John addresses a surge of rapture predictions (Sept 23rd) and reminds us the word “rapture” never appears in the Bible. He traces failed predictions from Millerites in 1844 to Harold Camping in 2011, showing how speculation damages faith. Revelation, he explains, was not written as a secret code for our timeline but as pastoral encouragement for persecuted believers. Babylon symbolized Rome, 666 symbolized unfaithfulness, and the central message is endurance and hope: God is redeeming creation, not abandoning it. The call is not to predict dates but to trust Christ and live faithfully in anxious times.

00:00 — Did The Predicted Rapture On September 23 Really Happen?
00:27 — Why Do People Keep Predicting The End Of The World?
01:11 — What Should Christians Believe About The Rapture?
03:01 — What Does 1 Thessalonians 4 Really Teach About The End Times?
06:25 — How Should Christians Read The Book Of Revelation?
09:34 — What Do Babylon And 666 Actually Mean In Revelation?
11:54 — What Are The Main Christian Views On The Millennium?
14:05 — What Does The Mark of the Beast Really Mean?
16:00 — How Revelation Predicted Rome’s Fall And Babylon’s Ongoing Power
20:49 — What Romans 8 Teaches About Creation, Hope, And Redemption

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Paul says to shine, we need joy… so joy is what we study today. Paul wrote to the Philippians from the grimmest of circumstances - in jail, facing death, brutally beaten, and yet his letter was filled with calls to rejoice. How could that be? Paul seems to have figured out the secret that joy isn’t rooted in success or control. It’s grounded in something much deeper: that Christ has risen and death itself has been defeated.

00:00 — What do I actually know to be true?
00:28 — Why science can’t tell you what matters most
01:16 — Paul’s command in Philippians 3:16 explained
01:38 — Reflecting honestly: what do I know?
02:06 — Truth #1: It is good to be alive
03:17 — Why life is a gift worth celebrating
05:25 — Gratitude: letting “good to be alive” shape your day
06:10 — Truth #2: I ought to pursue the good
07:15 — Truth #3: Why despair is always wrong
08:34 — Truth #4: I need help (12 steps and prayer)
09:26 — Truth #5: People are immensely valuable
10:32 — Paul’s invitation: live up to what you already know

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

Paul tells the Philippians: “Only let us live up to what we have already attained.” John takes this personally and asks: “What do I actually know to be true?” He names five convictions — life is good, I ought to pursue the good, despair is wrong, I need help, and people are immensely valuable. These aren’t abstract doctrines but lived truths that can guide each moment. To shine is to be activated by what you know, not paralyzed by what you don’t.

00:00 — What do I actually know to be true?
00:28 — Why science can’t tell you what matters most
01:16 — Paul’s command in Philippians 3:16 explained
01:38 — Reflecting honestly: what do I know?
02:06 — Truth #1: It is good to be alive
03:17 — Why life is a gift worth celebrating
05:25 — Gratitude: letting “good to be alive” shape your day
06:10 — Truth #2: I ought to pursue the good
07:15 — Truth #3: Why despair is always wrong
08:34 — Truth #4: I need help (12 steps and prayer)
09:26 — Truth #5: People are immensely valuable
10:32 — Paul’s invitation: live up to what you already know

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

Rest in this truth today: We don’t actually need to know any more than we know right now to have a good day. That’s the concept John covers in today’s video, along with some wisdom about how to read your Bible in such a way that will change your life.

00:00 — Two truths that bring freedom today
00:21 — Why you don’t need more knowledge to live well
01:04 — What Paul means by “not attained yet” in Philippians 3
01:50 — Why thinking you’ve arrived is spiritual danger
03:48 — How Dallas Willard Read the Bible (Ontology)
04:24 — Reality is what you can count on
06:53 — Why pain is what happens when we run into reality
07:57 — What truths you can always count on
08:19 — Psalm 23: the most real world is God’s world
09:25 — A Story about Dallas’ calm presence
10:34 — How to live present to God anywhere, anytime

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

Today, we’re talking about the rule of forgetfulness. Paul had a few words to say on the matter. In Philippians 3, he says he presses on, “forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.” That’s spiritual forgetting. Paul wasn’t a proponent of amnesia or repression or wishful thinking, but rather a disciplined letting go that makes room for healing and growth. That’s what we can choose to take part in, too. 

