Reliable Truth

Today Richard's guest is Russell Levenson, author and retired Episcopal minister. Russ shares:

The longer I live, I've found I'm still kind of turning things over to the Lordship of Christ. And that is tough. And that requires humility. What am I doing with my time? How am I interacting with others? Does my relationship with others speak of one who walks in Christ?

Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us. The primary purpose of prayer is to bring us into a life of communion with the Father. That by the power of the Holy Spirit, we are increasingly conformed into the image of the Son.

Deep down in every human heart, there's a knowledge of God. And deep down in every human heart, there's a desire to communicate with God. Prayer is the main way in which we develop a relationship with our father in heaven. >>Watch on YouTube

Russ Levenson, Jr. was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama before a call to ministry in the Episcopal Church. After over 30 years of full-time service in congregations in Virginia, Tennessee, Alabama, Louisiana, Florida and Texas, Russ retired in June of 2024. His last post was Rector of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas. With over 10,000 members, St. Martin’s is the largest Anglican/Episcopal Church in the western hemisphere.

Russ attributes his pastoral style and traditional evangelical theology to several mentors over the years including Bishop Furman Stough, The Reverends John Claypool, Massey Gentry, Fleming Rutledge, Paul Zahl and his long time friend and mentor, The Late Rev. Dr. John R.W. Stott.

Russ is the author of several books including Witness to Dignity: The Life and Faith of George H.W. And Barbara Bush, with a Foreword by Jeb Bush, In God’s Grip: What Golf Can Teach us About The Gospel, with a Foreword by Jim Nantz, Witness to Belief: Conversations on Faith and Meaning, which includes personal interviews with Denzel Washington, Amy Grant, Condi Rice, Sam Waterston, Nikki Haley, Jane Goodall and others, and was named a "top ten read in religion and spirituality" for 2025 by Publisher’s Weekly.

His forthcoming novel, "The Seal," (Sunstone) a spiritually-themed thriller deemed "not for the faint of heart," is scheduled for release in the late summer of 2026. He and his wife, Laura, of over 40 years have returned to Birmingham and three adult children and two grandchildren. >>Check out Russell's books

In Parts 1 and 2, we've been studying verses in the Bible that begin with this phrase, "Do not be deceived..." Why would God give us this warning?

I believe it is because there are certain areas in our lives as human beings where we can easily be deceived. Our lives can easily be corrupted by false ideas.

Today we'll study the last of the fourth of these verses - Galatians 6:7, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap." >>Watch on YouTube

In honor of Memorial Day, we are re-airing this popular episode.

Richard's guest is WWII Marine survivor Edgar Harrell, who shared his heroic survival story at one of our Men's Breakfasts in 2019.

At the time, Sergeant Ed Harrell was the last surviving Marine of the ⁠USS Indianapolis⁠. Two years after speaking at our event, Harrell ⁠passed away⁠ at the age of 96. 

July 30, 1945: After transporting uranium for the atomic bomb that would soon be dropped on Hiroshima, the USS Indianapolis headed unaccompanied toward a small island in the South Pacific. At 12:14 a.m., she was struck by two Japanese torpedoes, rolled over, and sank.

Harrell vividly describes the horrors of being plagued by dehydration, exposure, saline poisoning, and sharks. This is a story of courage, ingenuity, and faith in God's providence in the midst of the greatest catastrophe at sea in the history of the U.S. Navy.

Want to hear more about Ed Harrell’s story? Pick up his book Out of the Depths here.

*This episode originally aired on May 29, 2023.

Who or what gets your time?

Someone shared with me that they once asked Coach Bear Bryant, "Coach, with all these national championships, is there anything you would've done differently?" He said, "Yeah, I missed my family."

My friend said, "You mean you were so busy, you kind of missed them while you were working?"

Coach Bryant answered, "No, I missed it."

You know, this is one stage of your life between father and son. If you miss it, it's a one time event. Today I'm speaking both to you young men and both to your dads back and forth.

God and your family are the things that are gonna last not only through your lifetime, but through generations. Consider doing these 2 things:

1. Be honestly inconsistent. This means resist the temptation to blame or make excuses. Own your mistakes. Learn to trust the Lord and stop trying to control the world.

