Grace or Grit

We all know that we are now under grace, not under the law.  But how about the laws concerning resting on Saturday and paying our tithes?  Are we exempt from those?  And if we are exempt, what do our actions in freedom say about our spirituality?

On this episode Dave and Patrick try to unpack the reality of God's plan for New Testament saints on these 2 issues specifically.  You might be a bit surprised by the conclusions.

Jude wrote, "Of some have compassion, making a difference: and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.”  But is there a third category?  The answer is a resounding, "Yes!"  Even in his little letter, Jude spoke of apostates who were/are beyond hope.  It isn't compassion or confrontation that is appropriate in such cases, instead it's condemnation.

On this episode Dave goes solo to talk about the harsh reality of moving on to somebody else with the good news of God's saving grace.  Listen and contemplate.

What's the most effective use of a church's foreign mission budget? We can send money overseas. We can send missionaries oversees. We can send humanitarian aid.  We can send literature.  Or, we can send Bibles. 

Obviously, in an ideal situation we would be able to do all of the above. But if a choice has to be made concerning what must be sent (or what the order will be), where does sending Bibles fit into the picture?

God’s text message to us is obviously a big deal. He has magnified His Word above all His name. It is the catalyst of our faith. So let’s talk about the Scriptures and the importance of getting the Bible into the hands of the heathen.

The guest joining Dave and Patrick for this episode is Al Braley. He is the Director of Operations at Bearing Precious Seed of Milford, Ohio.  He has considerable first hand knowledge about this issue.  Listen and catch his vision for what God can do!

"Ok, now that we have talked about everything we can think of to talk about (except sex) concerning your wedding and marriage afterward, here is the title of a book for you to read to help you out with that stuff."

That's probably not the best approach to sex education in the church.  However, that (combined with a healthy dose of "Flee fornication!" sermons) is a decent caricature of how I've often handled the issue.  But what if the book I've been recommending wasn't quite as helpful (for some people) as it was for me when I got married?  Maybe, just maybe, we can do better.

On this episode David and Patrick are joined by the author of The Great Sex Rescue: The Lies You’ve Been Taught and How to Recover What God Intended.  Sheila Wray Gregoire is the face behind ToLoveHonorandVacuum.com.  She is a wife and a mother, a blogger, the author of 9 books, and has her own podcast called The Bare Marriage Podcast.  

I think this episode will bless you as you listen to her message of grace and hope!

What are you made of on the inside?  I mean you are a soul, you have a spirit, you have a mind, you have a will, you have a conscience, you have a nature!  In fact, you have 2 natures!  Sheesh!  Talk about confusing!  

But is it really all that confusing?  Maybe the old comic strip concept of an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other is a pretty good representation of reality.  In the Bible this conundrum is described as the "old man" and the "new man."  But what are these 2 things?

Listen as Pastor Dick Blades of First Baptist Church in Delmar, DE joins Patrick and Dave for this vital discussion.

In Proverbs 22:6 Solomon wrote, “Train up a child in the way he should go."  We normally focus on the second half of that verse, but I've left it out intentionally this time in order to emphasize the first phrase.  Regardless of the outcome, it is our responsibility as parents to train our children in the way that they should go.  It isn't the county's job.  It isn't the state's responsibility.  It isn't the federal government's obligation.  It is the job of the parents.

But how to go about it?  For some people there are really no ideal options available.   But for many US citizens, there are plenty of options.  I (Dave) personally attended 5 different private schools without ever changing my physical address.  They were not all equal, but they were all doing a decent job at the task of educating the children who were entrusted to their care 5 days a week from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

On this episode Dave and Patrick are privileged to host a guest who is no stranger at Grace Baptist Church in Hurlock, MD.  Pastor Bill Kruppa is the pastor of Emmaus Baptist Church here in Plant City, FL.  Like Patrick, Bill was ordained at Grace.  But Bill has spent about 23 years as an educator, both in the classroom and at times in administration.  Listen as we discuss the best and worst options for the education of our children in 2021.

Satan was the first critic of the Bible.  But is that really the same thing as being a textual critic involved in collation and/or translation work?  We are all called upon to love God with our minds?  I am commanded.  You are commanded.  I must love God with my mind.

So, we are not expected to check our brain at the door when we enter the sanctuary to fellowship with believers and to worship our Maker.  As you will hear in this episode, God (and the Bible) can certainly withstand any scrutiny we can offer.  Be that scrutiny academic, historic, linguistic or otherwise.

So, how about textual criticism?  Would we have a Bible in our language without textual criticism?  What are the aims of this field of study?

Today Dave and Patrick are joined by Pastor Lee Hughart of the First Baptist Church of Hurlock, MD to talk about the issue of textual criticism as it relates to the Bible in English specifically.  Hope you enjoy this introductory level conversation.

Does the Bible prescribe how we are to "dispose" of the remains of our deceased loved ones?  Is burial required?  What about cremation? 

In Matthew 3:9 we read where Jesus said, "Think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham."  What does that have to do with it?  Well, the next anticipated event after the burial or cremation or cryonization of a human corpse is the revitalization and resurrection of that body.  And God doesn't need much or even any of our molecular substance in order to bring our bodies up from the dust.  So does it matter at all what we do with the body?

This strange and somewhat difficult issue is addressed in this episode as Dave, Patrick, and a guest pastor try to unpack the reasons behind the decisions we make concerning our own funeral arrangements and the handling of the arrangements of our loved ones after our decease.  The guest today is Bro. Chris Kitchens.  Chris is the pastor of Mt. Olive Church in Cullman, Alabama.  Listen now to this good conversation on the topic of cremation.