Mineral Springs Church of Christ Podcast

Matthew 16:13–18 (NASB95)  says "Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Jesus' disciples watched Him turn water into wine, heal people from blindness, lameness, and disease. They were eyewitnesses to the miracles He performed. The Bible is an eyewitness account, an appeal, a narrative from someone who was there! It recounts what Jesus disciples saw, heard, and experienced. So, when Jesus asks the question, Simon Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:19). 

Don't take someone else's word for it. Take the word of the eyewitnesses who walked with Jesus, who knew that Christ is King; Christ is God's King!

Jesus tells Nicodemus in John 3:1-7 that "unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus doesn't understand, because he is thinking in fleshly terms. "How can a man return to his mother's womb and be born again," he asks. Minister Anderson George explains Jesus' words to Nicodemus and what that means for us today. Are you born again? Be born again today!

The apostle John writes so that we may know Jesus. In John 3:14-16, Jesus continues to answer a question posed by Nicodemus: “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again? How are these things possible? (John 3: 4, 9)”

The familiar verses in John 14-16 reveal to us that God loved us in such a way that He was willing to give His only begotten Son, His one and only unique Son, for us. Minister Anderson George reminds listeners that Jesus is not "born" of God, He is God! Yet, God the Father lifted Him up on a cross so that He might save us from our sins, just as Moses lifted up the bronze serpent that saved all who would look upon it. 

Sin is a problem. It was a problem for the Israelites in the wilderness, and it is a problem for us. We can do nothing to save ourselves from it. Do we trust in Jesus enough to save us from our sins?

We humans could not fix the problem we created, but God could and did. The gospel is the story of who He is and what He has done. Minister Robert Peek challenges listeners by asking what place the gospel has in our lives. 

The apostle Paul expounds on the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15, and though Paul taught about many important aspects of life in the letters he wrote, the gospel was always preeminent. As Christians, we must keep the gospel in first place, not losing its significance, its urgency, or its priority. 

Songs are powerful. Praise and worship songs are powerful. Sometimes, a song can help when nothing else can. Minister Anderson George uses text from 2 Chronicles 20:1-21 to show the power of song through the story of Jehoshaphat as he turned to God when he faced his enemies with no plan but to turn his face to God. While God is fighting for us, we still have to face the battle. He doesn't always make the difficulty disappear. Jehoshaphat worships before the victory because God is worthy of praise before we get the answers to our prayers. "And he said, 'Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the Lord to you, 'Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God's'" (2 Chronicles 20:15).

Life is ordered in such a way that we cannot control it. We cannot always anticipate what is going to happen. The true test of faith comes when things get rocky, when we are forced to move outside our comfort zones. Using passages from the books of Matthew, Mark, and John that recount Jesus walking on the water, minister Anderson George gives listeners a new way to look at taking a step of faith. 

We often take things for granted. We come to "church." We sing. We pray. We give. We partake of the Lord's Supper. We hear a message from the Bible. We go home. We call that worship, but is it possible that we can go through all of the motions and leave without having worshipped? Minister Anderson George admonishes listeners through Psalm 95 to look forward to gathering with the church well before we arrive with an attitude and disposition to give our gratitude and praise to God. 

God holds the chaos and confusion of this world in His hand. What we can't see, He has numbered. Our problems, while gigantic to us, are mere specks of dust in the hand of theCreator who maintains our universe. Yet, when we pray and don't see results, we begin to doubt, and we begin to question. Sometimes waiting is heavy and troublesome. We know who God is, but we are still anxious, so what do we do in the waiting? Minister Anderson George reminds listeners that our hope lies not in the what or the how or the when but in the WHO and offers us strategies for how to handle our anxieties as we wait.

Given a choice between hearing bad news or good news, we may vary as to which we would rather hear first. In Ephesians 2, Paul starts with the bad news, telling us we were dead in our trespasses and sins. Fortunately for us, that's not the end of the story. He goes on to say, "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved (Eph. 2:4-5). God can cure the consequences of our sins. We can't, but God can! That's the good news!

The Kingdom of God has come in your life when God has total control over your will in your life. We are guilty. We need forgiveness. Jesus offers that forgiveness, but He wants something more. He wants to change us; He wants to sanctify us so that we will be what we need to be in the age to come. Martyrs believed in that age to come. They were so sure of God that they did not fear death. What do we have to fear if we don't have to fear death. Jesus has the power over death!