CIAM Radio

Moving beyond descriptions of hell itself, Dr. John examines what the experience of being in hell is actually like. He identifies three key aspects: complete loss of all earthly pleasures, the total extinguishment of hope since hell is eternal, and suffering under God's everlasting displeasure. He addresses objections that God is a "torturer" by explaining hell as perfect justice with degrees of punishment, and challenges the popular notion that people "choose" hell, emphasizing instead our spiritual deadness and need for God's grace.

Hell Explained: In this one week series, Dr. Neufeld unpacks the often difficult and uncomfortable doctrine of Hell. This study will discuss the biblical description of hell, how we can reconcile hell with the God of the Bible, and how it’s important for Christians to reflect on the seriousness of hell.

Listen to today's Laugh Again with Phil Callaway, "Five Days That Changed My World." Enjoy!

Dive deep with Pastor Chuck Swindoll into Romans 1:1–13 to learn the substance and purpose of the Gospel.

From the Series: Romans: The Christian’s Constitution

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Based on his book, Renaissance, Os Guinness calls the current generation the “crunch generation” because the many challenges facing today’s world are converging quickly and need resolution. He asks Christians to pay “focused attention” to listening to non-believers around them in order to connect. Os advises believers to think deeply for themselves when it comes to loving God with their minds. When witnessing, they must ask questions to those questioning Christianity, rather than making statements, allowing the non-believer to think and come to their own discovery of salvation in Jesus.

Strength in weakness—sounds like an oxymoron. However, when you are weak it is possible to be strong, just as Paul says in 2 Corinthians.

Five thousand miles in one month! That's not too bad if you're in an airplane, but that's how far I drove at least one summer and we've had many long trips like that. We just about ran the wheels off of our van driving from one conference, or speaking assignment, or college trip to another. Let's see, if I averaged 50 miles per hour, that means I drove for 100 hours. Oh, man!

Well, it was a great time, it really was. You know why? My wife was with me. We finally got to be together for extended blocks of time with no phone, no errands to do, no people to take us away. We didn't talk all the time, although we had a lot to catch up on. We probably could have been catching up for about 100 hours. Right?

Sometimes we just played music, or occasionally we would just spontaneously pray about something together. Or a lot of times we just enjoyed the silence or some of the beautiful scenery. And then every once in a while you'd hear the silence punctuated with an occasional comment or just an "I love you." I think my wife spoke for both of us when she described what was so nice about all those 5,000 miles. She said, "It was just so great being in your company; just the two of us."

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Just the Two of Us."

You know, relationships need time together and especially times when there's like no agenda. It really enriched me to have that kind of time with my wife during all that driving. There's another relationship that might be a need, maybe a desperate need of some "just being" time.

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 42, out of the heart of David, verses 1 and 2. "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God; for the living God." And then he asks this powerful question, "When can I go and meet with God?" That's the cry of a believer for the greatest emotional need he has - to be intimate with his Lord. When was the last time you just sat down with Jesus and enjoyed His company? Or do you only see Him when you have a list for Him?

Jeremy was over at our house with his parents, and he'd been downstairs playing. Suddenly he came into the living room and kind of sat down in his dad's lap, and his dad liked that. His dad kind of wrapped his arms around him, started to cuddle him, and Jeremy didn't settle down; he just kept wiggling. He looked up at his dad and he said, "Daddy, you know I'm not sitting here just because I want to be with you." Great! Yeah, he needed something.

Wow! How often is that me with my Heavenly Father, or you maybe? In fact we say, "Well, I'm not here just because I want to be with You; I've got my list. I need something." But you're growing up as a child of God when you want to be with God just to be with God. You say, "Ron, I don't really feel that way yet." Well, that's okay. Tell Him that. Ask Him for the desire for His company; this passion that David had just to be with Him. "When can I go and meet with God?"

We have the indescribable privilege to cuddle in the lap of the King of the Universe, to call Him "Daddy," to let Him comfort our battered emotions, to speak new ideas and insights into our quiet heart. He can't do that while you're talking to Him. To be real, real close, you can't just run in and run through your "pleases" and "thank yous" and then run out. You can do all that, but then stay a little longer.

I think you and Jesus will feel the same way about it. It's like my wife said, "It was so great just being in your company, Lord, just the two of us."

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “property”? Your mind may go to a piece of real estate. But you might also consider “a quality or trait belonging to an individual or thing”; for instance, the property of a certain type of wood that provides insight about it. What is the wood’s texture? How prone is it to shrinkage? Is it water-resistant? In other words, what are the qualities of the wood that you can depend on?

My wife and I attend a church with a traditional feel—corporate prayers, kneeling, Scripture reading, communion. One of the prayers we pray each Sunday holds this phrase: “But thou art the same Lord whose property is always to have mercy.” Not God’s real estate, but a quality or trait belonging to God—to have mercy not just once in a while but always.

Nehemiah 9 gives us a picture of the Israelites gathered together, fasting, wrapped in sackcloth and ashes (v. 1), confessing their sins and the sins of their ancestors (v. 16). They praised God for His patience in Israel’s history: “Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them” (v. 19). God could have put an end to them or abandoned them, but He never did. Why? That’s not God’s property, for He is “a gracious and merciful God” (v. 31).

In our prayers of confession, let’s include praise for that dependable property of God—His mercy.

Segment 1:

• 77% of Gen Z brought a parent to a job interview—”lawnmower parenting” at its peak.

• Parents are doing kids’ chores and even handling workplace disputes for them.

• Kid-centered homes are crippling resilience and robbing work ethic.

Segment 2:

• Hard work is essential for fulfillment, but kids are being shielded from it.

• Failure is a necessary teacher—Christian parents must resist overprotection.

• True maturity comes from responsibility, not comfort.

Segment 3:

• “Neurodiversity” is being used as a catch-all term with political baggage.

• No uniform criteria exist—definitions are fluid and agenda-driven.

• Adopting secular therapeutic labels in the church risks compromising truth.

Segment 4:

• Venezuela hosts a massive “March for Jesus” rally.

• A Baltimore judge gives no jail time for assault of elderly pro-life advocates.

• 1 in 5 pastors have considered self-harm or suicide in the last year.

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Thanks for listening!

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