Podcasts for Spiritual Growth

pod·cast    [‘pädˌkast]

Thirty years ago many of us would not know what I was writing about if I wrote that this “blog” is about “podcasts”.   Podcasts are a digital audio file made available on the Internet for downloading to a computer or mobile device, typically available as a series, new instalments of which can be received by subscribers automatically.  The origin seems to be simply a “broadCAST” on your “iPOD”, which equals PODCAST. 

As a Christian I find listening to PODCASTS very helpful to my regular diet of the “means of grace”.  My normal media device is my iPhone and this blog will apply information related to Apple devices like the iPhone or iPad, etc., but the exact same apps and ministries are available on Android devices.  Why do I “podcast” or subscribe to some ministries?  Well, other than giving me some great selections and variety, once a podcast is downloaded (usually in a WiFi zone) that program is downloaded to your device and available for you to listen to anytime, anywhere.  This takes a lot of pressure off your data plan.

I listen to my podcasts through my Bluetooth radio in my truck and often at night before I fall asleep (I use earbuds as not to awaken my bride).  I use the “Podcast” App on my phone, but if this is new territory to you this video HERE will help you find your way around an iPhone or iPad.

Ok, so let me share some of my favourite podcasts:

1. The Gospel Coalition Podcasts.   From TGC I listen to three: 

1. Help Me Teach The Bible with Nancy Guthrie.  Nancy interviews great authors and theologians that give practical advice on how to study the Bible in a way that prepares you to teach or preach through certain Books.  This is a very helpful podcast.  Normally the interviews are about an hour long.
2. Word of the Week.  TGC selects, on a weekly basis, a sermon from a pastor that is endorsed by the TGC.  These are not usually the flamboyant, celebrity pastors.  They are usually the ordinary “joes” bringing an extraordinary exposition of God’s Word.  I look forward to this immensely.
3. TGC Podcast. As they are produced these audio sessions feature lectures and workshops from their conferences as well as interviews and round table discussions on applying the gospel to the issues of our day. Several of these are available each week.  The beauty of these sessions is that they include 30 to 40 minute lectures/workshops to 10 min interviews or Q&A’s.  A great variety to listen to when you choose.

 2. I also listen to two podcasts that are fun and engaging, but include some serious topics.  These are more or less like listening to a talk show.  The topics are edifying and the atmosphere light and often humorous.  They are: 

1. The Rebel Alliance Podcast.   These are two Canadians that are reformed, Gospel-centered and relevant.  They are lots of fun to listen to and cover a wide range of Church and cultural issues. 
2. Two Thieves Podcast. This is a similar broadcast to The Rebel Alliance, but it airs from St. Louis, MO and contains more US content.  It is excellent.

3. Last but not least. I listen to Elk Point Baptist Church.  No I don’t listen to my sermons, but if someone is preaching for me, this is a handy way to listen to their sermon and be able to encourage them and also oversee the pulpit ministry of the Church. If you are working shifts and especially if you are trucking, this is a handy way of keeping up with the pulpit ministry of our Church.

Most Christian ministries have their own App but they also podcast their sermons or programs and you can listen freely through your favourite podcast-catcher.  This is a great way to select the input you want and be able to listen to it when you want.  If you aren’t podcasting, why not consider it? 

Does God "Hate" the Sinner?

Any reader of the Bible is abruptly confronted with unsettling verses in the Bible that seem to communicate that God hates sinners. Many of us have heard that “God hates sin but loves the sinner”, but these verses speak of God’s hatred for persons/sinners!   For example we read: 

• “The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” (Psalm 5:5–6, ESV)
• “The Lord tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.” (Psalm 11:5, ESV)
• “but Esau I have hated. I have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert.”” (Malachi 1:3, ESV) 

As Dr. D.A. Carson points out: “The reason is simple: sin cannot be separated from the sinner except by the forgiveness available in Christ alone. God hates lying, yes, but lying always involves a person—a liar—who chooses to lie. God cannot judge the lie without also judging the liar.”[1]  Those that believe the Gospel should not be surprised at this because we know that prior to our redemption “. . . we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, . . .” (Romans 5:10, ESV).

In Psalm 5 the word “hate” translated in English is noted as שָׂנֵא [pronounced saw·nay/] and Strong’s dictionary translates it no differently that “hate”.^[2]  In Romans 9 (which refers to the Malachian verse) the word in Greek is μισέω [pronounced mis·eh·o/] and also is translated hate or detest. ^[3]

We understand as Christians that unrepentant sinners are ALREADY condemned and experience NOW the wrath of God upon them (Note: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth . . . Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (Romans 1:18, John 3:36, ESV).

All this is incredibly difficult to understand because the Bible is also very clear about God’s love for sinners.  Romans 5:8 (ESV) is clear: “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  Not only that the very character of God is love, not hate (“Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:8, ESV).   This might suggest to some that the Bible is contradictory and erroneous.  The Christian cannot accept that answer. I would suggest the resolution of the problem is found in definitions.  I think we err to think that hatred is the opposite to love.

It is possible (and exegetically supported) that the opposite of hatred is indifference, passivity and rejection. In the classic passage of Malachi 1, God’s hatred to Esau is not as our world would define it (“to dislike intensely or passionately; feel extreme aversion for or extreme hostility toward”) but it’s God’s rejection of Esau.  To the loved Jacob, God purposes blessing and great favor – an inheritance of mammoth proportion. To the hated Esau God leaves desolate and rejected.  (See my blog post HERE.)  In Genesis 29, Rachel felt hated by God.  Why would she feel that way?  She was barren.  The people of God translated calamity or desertion as God’s hatred.  They did not attribute to God contemporary definitions of hatred.  

The ultimate hatred of God to unrepentant sinners is to leave them in their sin and allow the consequences of their sin to take their course. (“Therefore God gave them up . . . For this reason God gave them up . . .” (Romans 1:24–26, ESV).  Even in Divine discipline of professing Christians it is necessary to “. . . deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 5:5, ESV). In such a case there is a removal of Divine pleasure and protection.  Of course the ultimate hatred of God was dispensed toward His own Son on Calvary where we hear this awful cry: “. . . ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me’” (Matthew 27:46, ESV)?  

In Israel this is the worst malediction.  Shown oppositely we could say that God’s hatred is:

“The Lord bless [not bless] you and keep [discard] you;

the Lord make his face to shine upon you [turn away from you] and [not] be gracious to you;

the Lord lift up his countenance upon you  [take no notice of you]

and give you peace [unrest].” (Numbers 6:24–26, ESV)

For an eternal moment this is what Christ endured for whom He died.  But this is not the end of the story.  The presupposition in all the Bible is that God will change His disposition of “hatred” to sinners when they repent and trust Him.  Within all the warnings and terrifying promises of judgment, there is always a presupposition in Scripture: if you repent, God will be merciful. (For example: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place . . . For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds . . . then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever” (Jeremiah 7:3–7, ESV); and “let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:7, ESV).)

Not only will God pardon the penitent sinner, God is by character:

1. Compassionate. “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9, ESV); and
2. Merciful and slow to anger. “. . . merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” (Psalm 86:15, ESV)

Ultimately the “hatred” of God toward His enemies is the removal of His graceful, merciful Presence (“For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you.” (Psalm 5:4, ESV).  So when I read “. . . you [God] hate all evildoers.” (Psalm 5:5, ESV) I understand that Biblically to mean:

God’s merciful, graceful, providing Presence is withdrawn from that unrepentant unchanged person and what is left is barrenness, desertion and unrest.  

So in conclusion I think we err when we make “hate” the opposite of “love”.  Biblical hatred is a separation, a desertion, a rejection.  Rather than a disposition of grace and blessing, it is a disposition of passivity without blessing. 

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[1] https://www.gotquestions.org/does-God-hate.html

^[2] Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship.

^[3] Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship.

The Sayings of the Wise – Part 20

THIRTY SAYINGS OF THE WISE

SAYING NUMBER NINETEEN

This 19^th saying from the astute is this: “Be not envious of evil men, nor desire to be with them, for their hearts devise violence, and their lips talk of trouble.” (Proverbs 24:1–2, ESV).

It is plain that it is foolish to envy evil men or even desire their company.  The proverb provides the ground for such a warning: their hearts seek violence and their lips speak of trouble.  This proverb recapitulates the teaching of 23:15–21, which I commented on in this Blog.   A heart that envies sinners is contrasted with a heart that fears the Lord.  The wise are “zealous” for the fear of the Lord. “The glamorous lives of the worldly often arouse great envy in young and old alike.”^[1]

Why would one wish to use the heart and the lips that God would has given to us to glorify Him to become partners with evil practices? “The choice of companions often begins in the desire to emulate. But what kind of company can one have with people who think and speak about trouble?”^[2] What is it in our sinful hearts that is drawn to be with, to imitate, and to receive the affirmation of evil people?  There is evidence within the literature that this passion is motivated “. . ., perhaps for the success and prosperity they enjoy (3:31; 23:17; 24:19; Psa 37:1).”^[3] 

The point is that one’s company can be a great threat to one’s moral life. “Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers.” (Psalm 1:1, NLT). 

There are a lot of Bible verses that teach about friendship.  From the character of loyalty to a person that is there in times of need, the Scriptures teach us a lot about friendship.  Here are a few: 

• “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24, ESV)
• “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:9–12, ESV)
• “Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.” (Proverbs 27:9, ESV)
• “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17, ESV)
• “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” (Proverbs 17:17, ESV) 

For a Christian, healthy, God-honouring friendships are built upon a mutual love for Christ and the Gospel; upon love for one another that desires the best for his or her friend; and it is serving and sacrificial. 

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^[1] Hindson, E. E., & Kroll, W. M. (Eds.). (1994). KJV Bible Commentary (p. 1241). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

^[2] Koptak, P. E. (2003). Proverbs (p. 561). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

^[3] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Pr 24:1–2). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.