the, the- the parables are told, um, in the context and sort of following up on these, this real directed, um, assault against the religious leaders who thought they were the ones, right? They're the ones that have a claim to the Kingdom of Heaven, they're the ones that, um, are the, you know, they're the ones that think they're doing the right thing, they're the ones that are ushering in God's kingdom. This little phrase here, "gathered all the nations," would also have really stuck in the craw of the religious leaders, right? Because the word for nations that's translated here is the same word that would el- elsewhere get translated as Gentiles, right? And the word people, when it says, "He will separate the people," that, that word people doesn't actually exist in the Greek. So if you translate this very literally, it'd say, "Before him will, will be gathered all nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." Now, I don't wanna go the route of saying, like, this is a parable about, like, which pe- people group will be brought into the kingdom and which won't, and I've read some that go that direction. I don't wanna go there. But this idea that, like, even in the final judgment, the people who are in view here are the Gentiles, right? Right. I think most Jewish, particularly the, the Pharisees and the Sadducees hearing this, would've, would've read this and would've read ta ethnos, and would not have thought nations the way we do. Certainly would not have thought of, like, modern nation states. They might have been thinking maybe, like, people groups in general, but they would be thinking more along the lines of, like, Psalm, Psalm 2, like, "Why do the nations rage?" kind of nations. Why do the Gentiles rage? Why do the peoples plot in vain? They would've been thinking th- this, this, uh, judgment almost, at least on the face of it, almost excludes the Jews entirely when you think about it this way. It's really now sort of, like, zooming out where at the very least, at the minimal least, the Jews are just another people group within this broader judgment of the people group. Right. So again, like, we've seen this theme that Christ is continually expanding the scope of what is considered to be the Kingdom of Heaven to include not just the Jewish people, um, but all nations, all people groups, all Gentiles and Jews alike. And in a very real sense, um, and I wanna be careful how I've said this, I know I've commented this in the past, there's a very real sense of anti-Semitism that is prominent in- reform, quote-unquote reformed circles right now that is just vile and disgusting and sinful, and has no place in any sort of Biblical Christianity. But there is a reality that the Jewish people, broadly speaking, um, rejected the Messiah, at least while he was here on Earth. Um, relatively speaking, very few Jewish people, especially in the Jewish elite, like the leadership class, accepted Christ for who he was while he was here. Many Jews came to faith through the ministry of Peter, uh, and, and even through the ministry of Paul, even though he was an apostle to the Gentiles. So it's not as though it remained the case, but at this point in Christ's ministry, the Jewish people were by and large were rejecting him as Messiah. And so this idea and, and sort of this like final culmination now saying like he gathered all the, all the Gentiles, all of the peoples, all of the nations. In Jewish, in Jewish language and, and when you look in the Old Testament, and even in some of the New Testament literature, the nations were those people out there. So even if we don't translate this as Gentiles, we don't, we don't take that more like restrictive sense, even then it still implies that Christ is talking about people out there, the non-Jewish nations- Right are being gathered before his throne. And so that's not to say, absolutely not to say that the Jewish people, that, that the Jewish people of his day or the, the... This is where it gets tricky too, 'cause like we think about modern Israel and we, we import our understandings of like nation states. That's not what was in view here. The, the idea of a modern nation state was not a concept that existed in the first century. Um, you might have something like city states, but even that is kind of like a little bit ethereal. The idea here is that all people groups, and maybe, maybe we conceptualize Israel now as one of these people groups, the Israeli Jewish people as one of these people groups. All of those people groups, Jews, Gentiles, Scythians, Athenians, Spartans, like, uh, Ethiopians, you know, all of these different people- Right ... groups that are mentioned in the, the New Testament, all of those peoples, all of those nations are gathered before the throne, and then he will separate them one from another in the same way that a shepherd sep- separates the goats. [00:38:35] Group Judgment Assurance [00:38:35] Tony Arsenal: And yes, I think there is an individualistic, um, judgment element, and this is where I think, um... And, and then I'll, I'll pause for a second. This is where I think we can go wrong reading this as a parable about the individual judgment of individuals in the future That's not really what the language here is supporting. This is supporting sort of a broader group-based judgment, and the grouping is there are those who are sheep and there are those who are goats. But it doesn't appear as though Christ is saying like, "I'm evaluating each individual person, and this person is a sheep, this person is a goat." It's, it's a broader picture that, yes, has some implications for individual personal judgment, but when we read too much of that individual personal judgment into this parable that doesn't seem to be there, that's where we start to, like, rob individual Christians of their assurance. We start to say, like, "Did you do enough? Did you feed enough poor people or did you not?" That's not really, not really what's at stake here, I don't think.  [00:39:40] Jesse Schwamb: No, it's definitely not. It's, it's important to remember just the beauty of, like, the consistent theological thread that runs all the way through the Old Testament, and then that we might expect, of course, to be manifest in Christ's teachings, which happen exactly here. So he is going all the way back to that covenantal promise seed through Abraham, single seed, many people groups, many ethnicities. In this way, the gospel is ethnic inclusive. And so it is, why wouldn't he say that in this way to express that this is exactly from all time what God wanted to do is gather all people groups to himself? Which means then by the time we get to the end of this chapter in verse 46, and there is this righteousness that... or the righteous that lead or go into eternal life, then of course we're led to believe here either directly or implicitly that that means that there would be some for whom the Pharisees would find it's, like, anathema to receive that kind of righteousness and eternal life are the ones in fact who are getting it. And so even that is scandalous. So the, the whole thing is very much a setup, and I think it's the confusion again of this is Jesus saying again to the Sadducees, like, "You are confused. You do not know the power of God. You, you search for it everywhere else but do not find it in front of you. It, it's he who speak to you. I am he. You think you search the scriptures, but you do not know." Everywhere it feels like he's saying that, and here also he's saying that again, but it's in the setup. And I'm with you. I think that there would've been a lot here that would've, like, just come right off his lips that would've been like, "Say what?" Uh, that would've been, like, offensive right off- Yeah ... the top.  [00:41:16] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:41:17] Sovereign Separation [00:41:17] Tony Arsenal: And the other, the other theme that plays out really loud and clear here, um, as we start to dig into this is, um, there's a sovereignty to this separation that is baked into, um, the king's right to decide who to keep and who to cast away. Right. So I think we, we, um, understandably read into this an assessment of the productivity or the profitability or somehow the, like, merit or worth of the sheep as contrasted to the worth of the goats. Um, and we read into it like the sheep have utility and the goats don't, so the goats get cast into the- Right outer darkness. That's not really, that's not really what's going on here, right? In a, in an agrarian society, like sheep and goats both have utility. It's not as though, like, sheep are worthless and goats aren't. There's a reason people have goats. Um, th- the, the issue here is that the king has decided that there are those on his right and there are those on his left, and the ones on his right he's gonna keep, and the ones on his left he's gonna cast away. And, and so, um, there's this sovereign election and determination that precedes the rest of this, right? It's not as though he's ... And this is where the personal, sort of personal assessment part comes in. He doesn't look at a person and go, "All right, you did a g- enough good works to qualify as a sheep, so you go ahead and go over-" Right and be a sheep. And you didn't do quite enough, so you're actually a goat, so you go over and you be a goat." He looks at, he says, "Y- sheep, goat. Goat, sheep." You know, he, he's separating them out, and then he describes what sheep do versus what goats do. And I, I, like I'm even drawing some of this language out. The sheep goats part of this is actually only, like, a verse and a half. He then flips out of this parabolic language to now go back to the sort of strictly predictive eschatological ex- like explanatory language. So this is what it's like when the Son of Man is on, on his kingdom. He separates sheep and goats. We read into, and maybe with some good reason, but we read into Uh, we read into the fact that the sheeps go to one side, the goats go to another. Then we sort of like attribute the characteristics of those who go to his right to sheep, and we attribute the characteristics... And I think we do this the wrong way. How many sermons have you heard where the whole sermon is about how sheep are obedient, and they're, they're affable, and they listen, and they, they, they are sweet and kind, and goats are stubborn, and they, they just wreck everything, and they don't listen, right? And how many s- how many sermons have you heard where they talk about, like, well, sheep and goats really look the same in the Middle Eastern context, and the only way you can tell them apart is what, by what they do? I think there's probably some, uh, benefit to thinking through those elements, but Christ does not make that point in this parable- Mm ... at least not directly, right? He said, "This is the activity. Imagine a man who has sheep and he has goats. He takes the sheep, he puts them on one side. He takes the goats on another side." That's what the separation at the end of the time, at the end of time will be like. Then he goes straight back out of the parable language into saying, "This is how the king will actually make the distinction.  [00:44:29] Predestination Before Works [00:44:29] Tony Arsenal: The ones on his left, or on his right, he will say, 'Come, you're blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.'" Right? This is predestination language, not eschatological judgment language. The sheep were guaranteed a kingdom from before the foundation of the world. Before they did anything bad or didn't do anything good, they were guaranteed a kingdom from before the foundation of the world. Then he says, he explains to them, like the context that, as you said before, that reveals that they were sheep all along. [00:45:02] Jesse Schwamb: Right.  [00:45:02] Tony Arsenal: It shows them that they were already... Man, I just, just made this connection in my head. This is the parable of the wheat and of the tares- Yep ... coming to fruition- Exactly ... at the end of time. Right. Right? The sheep and the goats were allowed to mingle until the time came when they would be separated, just as the wheat and the tares were allowed to grow up until the time when they would be reaped and separated. This is what's going on. The sheep did things that sheep do. Those on the right did the things that the people on the right would do because they were part of God's blessed kingdom all along.  [00:45:34] Jesse Schwamb: Right.  [00:45:35] Tony Arsenal: And then he goes on to explain what the people on the left did not do, not because now they've been put on the left because they didn't do it, but they were shown to have always been a part of that, part of that population. They were always goats because of these things. This shows that they were goats all along, and they did these things or failed to do these things because they were goats all along.  [00:45:58] Jesse Schwamb: That's right.  [00:45:59] Works Righteousness Trap [00:45:59] Jesse Schwamb: Let me read another verse. "For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children and also our brethren to believe in Christ and to be reconciled to God. For we know that it is by grace that we are saved after all we can do." My guess is everybody was with me- ... sounded kind of okay until that last part. And if you had that, like, as we say, like, that theological muscle memory that just made you flex or bristle there, or you had the Spidey Sense, as you say, Tony, good, because that's from 2 Nephi 25:23 from the Book of Mormon. And here's what I wanna say that's shocking, is if we read this passage of scripture that we're talking about as if there's something there that we need to do that proves that we've done enough and that somehow God will be pleased with that, even at the end of time in some small way, some modicum, then we're actually acting way more like Mormons than we are like Christians. That's just the bottom line. Yeah. Because Mormons, if you ask about this verse, rather than try to qualify that last statement by saying, "Well, that's misunderstood," or, "It's really not after all you can do," because of course it begs the question how do you know that you've done enough? How you don't- you've done all the things and that you're, you're exhausted. Their explanation of this is to double down on it and say, "Well, the context of that verse is following verse 23 actually does emphasize salvation only coming through Christ, but it also encourages continued observance of the law of Moses in order to be reconciled to God." Because that's all they could do until Christ fulfilled the law through his atonement. Even that is nonsense. So all of this to say, we have to be careful with this because I, I think you're right. We're aligning, we're running right up on this, and that is I would submit to you that we just get distracted because we always, of course, want to bring something to the party here. The, the salvation cake. We wanna, I don't know, we wanna make it, we wanna do. But God is doing all the things on our behalf. And so as a result of that, I think this parable is actually, it's about the divine prerogative and the agency of Christ in judgment at the end which belongs to him and him alone, and not about these actions. But we get caught up in the actions and we're missing this thri- divine prerogative. I also think that Christ gives this to us to reverse it on us and to show us that he sets about all things. It is in fact his foreordination and his providence. By grace we have been saved through faith, and that in providence being predestined is an act of his great love. And so this shows the extent of that love because those whom he has chosen himself are asking in disbelief as if to say, "When did I do the good works that you required?" And he said, "Well, you didn't because you could never do them apart from me."  [00:48:38] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:48:38] Jesse Schwamb: And so really that's the whole point. It's just so easy for us to get it twisted and say, "Well, doesn't it make sense that there are two groups?" Well, certainly there are in this passage. And doesn't it make good sense that because he said they did things or they didn't do things, then I just need to be about doing those things. And I think that is unfortunately the adventure in missing the point in this passage.  [00:48:58] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, I, I agree 100%. And it's funny 'cause you were reading that and I was like What translation of J- of First John is it? It sound, I mean, it sounds like, it sounds like something you'd read in First John It sounds okay  [00:49:09] Jesse Schwamb: until  [00:49:10] Tony Arsenal: the end. Yeah. No, I mean, like, it literally sounds like First John until- Yeah ... you get to that last part.  [00:49:14] Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  [00:49:15] Tony Arsenal: And, and I think you're right that, um, we'll, we'll explore this more next week, but what has always struck me about this passage is that the, the p- the, the people on His right, I've gotta stop saying sheep, because that's... I just made the point that that's not really what's going on. The people on His right who are called into the kingdom because it was prepared for them before the foundation, because they were elected unto that kingdom. The people on His right, they're surprised at the fact that they did these things. And it, I, I think the works righteousness way of reading this is like, "You better earn your salvation. You better get at it because if you haven't fed Jesus in disguise, then you just aren't gonna make it. At the end of the day- Mm ... He's gonna say, 'I never knew you.'" And it, whether intentionally or unintentionally, sometimes I think intentionally, it implies that we, uh, that Jesus comes to know us because we've done good works, right? When we say, "If you don't do these things, then Jesus will say, 'I never knew you,'" then what you're saying is Jesus doesn't know you apart from your good works. Right. And what the Bible says, what this passage says, just right on the face of it, is that the Kingdom of Heaven was prepared for those whom Christ has elected before the foundation of the world, or who the Father has elected, who are blessed by the Father before the foundation of the world. Now, obviously the Father had to know those people in some sense-  [00:50:43] Jesse Schwamb: That's  [00:50:43] Tony Arsenal: right ... before the foundation of the world in order for them to be blessed by Him and for Him to prepare a kingdom. So then to come back to the end of it and say, "Well, there are some of those, uh, who the Father never knew because they didn't do enough work," well, the problem is that those who did the good work, the Father knew before they did the good works. They didn't merit the good works. I mean- Right ... it's funny you, you bring up the, the Mormons, and that's certainly true, but, like, you could substitute in, at least on this regard, right? There are meaningful, important differences between the groups I'm about to say and Mormons, that would be the dividing line between those who are possibly saved and those who are y- definitely not saved, right? You could substitute Arminians, who wanna say God looks down the corridor of time, and the reason He prepared a kingdom in advance for them from the foundation of the world is 'cause He saw that they would do these things that would merit salvation, or He saw that they would make the proper decision to receive His grace, right? Or Roman Catholics or Eastern Orthodoxes in a different sense, but similarly who would say like, "Well, yeah, God knows in advance that you're gonna merit salvation, so He prepared- Right ... this kingdom anticipating your merit that you would contribute or your participation or, or whatever." I think in a certain sense, um, you could even apply this to some Lutheran theology, right? Which would say, like, "Well, God prepared this kingdom for you from the foundation of the world because he looked down the corridor of time and he understood that you were not going to resist the grace he gave," right? You were not gonna reject his grace. Um, it really truly only is Reformed theology that can say, "No, God prepared this kingdom in advance for you, and it was the preparation of that kingdom that brought you through this such that you did the good works that you did, such that you made the wise decision to follow Christ that you did. That is caused by the fact that God prepared a kingdom for you in advance, not that you somehow caused this kingdom to be prepared for you." A- and aga- again, again, like, this is dicey. It gets into, like, logical ordering, but fundamentally, a- as far as I can understand it, every competing view besides sort of a Calvinistic understanding of predestination election has to say that in some sense God prepares the kingdom for you as a response to something you have done, or chose- Right to do or chose not to do. The reality is that this passage is saying, "No To those who are on the right. He didn't separate them based on the fact that they did these things. He just said, "You are on the right, and now to those who are on the right, I say to you, come into the kingdom that is blessed. You're blessed by my Father. Come into this kingdom prepared from the foundation of the world." So I think, you know, we're c

#447 — Eric Metaxas is the author of seven New York Times Bestsellers, including his newest: Revolution: The Birth of the Greatest Nation in the History of the World. His earlier books include  Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and Martin Luther, as well as thirty children's books. His works have been translated into 25 languages. Eric is the host of Socrates in the City and the Eric Metaxas Show (on Apple Podcasts), where he has interviewed Dick Cavett, Ron Howard, George Foreman, Mel Gibson, Morgan Freeman, and many others. His humor has appeared in The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine, and The New Yorker. The KunstlerCast theme music is the beautiful Two Rivers Waltz written and performed by Larry Unger

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear.” (Psalm 46:1–2) Martin Luther’s journal entries inform us of his continual battle agai... More...

