Paul’s question, “Has Christ been divided?” opens up a searching conversation about baptism, discipleship, and what truly unites or divides the people of God. 

In this episode on 1 Corinthians 1:13–17, Krisan Marotta explores why Paul is glad he baptized so few in Corinth, what it means (and doesn’t mean) to be baptized “in someone’s name,” and why the cross of Christ—not any ritual, leader, or style—is at the center of genuine Christian faith. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• How the Corinthians’ factionalism grew out of misplaced loyalties to gifted teachers rather than to Christ Himself
• What it meant in the first century to be “baptized in the name of” someone, and why that language is tied to being someone’s disciple
• How the ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus clarify the relationship between making disciples and performing baptisms
• Why Jesus’ command to baptize “in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” guards against gathering followers for ourselves instead of for Him
• Three major ways Christians understand baptism today—sacrament, ordinance, or symbol—and how this passage helps us evaluate those views
• Why Paul can say Christ did not send him “to baptize, but to preach the gospel,” and what that reveals about what is essential for salvation
• How “cleverness of speech” can empty the cross of its power, and the modern temptation to make the gospel more attractive by downplaying sin and the cross
• What 1 Corinthians 1 suggests about denominations, unity, and why theology sometimes must divide us—and when it should not
• How to distinguish between essentials of the gospel and non-essential practices, while resisting the urge to judge fellow believers over preferences and traditions

After listening, you’ll come away with a clearer understanding of where baptism fits in God’s purposes: a meaningful sign that points to faith, but not the source of salvation itself. You’ll be better equipped to evaluate teaching by its faithfulness to the gospel rather than its style, to think more wisely about church divisions and denominations, and to pursue a kind of unity that grows out of shared allegiance to Christ and His cross—not to any particular leader, ritual, or worship style.

Series: 1 Corinthians: Pride & Prejudice in the Church

Paul turns from greeting to confrontation in 1 Corinthians 1:10–13, and it all centers on a church that loves gifted teachers more than it loves the gospel. In this episode, Krisan Marotta traces how the Corinthian believers slid from healthy appreciation of leaders into harsh judgment of Paul himself—and shows why their real problem was not personality clashes, but a distorted view of wisdom, authority, and the message of Christ crucified. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Why you cannot understand 1 Corinthians 1:10–13 without following Paul’s argument through the first four chapters of the letter
• How clues in the text, in Acts, and in 2 Corinthians reveal that some in Corinth were not just forming “teams,” but actively rejecting Paul’s authority
• The sharp contrast between Apollos—eloquent, powerful, and persuasive—and Paul, whose speech many in Corinth considered unimpressive and contemptible 
• How the culture of Greek sophists shaped Corinth’s love of flashy rhetoric and made them vulnerable to valuing style over substance
• What Paul really means when he urges them to “agree” and have “no divisions”—not papering over differences, but uniting around a true understanding of the gospel 
• Why the cross exposes the foolishness of chasing spiritual celebrities and invites us instead to cling to the content of the message, however ordinary the messenger
• How this passage challenges modern churches that prize entertainment, stories, and sound bites more than careful, truthful teaching of Scripture 

After listening, you’ll see that Paul’s concern is not hurt feelings or bruised ego, but the danger of a church drifting from the gospel while imagining itself wise and spiritual. You’ll be better equipped to recognize the pull of “style over substance” in your own context, to evaluate teachers by the truth they proclaim rather than the charisma they project, and to pursue unity that grows out of a shared, accurate grasp of Christ and His cross.

Series: 1 Corinthians: Pride and Prejudice in the Church 

Paul opens 1 Corinthians not with scolding but with a greeting that quietly raises life-and-death questions. In this first episode on 1 Corinthians 1:1–9, Krisan explores how Paul’s introduction challenges easy assumptions about salvation, church life, and spiritual maturity—inviting us to see faith not as a finished transaction but as a lifelong response to the call of Christ. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Two very different ways to read 1 Corinthians: as a book of practical tips for “already-settled” Christians, or as a searching test of whether we are truly living out the gospel
• Why Paul insists on his authority as an apostle “by the will of God” and why that claim matters for how we treat his words today
• What the word “church” meant in the first century—and how the mixed, often volatile congregation in Corinth mirrors the complexity of churches now
• What it means to be “sanctified in Christ Jesus” and called “saints,” even while ongoing sin and confusion remain very real
• How Paul can thank God for the Corinthians’ gifts in speech, knowledge, and spiritual abilities, even as those very gifts are being misused
• The tension between real warning and real assurance: God’s faithfulness to confirm believers to the end, and Paul’s concern that some in Corinth may be fooling themselves
• The centrality of Christ in these opening verses and why you cannot embrace Jesus while setting Paul aside—or embrace Paul while ignoring Jesus

