In this week's podcast, I talk about God's steadfast love and the healing power of His word. How does God's love differ to our love for each other? God's love often includes discipline, which means we can be left to our own devices until we freely turn back to God for healing. God's word heals us, which is why we need to abide in His word by reading the Bible, but also by hearing what He is saying to each of us individually. Sometimes He corrects us and sometimes He tells us what we don't want to hear, but He always tells us the truth and this is what transforms us.

Once we understand how God's love works, we will move beyond the shallow notion that a loving God will never be judgemental or allow us to suffer. God's love is steadfast and unwavering but He will not tolerate sin and He will bring ultimate justice to us all.

Bible passages:

Test the Spirits, (1 John 4); God is Love, (1 John 4:8 & 1 John 4:16); Ask and It is Given, (Matthew 7:7-8); Believe and You shall Receive, (Mark 11:22-24); Ask in My Name, (John 14:12-14); Serpent's Lie, (Genesis 3); Abide in Me, (John 15:4-11); His Steadfast Love Endures Forever, (Psalm 136); God's Word Give Eternal Life, (John 5:24 & John 6:68-69); Let the Redeemed of the Lord Say So, (Psalm 107); God's Disciple, (Hebrews 12:3-12, Psalm 94:12-14, Proverbs 3:11-12); Universe Created by the Word of God, (Hebrews 11:3); He Sent Out His Word & Healed Them, (Psalm 107:20); Word, Spirit, Life, (John 6:63); The Truth Will Set You Free, (John 8:31); You Are of Your Father the Devil, (John 8:43-47); If You Say You Have No Sin, (1 John 1:5-10); Repent, (Matthew 3:2); Turn From Your Wicked Ways, (Acts 3:26 & 2 Chronicles 7:14); People Love the Darkness (John 3:19); Jesus Came to Set Captives Free, (Luke 4:18-21 & Isaiah 61:1); I Am the Way, (John 14:6); The Heart is Deceitful Above all Things, (Jeremiah 17:9); What Comes Out of the Heart Defiles a Person (Matthew 15:16-20); Incline Your Ear and Come to Me, (Isaiah 55:3); Old Life vs New Life, (Ephesians 4:17-32); Jesus Deals with Religious Hypocrites, (Matthew 23); The Way of Love, (1 Corinthians 13:1-13)

• Abide In Me You Tube Channel

In this week's episode, I talk about Jesus' instruction to His disciples to abide in Him by abiding in His words.

"If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you." John 15:7

The words we speak to each other and our own thoughts affect us deeply, so how much more will Jesus' words transform our inner selves?

Is this the reason that the Bible and Jesus's teachings are constantly attacked and derided in our society? Are the powers and principalities afraid of a humanity who understand how much God loves them? Because if we really understood this, they would no longer be able to control us through fear and division. It seems that today reading the Bible is a subversive act.

Bible References:

Upper Room Discourse, (John 14-17); I Am the Vine, (John 15); Early Church, (Acts 2-6); Jesus' Words & Eternal Life, (John 5:27); Jesus Living Water, (John 4:7-15 & 7:37-39); Sermon on Mount, (Matthew 5-7); Commandment to Love, (John 13:34-35 & 15:17); Love God/Love Neighbour, (Matthew 22:36-40); Pharisees & Commandments of Men, (Matthew15:9 & 23:1-4, Mark 7:5-13, Isaiah 29:13); Jesus Yahweh in Human Form, (Colossians 1:15-20 & 2:9, Hebrews 1:1-4, Philippians 2:5-9); Parable of Sower, (Mark 4:3-20); Holy Spirit Teacher, (John 14:15-26); No Other Gods, (Exodus 20:3-6); Test the Spirits, (1 John 4:1-6); God's Word is Truth, (John 17:17-26 & 8:31-32, Psalm 119:160, 1 Thessalonians 2:13, 2 Timothy 3:16); Teachers to Suit Passions, (2 Timothy 4:3-4); Jesus Physician, (Mark 2:17); The Law Can't Save Us, (Roman 8:3-4, Hebrews 10:1-4, Galatians 3:23-29); Humble Yourself & Pray, (2 Chronicles 7:14); Search Me and Know Me, (Psalm 139); Lord is My Shepherd, (Psalm 23:1-3); As Far As the Heavens Are Above the Earth, (Psalm 103:11-17); The Shelter of the Most High, (Psalm 91); Delight Yourself in the Lord, (Psalm 37:4).

Other Resources:

• The Reality of The Moral Law - Mere Christianity, C.S Lewis (10 mins)
• Evolutionist Richard Dawkins Says There Are No Morals: by William Lane Craig (4 mins)
• Atheist MIT Professor Converts to Christianity - Lex Friedman (10 mins)
• Why the Bible Can be Trusted - J Warner (Cold Case Christianity) (47 mins)
• Making of the Bible - Tim Mackie (Bible Project) 2 hours
• How Badly Was the New Testament Corrupted? | Daniel Wallace at SDSU
• Abide In Me You Tube Channel
• I Am the Vine - Abide in Me (John 15)

In this week's episode I discuss the power of the spiritual disciples, such as meditation, and how best to use them. Many of us have been taught that to be disciplined is to do the same things in the same way every day and if we deviate from this routine we are undisciplined. I use Richard Foster's book, "A Celebration of Discipline" to dispel this myth and talk about how the spiritual disciplines can help us to deepen our relationship with God.

Bible References for further study:

Simple worship (2 Chronicles 7:14); What God wants (Isaiah 1:12-17); Pure religion (James 1:26-27); Traditions of Men (Matthew 15:1-20, Matthew 23:1-39,Mark 7:6-9); Repentance prayers (Psalm 51, Psalm 32); Repentance from dead works (Hebrews 6:1, 9:14); The Living God (Jeremiah 10:10, Matthew 16:16, Daniel 6:26, John 6:57); Put down heavy burdens (Psalm 55:22, Matthew 11:28-30, 1 Peter 5:6-7, Isaiah 41:10); God's children (Galatians 4:6, Romans 8:14, John 1:12, 1 John 3:1-2, Matthew 5:9, Galatians 3:26); Fear of the Lord (Job 28:28, Luke 1:50, Proverbs 19:23, Psalm 25:14, Psalm 34:9, 2 Corinthians 7:1); God sustains universe (Hebrews 1:3, Colossians 1:17, Job 33:4, 1 Corinthians 8:6, 1 Chronicles 16:30, Psalm 104:5, Psalm 22:28); End of Everything (Matthew 10:28, Revelation 21:1-27, 2 Peter 3:10, Matthew 24:35, Isaiah 51:6); Jesus Feeds 5000 (Matthew 14:13-21); My Peace I give to you (John 14:27); Mary Magdalene Demons (Luke 8:2); Peter's denial (Luke 22:54-62); Beloved Disciple (John 13:23, 19:26); Exodus; David on the run (1 Samuel); Israel and Judah Saga (1 & 2 Kings); Paul's Conversion (Acts 9 and Galatians 1 and 2); Tests the spirts ( 1 John 4:1-6)

Other Books:

A Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster

• How Does Repentance Help You Transform?
• Abide In Me You Tube Channel