In this episode of Thinking Fellows, Adam Francisco discusses his new book The Turk at the Door, exploring how Martin Luther understood Islam, the Ottoman Empire, and the challenges facing Christendom during the Reformation. The conversation examines Luther's distinction between just war and holy war, his study of the Quran, and why Christians should understand Islam without confusing political conflict with the proclamation of the Gospel. They discuss why this overlooked chapter of Reformation history still matters today as Christians engage thoughtfully and faithfully with their Muslim neighbors. More from 1517: Support the work at 1517 1517 on Youtube 1517 Podcast Network on Apple Podcasts 1517 Events Schedule 1517 Academy - Free Theological Education  New Books from 1517 Publishing: The Turk at the Door by Adam Francisco Luther and the Lion: A Narnian Catechism by Samuel Schuldheisz By Water and the Word by Brian Thomas Being Family by Dr. Scott Keith  More from the hosts: Caleb Keith Scott Keith Adam Francisco Bruce Hilman

This week we crack open the Epistle of James — a letter that may claim to come from none other than James the brother of Jesus — and wade into one of Christianity's oldest arguments: faith versus works. Does James contradict Paul on how a person is saved, and is that why Martin Luther dismissed the whole book as an "epistle of straw"? Then we go monster hunting for Leviathan, Rahab, and Behemoth, the primordial chaos beasts lurking in Job, the Psalms, and Isaiah — and find out that yes, there are dragons in the Bible, and they're far older than the Bible itself. Get your "Tribe of Dan" merch at our new online store: https://data-over-dogma-shop.fourthwall.com Shop from our classic collection before the old store closes: https://datadoverdogma.printful.me Support Data Over Dogma and get every episode early and ad-free, plus exclusive bonus content — become a patron:https://www.patreon.com/DataOverDogma Watch every episode on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@dataoverdogma Follow us: Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/dataoverdogmapod TikTok — https://www.tiktok.com/@data.over.dogma.pod Threads — https://www.threads.com/@dataoverdogmapod X — https://x.com/data_over_dogma Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/DataOverDogmaPod Get Dan McClellan's New York Times bestselling book, The Bible Says So:https://static.macmillan.com/static/smp/bible-says-so-9781250347466/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is the classical Arminian view of human freedom and divine grace? Today, R.C. Sproul examines the teaching of Jacob Arminius and his followers to identify how these views differ from Reformed theology. Get the 500th-anniversary edition of Martin Luther's famous book The Bondage of the Will with your donation. You'll also receive lifetime digital access to R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Willing to Believe, along with the digital study guide: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the ebook, digital teaching series, and digital study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

No one, left to themselves, would ever respond positively to the gospel. Today, R.C. Sproul exposes our dependence upon God's regenerating grace for our liberation from bondage to sin. Get the 500th-anniversary edition of Martin Luther's famous book The Bondage of the Will with your donation. You'll also receive lifetime digital access to R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Willing to Believe, along with the digital study guide: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the ebook, digital teaching series, and digital study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