After listening, you’ll see Paul’s greeting as much more than polite letter-writing. You’ll come away with a clearer sense of what it means to belong to God’s people, to take Paul’s apostleship seriously, and to measure your own life by the implications of the gospel—not just once at conversion, but in the ongoing choices, loyalties, and hopes that shape every day.

Series: 1 Corinthians: Pride & Prejudice in the Church

Paul’s time in Corinth was marked by both turmoil and unusual protection. In this episode on Acts 18, Krisan traces how God plants a church in one of the most decadent cities of the ancient world and prepares us to understand the letters of 1 and 2 Corinthians by first seeing the city, the culture, and the people Paul met there. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Why Corinth’s geography, wealth, and reputation for immorality matter for reading 1 Corinthians
• How Paul meets Aquila and Priscilla, and why their partnership becomes so important for the early church
• The significance of Paul’s tentmaking, financial gifts from Macedonia, and his decision not to “sell” the gospel
• What happens when Paul turns from the synagogue to the Gentiles, and why Crispus and Sosthenes stand out in the story
• Gallio’s ruling in Acts 18 and how it temporarily protects the Christian movement under the legal umbrella of Judaism
• How reports from Chloe’s household shape the Q&A structure of 1 Corinthians
• What the Corinthian church’s struggles reveal about discipleship, temptation, and the slow work of learning righteousness in a corrupt culture

After listening, you’ll have a clearer picture of the world behind 1 and 2 Corinthians: the city Paul walked, the people he loved, and the pressures they faced. You’ll be better equipped to read these letters as pastoral responses to real believers in a hard place—and to see your own ongoing struggle with sin, not as proof you don’t belong to Christ, but as the very arena where God’s Spirit is at work reshaping your desires and your life. 

Series: 1 Corinthians: Pride & Prejudice in the church

Many sincere Christians know the promises of the gospel but still quietly wonder, “Am I really safe with God—especially when I still sin?” 

In this episode on 1 John 5:13–21, we walk through John’s closing words and see how he means to give believers settled confidence: confidence that they truly have eternal life, that their sin cannot ultimately undo it, and that the message they’ve believed is the one true word from the living God. 

In this week’s episode, we explore:

• Why John wrote this letter “so that you may know that you have eternal life,” and how that assurance is rooted in trusting the Son of God, not in reading your spiritual temperature day by day
• How verses 14–15 about asking “according to His will” are really about confidence in God’s promise to give righteousness and eternal life to those who ask Him
• The difference between prayer that seeks God’s will and prayer that tries to use God—illustrated by Israel’s misuse of the ark, a conflicted wedding-day prayer, and a very honest story about wanting instant healing rather than deeper faith
• What John means by “sin not leading to death” and “sin leading to death,” and why this is best understood as the contrast between sins committed in the context of genuine faith and sins that flow from a settled rejection of God
• Why believers are “righteous sinners”: people who still fall, yet grieve their sin, long to be free from it, and can be prayed for with confidence that God will give life and growth
• How 1 John 5:18–19 reassures us that those born of God will not finally fall away into unbelief, because Jesus Himself keeps them and the evil one cannot lay hold of them
• John’s final insistence that the apostles have received true understanding from the Son of God—and his closing call, “Little children, guard yourselves from idols,” as a warning against any rival message that claims to speak for God

After listening, you’ll come away with a sturdier assurance that eternal life really is God’s gift to all who trust His Son—and that even your ongoing battle with sin cannot overturn His promise. You’ll be invited to pray with greater confidence for righteousness, to intercede wisely for others who are struggling, and to hold fast to the true Christ of Scripture while gently but firmly refusing the many “idols” and alternative gospels that compete for your trust.

Series: 1 John: Discerning the True Gospel