Exploring My Strange Bible

Exploring the themes of resurrection and new creation in Daniel Chapter 12, reflecting on hope for the future and Old Testament roots. Discussing challenges faced by Daniel and God's people, intense encounters, visions of future kingdoms, and historical persecution. Delving into the concept of defeating death through resurrection hope, the arrival of Jesus Christ, and the tension between present struggles and future kingdom completion.

The podcast explores faithfulness in exile through the story of Daniel and his friends, highlighting their struggles to remain loyal to God in a foreign land. It delves into themes of righteousness, integrity, and redemption, emphasizing the importance of staying true to one's beliefs despite societal pressures. The chapters discuss Daniel's unwavering commitment to God, his heartfelt prayer of confession, and the significance of God's righteousness in maintaining relationships and seeking justice and mercy.

The book of Daniel is a story about a group of Israelites who have been exiled from Babylon, and the whole point is to explore what it means to be God’s people when you’re a minority. This book is about the struggle to maintain faithfulness and the struggle to maintain hope. What does it mean to be people who maintain hope and a way of life that says that Jesus is the king of the world? Welcome to Daniel Chapter 7. This whole story is portraying the four characters as models or examples of resistance to the empire. One night Daniel has a dream that gives us a new perspective on things… Listen in to learn more..

I did this teaching a couple of years ago about Daniel Chapter 3. It is a famous story in the Old Testament about the three guys who get thrown into this Babylonian furnace because they won’t worship an idol of the kingdom of Babylon as if it is God. Because most people are introduced to this story as a children’s story, they miss out on the extremely adult themes in this chapter. This is not a children’s story. It is an example of how nations exult their power, national security, and the economy as if they were God. Let’s dive in and learn together.

This first message explores chapter 2 of Daniel. Daniel is a weird book that has a misconception that it is only about ends of timelines. In fact, there is a lot of hope in Daniel too. This episode addresses a story that develops themes from page 1 of Genesis. Get ready for surprises! Let’s dive in…

Exploring the contrast between the Israelites' experience at Mount Sinai and the new invitation through Jesus, this podcast delves into themes of holiness, God's love, shedding burdens, endurance in faith, encountering God's holiness at Mount Sinai and Mount Zion, and the transformative process of becoming more like Jesus. It challenges listeners to reflect on their imperfections and choose allegiance to God.

Delve into the theme of faith in Hebrews, highlighting bold examples of trust in God, biblical faith as defined by the pastor, and the importance of faith in Jesus. Explore stories of unwavering faith from figures like Noah, Abraham, and Sarah, emphasizing faith as a transformative response intertwined with endurance and hope. Navigate the nuances of faith through Greek words, viewing it as a tangible link to one's hopes. Challenge the notion of blind faith by emphasizing the importance of reasoning, evidence, and obedience in one's belief.

The second half of Hebrews Chapter 10 is one of the stiffest and most challenging warnings that the pastor who wrote the letter gave to this early Christian community. Why doe the author get so intense? Why does this pastor really want the people in this early church community to examine their very motives for following Jesus? What’s up with these challenges? Why is there risk involved in the adventure of following Jesus? More in this episode…

This section is about showing that Jesus is the human embodiment of the priesthood from the Old Testament. Why should we care about Jesus of Nazareth now in the 21st century? The pastor who wrote this letter is convinced that that matters a lot. In fact, the very meaning of Jesus’ life and the resurrection affects your ability to see that he is your priest. Learn more in this episode.

This section is based off of Chapter 6 of the Letters to the Hebrews. It's the pastor's meditation on the nature of God’s covenant promises. What does it mean for people to live as if God really meant what he said when he made his covenant promises to bless all of the nations through Abraham? Why is this such a big deal? Why do promises that God made to somebody thousands of years ago matter to us? We explore these questions in this episode.