00:00 — What is the art of spiritual forgetting?
00:35 — Why forgetting is one of the mind’s great successes
01:24 — What Paul says about forgetting in Philippians 3
02:12 — Why spiritual life is about progress, not perfection
03:40 — What is the “one thing” life is about?
05:22 — The three benefits of forgetting: healing, clarity, creativity
06:54 — Forgetting wrongs and achievements that paralyze us
07:24 — The Ted Lasso goldfish lesson on memory
08:39 — Why forgetting is not repression or denial
09:57 — How to practice biblical forgetting by pressing on
10:30 — Miroslav Volf: why forgetting is “not coming to mind”
11:59 — Punch ignore: how to stop being tormented by the past
12:47 — What guilt or hurt do you need to release today?

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

In Philippians the word “Knowing” takes on a new meaning. Paul uses the word to distinguish the collection of facts from intimate understanding. What Paul calls “knowing Christ” isn’t merely theology to be recited; it’s participation: sharing in his life, teachings, sufferings, and resurrection. When we put the gleam of résumé-building accomplishments beside the surpassing worth of this present, personal relationship with Jesus, the choice becomes clear: let go of what inflates pride so we can be shaped by his life.

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

00:00 — What does Paul mean by “knowing Christ”?
00:25 — Why Paul calls his old resume garbage
01:12 — What surpassing worth really means
02:09 — Two ways of knowing explained: description vs. acquaintance
03:19 — Popcorn, bacon, and knowledge by experience
04:31 — What it means to know a person deeply
05:8 — Why knowing God is more than facts
06:04 — Dallas Willard on knowing Christ today
07:29 — Jesus is present in our world now
08:50 — What Jesus meant by eternal life in John 17:3
09:42 — How to invite Jesus into your daily life
10:08 — A honeymoon story and the meaning of “to know”
11:00 — Why knowing Christ is interactive engagement
11:48 — How serving others becomes knowing Christ
12:05 — The daily invitation: “God, let me know You”

Today’s reflection comes out of a rich conversation with friends (John, Jim, Alyssa, and Kevin) where they interact honestly with Paul’s words in Philippians 3. Paul once carried a “resume” filled with achievements, education, and status. But after meeting Jesus, he called all those accomplishments *scubala (*garbage) compared to knowing Christ. That shift was not about denying his abilities but recognizing they could never define his worth or bring him fulfillment.

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

We all carry an invisible resume, trying to prove our worth through titles, accomplishments, or image. Paul names his old resume — circumcision, tribe of Benjamin, Pharisee, zeal — then calls it all loss compared to Christ. John shares his own “impressive-itis” and failures, then draws from Henri Nouwen and John Wesley’s line “I submitted to be more vile” to show the new resume: weakness, humility, and love. To shine is to let go of self-promotion and live from God’s love.

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

Shining for Jesus is like burning, it gives off light but not without pain. Paul tells the Philippians that Epaphroditus (his brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier) nearly lost his life serving the cause of Christ. This was not a story of calm detachment or stoic control. Instead, Paul openly describes homesickness, distress, grief, and anxiety. Real love is messy, and real relationships are risky. Yet, it is in that risk, not in protecting ourselves, that we understand more about God.

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF

Life is deep, complex, and beautiful. In many ways life has a way of giving us more depth, complexity and beauty if we let it. But it’s important to remember that becoming deep is not about pretending to be better or wiser than we are. Paul wrote about this to the Philippians, where he reminded them that Jesus showed the way—humbling himself, becoming a servant, and pouring himself out for others. To follow Jesus means turning from shallow living, where vanity and ego dominate, toward a life that reflects self-giving love.

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Music in this episode: Starry Dream - Uptempo by A. Blomqvist MB01OKHAB5EAUXF