2. Develop deep abiding relationships with each other. Profound friendships. Now this only happens through laying our life down for each other. You know, the thing about relationships is they can only be developed through shared history, and that takes time.

Lay down your life for each other, and you will become best friends and mutual advisors. That's the dream and the goal to aspire to.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.

⁠⁠>>Get Jerry Leachman's new book! Brave Hearts, Strong Arms⁠

Jerry Leachman of Leachman Ministries is a favorite speaker at The Center's events. Along with being an associate Chaplain in The NFL for many years, Jerry has done ministry in Guatemala, Scotland, Europe and Africa as well as all over the U.S. He and his wife Holly have been on Young Life Staff and continue to be involved with Young Life here and also internationally.

Are the ideas that we adhere to true or false?

There are four verses in the Bible that begin with this phrase, "do not be deceived." Three of these come from Paul, and one comes from James.

They all have to do with developing false ideas. They are saying to make sure you're not being deceived into believing ideas that that are contrary to the teachings of Christ. His teaching is based on truth.

Today we'll study three of these verses. Paul spoke this in 1 Corinthians 15:33, "Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”

I think he is saying, do not be blind to the fact that we are being influenced every day by people. I recently read that in our country that up until the 1950s, people's lives were primarily shaped by the culture; the culture being the family, the neighborhood, the schools, and the churches.

But today, the primary influence in people's lives are movies, television, and social media. In fact, the famous filmmaker, George Lucas says this, "The influence of the church, which used to be all powerful, has been usurped by film." >>Watch on YouTube

Are we aware of the ideas we have about life? Can ideas be dangerous?

We live in a culture that gives little thought to our ideas. And whether we are aware of it or not, we all live with a certain set of ideas.

Jesus spoke this in Luke 11:33-36,

“No one lights a lamp and puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. Your eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness.

So watch out that the light in you is not darkness. Therefore if your whole body is full of light, without any dark part, it will be wholly illuminated, as when the lamp illuminates you with its light." >>Watch on YouTube

What are the covenants that are found in the Bible?

Today we're discussing the covenants of both the Old Testament and New Testament. In the Old Testament, there was limited access to God. The priests acted as mediators between God and the people.

Because human beings inevitably failed to keep the law perfectly, animal sacrifices were required to atone for sin. And these sacrifices had to be repeated continually, highlighting their temporary and incomplete nature. That is the old covenant.

Then go to the New Testament, and we read in Hebrews 8:6, "And now He has obtained a more excellent ministry by as much as He (Jesus) is the mediator of a better covenant which has been enacted on better promises."

So basically Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant enacted on better promises. This is the new covenant, which makes the old covenant obsolete. What a blessing Jesus is to us! ⁠>>Watch on YouTube

What does it mean for Christ, who is a part of the triune life of God, to make Himself known and present within the history of Israel?

To speak about Jesus in the Old Testament raises all kinds of questions about His pre-existence. That's really a driving concern.

Today we will discuss the ways in which the Old Testament patterns and figures for us what God will ultimately do in time in Christ. So in that sense we think about the Old Testament creating a sense of anticipation for what will come in time.

From Jeremiah 23:5-6 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely, and do what is just and right in the land. In His days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which He will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior." >>Watch on YouTube

Are you troubled with guilt? Can doing good things cleanse our hearts and give us the freedom we are searching for?

No, the only way we can be forgiven is through the shed blood of Jesus for our sins.

Some people hate the idea of the necessity to shed Christ's blood. But if you take out the theology of the cross, then Good Friday and the Easter message is meaningless.

Looking in the book of Genesis and moving through the Old and New Testaments, God seems to make it quite clear. The heart of our faith is being forgiven of our sins. That's what gets us into heaven. But the forgiveness of our sins is only possible through the shed blood of Christ.

Hebrews 9:14 assures us with this promise,
"How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" >>Watch on YouTube

Why is Good Friday good? In this year's special message that Richard gives each year on Good Friday, he discusses

• Jesus' conversation with the two criminals
• The 3 hours of darkness that fell over the land
• The moment that Jesus finally died

From Luke 23:39-43, we read: "One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” 

But the other responded, and rebuking him, said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our crimes; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” 

And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

Come to Jesus today. >>Watch on YouTube