We are doomed in our slavery to sin unless the sovereign God changes our hearts and sets our wills free. Today, R.C. Sproul examines the issue of free will as it appears in discussions throughout church history. Get the 500th-anniversary edition of Martin Luther's famous book The Bondage of the Will with your donation. You'll also receive lifetime digital access to R.C. Sproul's video teaching series Willing to Believe, along with the digital study guide: https://gift.renewingyourmind.org/   Live outside the U.S. and Canada? Request the ebook, digital teaching series, and digital study guide with your donation: https://www.renewingyourmind.org/global   Meet Today's Teacher:   R.C. Sproul (1939–2017) was founder of Ligonier Ministries, first minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew's Chapel, first president of Reformation Bible College, and executive editor of Tabletalk magazine. Renewing Your Mind is a donor-supported outreach of Ligonier Ministries. Explore all of our podcasts: https://www.ligonier.org/podcasts

SPONSORS: Look for American Dew limited-time packaging or find it in stores near you at https://mountaindew.com Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial and start selling today at https://shopify.com/bears For simple, online access to personalized and affordable care for Hair Loss, Weight Loss, and more, visit https://Hims.com/BEARS Sponsored by BetterHelp. Sign up and get 10% off at https://betterhelp.com/bears If your revenues are at least in the seven figures, get our free business guide, Demystifying AI, at https://www.netsuite.com/bears New DraftKings customers, sign up with code BEARS spend five bucks to get two hundred in rewards within 21 days. https://dkng.co/bears This week on 2 Bears, 1 Cave, Tom Segura and Bert Kreischer celebrate Por Osos landing in Publix just in time for the 4th of July, which sends Bert into a full nostalgic spiral about pub subs, boat days, and taking his daughters into "international waters." From there, things get unexpectedly historical: Tom breaks down the story of the guy who invented the meter and got guillotined for it, which leads them down a rabbit hole of people killed for their big ideas, the French Revolution as the original cancel culture, and Martin Luther versus the Catholic Church. Then it gets personal — Bert tells the full Patrice O'Neal story: getting destroyed at his first open mic, the Edinburgh trip where they lived together for 29 days watching Bruce Lee movies and Bert getting his feelings systematically demolished, and the moment he found out Patrice had tweeted something kind about him right before the stroke. Tom and Bert also spiral deep into funeral planning — who's required to show up, who gets a Sandler video instead of a live appearance, why Ari's funeral is going to involve hardcore Brooklyn relatives and a lot of confusion, the Andrew Schultz balloon clown apology Bert wants delivered posthumously, and whether or not to get cremated when science might figure something out. Plus: horror movies vs. comedy movies as investments, the film Obsession and its director Curry Baker, Bert's dad crashing the podcast mid-funeral conversation, the band Goose vs. the band Geese, and Mount Joy watching Passion of the Christ on the tour bus. 2 Bears, 1 Cave Ep. 331 https://tomsegura.com/tourhttps://www.bertbertbert.com/tourhttps://store.ymhstudios.com In Partnership with DraftKings. The Crown Is Yours. Bet with DK Sportsbook: Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER, 1-800-MY-RESET. New York: call 8778-HOPENY, text HOPENY. Connecticut: call 888-789-7777, visit https://CCPG.org . On behalf of Boot Hill Casino in Kansas. Bet tax pass-through may apply in Illinois. Twenty one plus. Void in Ontario. Event contract trading with DraftKings Predictions involves risk of loss. Sportsbook Bonus bets expire in seven days. $50 in Predictions Dollars issued weekly for three weeks, expire in one year. Redeem one non-withdrawable reward. Availability varies. Predictions offer void in New York. Ends June 28th. Terms at http://dkng.co/audio Chapters00:00:00 - Intro00:02:21 - Por Osos in Publix & Florida Pub Sub Gospel00:08:45 - The Daniel Boone Documentary00:18:51 - The Guy Who Invented the Meter Got Killed for It00:24:59 - People Executed for Big Ideas00:33:46 - Patrice O'Neal Destroys Bert at His First Open Mic00:41:27 - Showtime Special, Party Bus, & Patrice's Funeral00:48:31 - Funerals Vs Celebration Of Life00:57:00 - Nick Kroll, Andrew Schultz & the Balloon Clown Apology01:04:11 - Bert's Dad Chimes In01:05:54 - Noga Erez, Goose Vs. Geese & Mount Joy01:09:02 - Curry Barker's Obsession & Horror vs. Comedy Movies01:15:10 - Wrap Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices