Pondering the Bible

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Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison continue “Pondering the Bible” (Season 18, Episode 30) by finishing Romans 13:8–14 (RSV), emphasizing that Christians should avoid debt except the ongoing “debt” of loving others, since loving a neighbor fulfills the law. They discuss how chapter and verse divisions can affect interpretation, the severe consequences of debt in Rome (including high interest and slavery), and concerns that some Christians used “debts forgiven” language to justify not repaying loans or taxes, risking Roman backlash against the faith. Paul’s summary of the commandments echoes Jesus’ teaching to love God and love neighbor, highlighting sanctification as visible behavior. They also explore Paul’s end-times urgency—living as if Christ could return soon—and his list of sins to avoid, noting both outward and internal sins like quarreling and jealousy. They conclude by previewing Romans 14:1–12 next week. 

00:00 Welcome and Setup
 00:29 Read Romans 13 8-14
 01:38 Owe Nothing But Love
 02:45 Rome Debt and Taxes
 08:00 Love Fulfills the Law
 10:34 Wake Up End Times
 14:09 Cast Off Darkness
 18:30 Final Wrap and Next Week

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Romans 13:1–7: Christians, Government, and Paying Taxes Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison host season 18, episode 29 of Pondering the Bible, continuing their verse-by-verse study of Romans with Romans 13:1–7 (RSV) on submitting to governing authorities, the government’s use of the “sword,” and paying taxes. Rocky explains that Romans 1–11 addresses salvation, while chapters 12–16 focus on daily sanctification and how Christians should behave publicly, including toward government. They wrestle with how Paul’s teaching fits under corrupt rulers like Nero and later examples such as Hitler, Idi Amin, and modern Haiti, outlining two theological views: God appoints all governments for purposes unknown, or only legitimate governments carry God’s authority, though defining legitimacy is difficult. They discuss when disobedience may be required if laws conflict with faith, the challenge of defining “resistance,” and conclude that Christians should pay taxes while still being able to protest. They preview continuing Romans 13 next week. 

00:00 Welcome and Catch Up
 00:48 Romans 13 Reading
 02:30 Why Government Matters
 04:40 Nero and God’s Will
 08:12 Legitimate vs Illegitimate
 09:58 When to Resist
 12:21 Faith Conflicts Today
 15:35 What Government Is For
 17:14 The Sword and Justice
 18:53 Taxes and Christian Duty
 22:24 Wrapping Up and Next Week

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Romans 12:9–21 Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison host Season 18, Episode 28 of Pondering the Bible, moving into Romans 12:9–21 (RSV). They frame Romans 1–11 as explaining salvation and chapter 12 as answering “now what,” describing what a saved life looks like through love expressed in the church and beyond it. They connect spiritual gifts and service to love, discuss Paul’s forceful, imperative tone about zeal and active sanctification, and contrast Christian humility with Greek cultural expectations of public honor. The conversation highlights blessing persecutors, harmony, rejecting revenge, living peaceably, and loving the world outside the church. Paul’s commands are tied to Jesus’ teaching and supported with Old Testament citations, culminating in Romans 12:21 as a daily guiding “master code.” 

00:00 Welcome and Banter
 01:04 Romans 12 Tonight
 01:18 Reading Romans
 12:9-21 03:08 Genuine Love and Honor
 06:30 Zeal and Daily Sanctification
 09:09 Bless and Live Humbly
 13:27 Peace With the World
 17:44 Overcome Evil With Good
 21:53 Wrap Up and Next Episode

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison discuss Romans 12:1–8 (RSV), marking Paul’s shift from salvation debates in chapters 7–11 to practical sanctification—how saved believers should live daily. They explain presenting one’s body as a “living sacrifice” as giving one’s whole life to God in grateful response to God’s mercy, not legalism. They unpack verse 2’s call to avoid conformity to the world and pursue transformation through renewed minds, likening it to metamorphosis. Paul’s warning against pride is tied to the fact that gifts come from God, not personal merit. Using the body metaphor, they stress Christianity is lived in community and gifts exist to bless the church. They briefly define gifts listed (prophecy, service, teaching, exhortation, generous giving, leadership/administration, mercy). 

00:00 Welcome and Setup
 00:15 Travel Catch Up
 00:38 Romans 12 Reading
 02:21 Living Sacrifice
 06:36 Renewed Mind
 08:33 Humility and Grace
 11:27 One Body Many Parts
 13:15 Spiritual Gifts Explained
 22:10 Next Week and Closing

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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 Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison return for Season 18, Episode 26 of “Pondering the Bible,” finishing Romans 11:22–36. They discuss God’s kindness and severity, including debate over whether believers can lose salvation, with Rocky arguing “once saved, always saved” while acknowledging traditions that read “cut off” as loss of salvation and offering sanctification as evidence of genuine faith. Using Paul’s olive tree imagery, they explain how Gentiles are grafted in by grace and Jews can be grafted back in through faith in Christ, cautioning Gentiles against arrogance and anti-Jewish exclusion. They unpack Paul’s “mystery” about Israel’s hardening until the Gentiles come in, consider differing views of “all Israel will be saved,” affirm God’s irrevocable promises, and end with Paul’s doxology meant for congregational singing. 

00:00 Welcome Back Intro
 00:17 Travel Catch Up
 00:45 Romans 11 Setup
 01:26 Kindness And Severity
 05:09 Can You Lose Salvation
 08:42 Grafted In Again
 10:55 Mystery Of Israel
 15:02 All Israel Saved Debate
 17:28 Irrevocable Promises
 18:12 Mercy For All
 20:12 Doxology Explained
 22:15 Final Reflections Outro

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Important Note: Next Episode will be Sept. 27th

Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison mark five years of “Pondering the Bible” (240 episodes heard in 112 countries and 795 cities) before continuing their Romans study in season 18, episode 25, covering Romans 11:11–21 and noting translation differences in paragraph breaks. They discuss Paul’s question about whether Israel stumbled to be damned, his emphatic “by no means,” and the idea that Jewish rejection opened salvation to Gentiles to provoke Jewish jealousy leading to some Jews being saved, clarifying that “full inclusion” refers to the completeness of salvation, not all Jews. They explore “life from the dead” as end-times resurrection (citing R.C. Sproul), the firstfruits/root/branches and olive tree grafting illustration, debate what the “root” represents, and emphasize Paul’s warning that Gentile believers must not boast, since God can also remove them. 

00:00 Welcome and Milestone
 01:13 Romans 11 Setup
 02:42 Reading the Passage
 04:25 Stumbled or Hardened
 06:14 Jealousy and Inclusion
 09:03 Save Some of Them
 12:06 Life from the Dead
 14:22 Firstfruits and Root
 17:09 Grafted In Warning
 22:12 Gentile Pride Check
 23:50 Travel Break and Wrap

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison record Season 18, Episode 24 of Pondering the Bible from a home studio during a heat wave and begin Romans 11:1–10 (RSV). They discuss Paul’s argument that God has not rejected Israel, pointing to Paul’s own Jewish lineage and to Elijah’s despair and God’s preserved 7,000 as evidence of a faithful remnant. The hosts connect this to the mixed Jewish-Gentile Roman church and its conflict, emphasizing that salvation is by grace, not works, and addressing foreknowledge versus forechoice. They explain “the elect” as Jews who accept Jesus and interpret the “hardened” through accurate Old Testament citations from Deuteronomy/Isaiah and Psalm 69, warning against complacent confidence in works. They plan to cover Romans 11:11–27 next. 

00:00 Welcome and Setup
 00:54 Starting Romans 11
 01:47 Reading the Passage
 03:18 Has God Rejected Israel
 03:59 Paul the Benjaminite
 05:42 Elijah and the Remnant
 11:45 Chosen by Grace
 13:47 Grace Not Works
 15:56 The Elect and Hardening
 17:00 Stupor Quote Explained
 20:10 David’s Warning Psalm
 21:55 Wrap Up and Next Week
 23:23 Closing Joke and Signoff

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Romans 10:14–21: Hearing, Preaching, and Israel’s Response Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison continue “Pondering the Bible” in Romans 10:14–21 (RSV), aiming to finish chapter 10. They unpack Paul’s chain of questions about calling, believing, hearing, preaching, and being sent, suggesting it reads more clearly in reverse: God sends a preacher, people hear, believe, then call on Jesus. They discuss why this passage is controversial, since Paul quotes Isaiah, Psalms, and Deuteronomy throughout and sometimes not word-for-word, raising debate about context and accuracy. Paul argues Israel has heard and had both general revelation (creation) and specific revelation (Scripture), yet many still reject the gospel, while Gentiles accept it. Using William Barclay’s outline, they frame the section as four questions with four answers emphasizing Israel’s responsibility for unbelief. 

00:00 Welcome and Setup 
00:35 Reading Romans 
10 02:14 Why So Confusing 
02:26 Chain of Questions 
09:34 Isaiah and Faith 
12:43 Have They Heard 
16:30 Israel and Gentiles 19:52 Hands Held Out 
22:03 Barclay Simplifies 
25:27 Final Thoughts 
26:16 Closing Sign Off

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Romans 10:1–13 — Zeal Without Knowledge and Salvation by Faith Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison discuss Romans 10:1–13 (RSV) in season 18, episode 22, focusing on Paul’s anguish that many Jews reject Christ despite serious religious zeal. They contrast rigorous Sabbath rules and man-made traditions with “God’s righteousness,” arguing that Israel sought self-established righteousness rather than submitting to God. They unpack “Christ is the end of the law” as both fulfillment and the end of the Mosaic covenant as a means of salvation, replaced by the covenant of grace. Quoting Leviticus and Deuteronomy, they emphasize humans cannot perfectly keep the law, so salvation comes through confessing Jesus as Lord and believing in the resurrection, which Paul treats as justification. They explain Paul’s Isaiah reference and conclude that salvation is for anyone—Jew or Greek—who calls on the Lord.
 00:00 Welcome and Setup
 00:34 Romans 10 Reading
 02:27 Paul’s Heart for Israel
 04:06 Zeal Without Knowledge
 05:18 Sabbath Rules Example
 08:13 Cafeteria Faith Today
 09:56 Christ Ends the Law
 13:40 Law vs Faith Explained
 17:46 Confess and Believe
 20:40 Isaiah and Assyria Story
 25:32 Everyone Can Be Saved
 27:04 Wrap Up and Joke

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Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock 

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Ken Corkins and pastor Rocky Ellison continue Romans in season 18, episode 21, finishing Romans 9:14–33 from the Revised Standard Version. They discuss Paul’s “therefore/what shall we say” style of arguing against a fictitious objector and explore whether God is unjust in choosing whom to show mercy and whom to harden, using Moses, Pharaoh, and the potter-and-clay image. Rocky notes these passages support Calvinistic predestination but finds “how dare you question God” unsatisfying, explaining his move to Methodist/Arminian free-will theology while still stressing God’s mystery and goodness and the legitimacy of asking questions. They cover Paul’s Old Testament citations (Hosea and Isaiah) with historical context about Israel’s division and Assyria’s conquest, and conclude with Paul’s main point: Gentiles attain righteousness by faith, while Israel stumbles by pursuing law-based works; salvation comes down to faith in Christ.

00:00 Welcome and Heatwave
 00:44 Romans 9 Reading
 03:48 Is God Unjust
 05:38 Mercy and Pharaoh
 09:13 Potter and Clay
 15:01 Wrath and Calling
 17:22 Hosea and Isaiah Context
 23:28 Faith Not Works Finale
 26:29 Closing Thoughts
 27:53 Sign Off

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Find us at www.pondergmc.org. 

Feedback is welcome: [email protected] 

Music performed by the Ponder GMC worship team.

Cover Art: Joe Wagner

Recorded, edited and mixed by Snikrock