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Following Jesus by Learning and Living the Bible
Episodes
Wednesday Apr 24, 2024
Wednesday Apr 24, 2024
Learning to Pray with the Apostle Paul | Colossians 1:3-12
Prayer is challenging.
One of the ways we can learn to pray is by reading and reflecting on the prayers of God's saints in the Bible. So I find Paul's prayers to be insightful and challenging.
Colossians 1:3-12
3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; 5 because of the hope reserved for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel 6 which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth; 7 just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, 8 and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.
9 For this reason we also, since the day we heard about it, have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;11 strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all perseverance and patience; joyously 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
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The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
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Thursday Apr 18, 2024
Thursday Apr 18, 2024
What kind of father is God the Father?
What is God like? What kind of Father is He?
This sermon introduces the Trinity and reflects on God as Father, helping us see that knowing God as Father is good for us.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Thursday Apr 11, 2024
Thursday Apr 11, 2024
Four Final Reflections on Faith and Politics
On this episode we wrap up our series on Faith and Politics with four final reflections.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Thursday Mar 28, 2024
Thursday Mar 28, 2024
What's Better than Criticizing Culture?
Fact: it’s easier to criticize “them” - those people out there - than to do the hard work needed to offer something better.
Post mocking memes.
Ridicule on Reels.
Use spiteful or derogatory rhetoric.
That’s easy.
But the early Christians model a more powerful path. They show us what's better than criticizing the culture and what's more powerful for changing culture.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Thursday Mar 21, 2024
Thursday Mar 21, 2024
How to Live in Exile?
Since the New Testament, describes those of us who follow Jesus as foreigners and exiles, how does God want people to live in exile? In this episode, we look at Jeremiah 29 and 1 Peter 2-3 to answer that question.
Jeremiah 29:4-7
4 “This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and father sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may give birth to sons and daughters; and grow in numbers there and do not decrease. 7 Seek the prosperity of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord in its behalf; for in its prosperity will be your prosperity.’
1 Peter 2:11-12
11 Beloved, I urge you as foreigners and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts, which wage war against the soul. 12 Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God on the day of visitation.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Thursday Mar 14, 2024
Thursday Mar 14, 2024
Reflections on Healthy Detachment and Civil Disobedience
In this episode, I offer some reflections on two questions:
1. With all the anxiety, fear, and emotion around the political season, what should the disposition of disciples of Jesus be?
2. When should we disobey the governing authorities?
At the heart of this episode is this: as disciples of Jesus our deepest allegiance is to Jesus and His kingdom and hope lies with Him. So our investment of energy and emotion is with that kingdom, and our prayer is "Your kingdom come, Your will be done."
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Wednesday Mar 06, 2024
Wednesday Mar 06, 2024
The Values of God's Kingdom are Good for the World
Christianity emerged in a world vastly different from the values espoused by followers of Christ. Slavery was assumed a necessary part of a functioning society and slaves could be thought of as living property and tools. An adulterous wife was a disgrace to be dealt with harshly, but men were free (even expected!) to have numerous sexual partners. Infants were routinely abandoned, left in the wild to die. Care for the poor, weak, and marginalized was laughable, contrary to all good sense. And a god who would sacrifice himself for others by dying the most shameful death of all could be pictured as a jackass on a cross!
But as Christianity spread, the values of Christ - values now taken for granted as good and right - transformed the Roman Empire and the world.
To be fair, the Church has not always lived up to the values she espouses. Nevertheless, over the course of history the values of the Christian faith have brought great good to the world and our society needs Christians to bring these values into the world today.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Thursday Feb 29, 2024
Thursday Feb 29, 2024
A Foreigner in Your Own Land
Here’s a question for you: are you an American who happens to be a Christian or are you a Christian who happens to live in America?
In other words, what is your core identity that shapes your beliefs, values, and practices? Is it being citizen of the USA (or whatever country you live in)? Or is it your allegiance to King Jesus?
Philippians 3:20 says that followers of Jesus are citizens of heaven, regardless of what city or nation they live in.
And 1 Peter says we are exiles and foreigners.
What does all of this mean for how we engage with our society and the politics of our country?
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com.
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Thursday Feb 22, 2024
Thursday Feb 22, 2024
What is the Purpose of Government?
The Bible is a bit conflicted about human government.
In an ideal world, God would be king and his will would be done on earth as in heaven. Humans would live in loyal partnership with him and serve a viceroys of his rule, extending his aims and agendas on earth. That was the plan when God created the world and human beings.
The problem? We don’t live in an ideal world.
We live after the fall in Genesis 3 and outside of Eden. So now it’s fair to say that most people don’t submit to God’s kingship. Many who claim actually don’t. And even those who do, do so incompletely and imperfectly.
This is where government comes in. Human government is necessary to manage and mitigate that chaos that ensues when humans are left to their own devices.
This episode explores how it's supposed to do that.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.
Friday Feb 16, 2024
Friday Feb 16, 2024
In this episode, I give a short update on life and ministry and then explore this question: How does our discipleship to Jesus affect our political engagement?
The fact is that since the beginning proclaiming Jesus as Lord has been a political statement with huge implications. For example, in Thessalonica, the accusation agains the apostle Paul was that he acted "contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus" (Acts 17:7).
So our loyalty to King Jesus has to shape our political engagement.
Free 30 Page eBook to help you Hear and Heed the Bible:
Support this ministry:
Set up a recurring monthly or a one-time donation at the link below.
http://worldfamilymissions.org/john-whittaker/
The Listener’s Commentary - In-depth teaching through books of the Bible to help you learn the Bible for yourself:
https://www.listenerscommentary.com
Connect with John:
Social Media- connect on facebook and instagram
Email - john@johnwhittaker.net
If you've been helped by this teaching leave a review and share freely - on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, via email.