Scripture Talk by Grace Church

Jesus gets led into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted. He's taken down to his last ounce of will through hunger, discomfort, and isolation. Only then do the real temptation begin, food, security, power. Still, he resists them all with the power of God's word. In this episode, Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about temptation - to do bad things and to do the wrong good things.

Children owe a lot to their parents - life, food, shelter. Parents, in turn, know that they are fundamentally responsible for their children’s wellbeing. This applies to Biblical instruction as well. Parents should be one of the primary teachers of faith to their children. In this episode, Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about these responsibilities, how are duty to family doesn’t end, and how important family is in God’s plan.

***Editor's Note: If the audio seems to cut off suddenly, it's because we experienced a technical issue in recording. We don't know what caused it, but welcome to live production.*** This idea of God being love is something that we talk about a lot. It's one of those lines in scripture that feels like a warm blanket, but when you pull the lens out a little bit on the actual text in 1 John, the challenge to it shows through. God is love. This creates an action for us - love one another. If you don't, you're not really participating in God. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy wade into whether this means that you need to like everyone.

This particular scripture has been used as a hammer to try and put women "in their place." Yet, that doesn't seem to be Paul's actual intention in writing it. Yes, it lays out instruction and obligations for wives, but the heavier burden falls on husbands. Love your wife like Christ loves the church. So, perfectly love, perfectly sacrifice, perfectly empathize? Now whose getting the better deal? Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, Sister Brandy, and special guest Sister Gretchen Moffitt talk about what this looks like in real relationships.

God rested during creation. Through the history of God’s people, one of the ways that the showed their connection to God was by taking that same sabbath rest. The Ten Commandments even much such rest God’s law. In Hebrews, it compares sabbath rest to what we can expect in our heavenly home. Then, why do we have such a hard time making our world that little bit more heavenly by actually resting? Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about our need for rest and why it is so difficult.

Humans love a good fight. All of us feel that call in our hearts to seek revenge. It's little wonder that our world often descends into cycles of violence. Multiple times, throughout the Bible, God offers us a different picture of how we should live. The Ten Commandments tell us not to kill in order to stop constant revenge cycles. Christ challenges us to, "turn the other cheek." We don't want to hear this. It's hard, but it's what builds God world. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about stopping violence and how this relates to the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Don't worry about a thing! Everything's going to be alright. Sure, Pollyanna, you say in your mind. Turns out, it's not irresponsible optimism, it's from the Bible. In the Sermon on the Mount, Christ makes clear that if you seek after God, God will take care of you. So, don't let worry ruin your life or jealousy ruin your relationships. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about learning to be okay with what God will provide.

Surprise to no one: God care about how we live. But why? Is it because God just like watching us do things? The 10 Commandments suggest otherwise. They break neatly into - love God and love neighbor. They also connect that everything we do is connected to our relationship with God. Even beyond that, they suggest that part of how God care for God's creation is by leading people to live Godly lives. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Sister Brandy talk about how living these Godly relationships worships God and cares for people.

Three Kings arrive at the manger to see Jesus. Almost nothing in that statement is true. They weren't kings. We don't know how many of them there were just that there were three gifts. It sounds like they arrived long after the manger phase of things. Still, a number of wise men from far away arrived to see the young Jesus beginning the new world of gentiles worshipping God that we are still a part of to this day. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Brandy talk about how remarkable this really is.

The evil king almost has the hero under his thumb. The king will definitely murder our hero if given the chance. The hero and his family has to flee to a distant land to avoid the clutches of evil. This is literally the plot of Matthew 2:13-23. Herod is not happy that this Messiah has been born. He tries to do what he can to snuff the whole thing out early. But, Jospeh listens to God, and the young Christ is saved. Pastor Trey, Pastor Scott, and Brandy talk about how we also have a responsibility to protect the Good News.