I love this Quote by Millard Erickson. "God is not far off. In the Holy Spirit, the Triune God comes close, so close as to actually enter into each believer. He is even more intimate with us now than in the incarnation. Through the operation of the Spirit, he has truly become Immanuel. God is with us."

In this podcast episode, we'll be looking at who the Holy Spirit is. I want to encourage you that the Spirit of God is one of our greatest assets as followers of Jesus. I hope that you find this episode helpful and encouraging. 

C.S. Lewis said, "Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse." So what was He? Who was He? In this episode of the podcast, I have 2 goals. The first is to help answer the question, "Who was Jesus?" However, we're doing it in a bit of a different way. I'm going to walk through some particular scriptures to help each listener feel equipped to begin to find answers to tough questions by themselves. In this way, I am looking to show that anyone can find answers to some of the most difficult questions we face in life.

In this episode, we explore this complex and difficult question. It's not difficult because it's confusing; rather, it's difficult because so many things in life rely upon our understanding of who God is. I hope you find this to be an encouragement and feel more equipped to follow Jesus.

Scriptures: John 4:24; Genesis 1:1; John 1:3; Revelation 1:8; Exodus 3:14; Psalm 90:2; John 1:4; Ephesians 1:19-23

Definition and some sources taken from: www.gotquestions.org/who-is-God.html

This podcast episode's goal is to build excitement for the Bible. By understanding what the Bible is, we can be equipped to approach God with confidence and security. This is the Word of God, which means it is trustworthy and true. Everything in our lives can be helpfully compared to its teachings and criteria for living. This is our access to the voice of God.

We all have different questions at different points in time in our lives. We can't avoid that. However, some questions are persistent. Often these persistent questions are about our faith. How do I know I can trust the bible? Who really is God? What about Jesus, and how am I supposed to become more like Him? In this episode of the podcast, we explore some of the basic answers and look ahead to answer each question in a fuller way.

The apostle Paul said, "We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other." The lack of urgency in church involvement has been a burden to me for some time. It hurts my heart to observe what appears to be an apathetic mentality towards committed church involvement. I believe the statistics would affirm my observation that many people who would claim to be Jesus' followers are causal at best. Not all, but many. In this podcast episode, I open my heart and process this reality through the lens of Romans 12:1-8. I hope you find it helpful.

"You won't experience God's best because you behave and do the right thing. You'll experience His best because when your heart is aligned with the heart of God, you unlock this in your life." As we dive into this episode and answer the question, "How do you know God wants the best for me" I truly hope you find yourself encouraged, knowing that the God of the universe is defending, protecting, and advocating for you.

In this episode, taken from our local youth gathering, Jon O'Neil leads us through several scripture passages that help us understand the teachings of the scriptures, the apostles, and Jesus himself regarding our eternity! So, how can you know if Jesus is the only way to heaven?

When you're cornered and asked a question about your faith that you can't answer, it can be intimidating, discouraging, and even leave you questioning your beliefs. This podcast episode is designed to provide you with some basic answers to a fundamental question about our faith in Jesus. How do you know... the gospel is reliable? This is not an exhaustive presentation, but it is designed to help you build a platform of confidence so that the next time you are questioned about your faith in Jesus, or you are sharing your faith in Jesus, you feel more secure in defending it. Also, you will find resources here to help in further exploration.

YouTube Copyright

Audio Clip is taken from: “The Reliability of the Gospels | William Lane Craig |#CLIP”

https://youtu.be/xuY8KPx_rtU

List of prophecies:

https://www.gotquestions.org/prophecies-of-Jesus.html [original]

https://printer.gotquestions.net/GeneratePF?articleId=44665 [printable copy]

Holy Spirit Inspired Scripture Quote:

Henry, Matthew. Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume. 2 Peter 1:19-21. Hendrickson, 1994.

Lewis Article explaining C.S. Lewis' statements:

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/is-c-s-lewiss-liar-lord-or-lunatic-argument-unsound/

How do I get close to God? We all ask this question often and often come up short. Is there a question that has more impact on our day-to-day lives? Maybe not. How connected or disconnected we are from Christ directly impacts us. We can't solve this entire issue in a single episode, and there isn't a magic pill to take or a magic phrase to say that solves our problems. But, today's talk is designed to give a practical approach to taking a step towards closeness with God.

Questions to consider more:

1.) How would you describe your current relationship with God?

2.) When others aren’t looking, do you live the same way? Do you act the same at church or home as you do with friends in private?

3.) Is there sin in your life that no one knows about?

4.) What is your next step with Jesus this week?

About the Podcast:

Life is full of high highs and low lows. Thank goodness we don't know what's coming next; we'd be worrying all the time. Here on the "Things That Matter Most" podcast, we dissect practical, spiritual, and cultural issues using Jesus' message as our starting point. My goal is that you find yourself encouraged, challenged, and equipped to live more like Christ every day.