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When you find yourself unable to move forward in life, it’s probably because you’re focusing on the obstacle rather than the objective. Remember nothing is impossible for God...He specializes in the impossible.

Jason and Tori Benham equip couples and families to face fear, panic and anxiety that would otherwise prevent us from doing what God has called us to do. They speak from firsthand experience about panic attacks, paralyzing fear and sleepless nights. They also describe a proven biblical and brain-based process that helped set them free from these kinds of debilitating struggles. The 3-step plan of attack involves recognizing what’s happening, renouncing the lie, and replacing it with the truth.

What is the fruit of sin? Step into the briar patch of humanity and feel a few thistles. Shame. Fear. Disgrace. Discouragement. Anxiety. Haven’t our hearts been caught in these brambles?

The heart of Jesus, however, had not. Jesus never knew the fruits of sin—until he became sin for us. And when he did, all the emotions of sin tumbled in on him. Can’t you hear the emotion in his prayer at the Cross? “My God, my God, why have you rejected me?” (Matthew 27:46). These are not the words of a saint. This is the cry of a sinner. He stood silent as a million guilty verdicts echoed in the tribunal of heaven.

Do you want to know the most amazing thing about the One who gave up the crown of heaven for a crown of thorns? He did it for you. Just for you.

Read more He Chose the Nails: What God Did to Win Your Heart

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Live by the principles in God's Word and you'll experience His blessings.

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Episode 2.87

Matthew: A Jewish Gospel That Won’t Stop Talking About Gentiles

In this opening episode of our new series Narrative Juxtaposition: How the Bible Speaks Through Story Placement, Michael and Zach explore a provocative question: If Matthew is the most Jewish of the four Gospels, why do Gentiles keep stealing the spotlight?

Matthew is structured to emphasize Jesus as the fulfillment of Israel’s story—Abraham’s seed, David’s son, the new Moses. The Gospel is saturated with fulfillment formulas, Torah echoes, and covenant themes. Yet at key narrative moments, Gentiles are the ones who recognize, worship, and confess Jesus rightly—while Israel’s leaders hesitate, misunderstand, or resist.

We trace these narrative placements carefully: the Gentile women in the genealogy, the Magi contrasted with Jerusalem’s indifference, the Roman centurion whose faith astonishes Jesus, the persistent Canaanite woman, and the Roman executioner who confesses Christ at the cross. These are not random anecdotes. They function as theological commentary embedded in the story itself.

Along the way, we explore how Matthew uses Gentiles as narrative mirrors—exposing unbelief, redefining covenant membership around faith rather than ethnicity, and foreshadowing the global scope of the kingdom. The Gospel’s beginning and end are bookended by Gentile worship, culminating in the Great Commission to all nations.

This episode models how careful attention to story placement can reveal theological depth often missed in isolated readings. In Matthew, placement preaches.

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