When I surrendered my life to Christ and became a follower of Jesus, I remember realizing that all of my religious motions had simply that - motions. They didn't really have any effect on the person I was. The religious rituals had no soul penetration, no life penetration. A chapter-a-day podcast from Hebrews 6. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Allowing the persecuted Jesus movement to take over the most powerful Empire on earth was, I believe, one of the most strategically shrewd moves the Prince of this World has ever made this side of the Garden of Eden. A chapter-a-day podcast from Hebrews 5. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I've observed along my life journey that human traditions die hard. A chapter-a-day podcast from Hebrews 4. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Most of us know how it feels when our familiar old, foundational, software we use every day gets upgraded and suddenly everything is different. That's what the original audience of "Hebrews" was feeling. That, on steroids. A chapter-a-day podcast from Hebrews 3. The text of every chapter-a-day post can be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

If I truly believe what I say I believe then my perception of, and attitude toward, death is forever altered. A chapter-a-day podcast from Hebrews 2. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

At this point, I believe I have blogged through every chapter of the Great Story at least twice, with many having been revisited four or five times. So why keep going? A chapter-a-day podcast from Hebrews 1. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Some of the more fascinating discoveries in the excavation of my family history have been the bad blood that exists between individuals and family units. A chapter-a-day podcast from Obadiah. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Perhaps the most radical paradigm shift Jesus unleashed was that the "temple" was no longer bricks-and-mortar but flesh-and-blood. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 28. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Not only do we "see only what the camera wants us to see" but increasingly I realize that algorithms ensure "I only see what I want to see." A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 27. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast can be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In the quiet this morning, I can't help but ponder the difference I see between Jesus and the religious system that killed Him and ponder Jesus' words: "My Kingdom is not of this world." A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 26. The text version of every chapter-a-day podcast may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.