Gospel Rant

I am very concerned about the well-being of teens and tweens today. Frustrated parents, we need big time help. I mean Captain Obvious right? Per the CDC, suicide and homicide rates (10-24) are the highest they have been in decades (since 1968). A shocking 42% of adolescents are experiencing sadness and hopelessness (up 50% from 2011)--57% of females. 22% of all students have considered attempting suicide (up 36% from 2011). It is a mental health crisis for one of our most vulnerable demographics, adolescents. Anxiety is up. Loneliness is up [i]. Gender dysphoria, confusion up. Religion and church attendance is down.[ii] Today, I want to give you a simplified class on attachment theory related to teens. I think that you will find things that just might help. How can already good enough parents of teens and tweens become just a little bit more good enough parents? Everything I say will have a firm biblical foundation while informed by attachment theory and neuroscience. We will look at the important notion of attunement in relationships, particularly with your teen and tween. We will go deeper into the two main attachment theory categories of children’s insecure behavior—don’t worry about getting lost in the weeds. I’ve got you.  I will give you some helpful tips to help them become a little more secure. I will also say a little about social media and its dangers.  Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Today we dig into the entire concept of entering into God’s rest. Don’t think that it refers to relaxing here. This ain’t My Pillow. Nope, that’s for heaven. Heaven’s going to be great, this ain’t it. Is this important? Yeah, the author of Hebrews starts off this section with a stark warning to the Jewish Christians in Rome (likely). Phobeomai! Beware lest---be afraid if you miss this… Defcon 1. Don’t screw this one up. Pretty important. Make sure that no one has missed it or fallen short. So what do you think? Have we? Has anyone around you? Your church? Or do you claim ignorance? Fun right? In this show, we will explore what he is talking about. Believe me, it is not about sleeping more. It is not even about keeping the one-day-a-week sabbath free from work—not like what we typically think. In fact, he will ramp it up even more—This thing, this place of rest—we should be entering into it every day 24/7. Why is it that no one has ever told you about this? Curious? Welcome to Gospel Rant and God’s Love for the Unlovable.Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Welcome to the Gospel Rant. Hebrews assumes that we Christians are, in spite of what we say, here still on planet earth for a reason only secondarily for our own success and well-being. Face it, heaven would be so much better. No we have a grand celestial eternal purpose, modeled by Jesus and Moses. We are here to be part of the salvation story of others. We don’t redeem anyone. But somehow, what we do, and how we do it proclaims salvation to them. That’s the good news. The bad news is that like Jesus and Moses, and Israel in the wilderness, that goal may only be achieved through our persecution, suffering and even harm. I don’t like it much either. It is the big theme of Hebrews. Humanly speaking, you will shudder in fear and rather stay in your tents in the wilderness. No judgement. But you, sons and daughters of God can ask for power, through the Spirit in your inner being to access heaven-born faith (willingness to be led into temptation, confidence in God, boldness) and heaven-born righteousness (caring for others over self) so that like Jesus and Moses and at least two Jews in the wilderness, you will do it—in order to rescue and save others. We Americans hate this plan. But the template is Jesus, who willingly suffered and died and many children were saved. At one point you said, “Father, wherever you lead I will follow.” OK, he’s taking you seriously—because he loves you as much as the father loves the son and the son loves the father. But don’t expect life to be a rose garden. And he has something to prepare you for the struggle. You don’t naturally have it. Curious? Welcome to Gospel Rant and God’s Love for the Unlovable.Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Hebrews assumes that we Christians are, in spite of what we might say, afraid of death. It's a brain thing. To accomplish God’s high Kingdom goals—meaning salvation for others, He requires and even ordains the testing, trials, suffering, loss, and sometimes even death of his beloved children—in order to rescue and save others. We Americans might hate this plan. But the template is Jesus, who willingly suffered and died and many children were saved. At one point you said, “Father, wherever you lead I will follow.” OK, he’s taking you seriously—because he loves you as much as the Father loves the Son and the Son loves the Father. But don’t expect life to be a rose garden. And he has something to prepare you for the struggle. You don’t naturally have it. Curious? Welcome to Gospel Rant.Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Hey Dr. Bill Senyard here. Welcome to God’s love for the unlovable. We are going through the Book of Hebrews. It is very unique and for the most part, poorly covered by most pulpits. Why? Well you will find out again in this show. The Greek word for righteous and righteousness is used 8x in Hebrews. It is implied in many other places. Here’s the thing. We in the West have wildly misunderstood what the Bible means by righteousness—So much so, it is even hard to recognize. It is to our detriment. In this show, we will unpack the very important concept. I think you will be surprised and hopefully changed.  Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Welcome to The Rabboni. This new biblical historical fiction tells of the long-lost journals of the Apostle Matthew. It is 73CE, Matthew had finally completed his biography of the life of Jesus. Now, he and a colorful team of men and women, circumcised and uncircumcised, followed the dangerous missionary charge of Jesus to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. Together, they boarded Roman ships to begin the very long journey to Axum (modern Ethiopia). Matthew’s team was a striking testimony to the saving grace of their Lord. There was a former prostitute, a recovering opium addict, a shamed African princess, a freed Roman slave, and even a former member of the Sanhedrin who was present that evening Jesus was condemned to die.  Matthew is surprised how, of all the things he penned, it is Jesus’ preeminent and signature message on the hillside in Galilee that most captured the interest of unbelievers and stirred up so much misunderstanding and misinformation among his followers. After studying the Sermon on the Mount for years, I am surprised Jesus wasn’t stoned on the spot. What he said was wildly in-your-face to the core principles and beliefs of both Rome and Jerusalem.  As a historical fiction, The Rabboni will also shine new light on the consequential incense wars between the Nabateans and Rome, the ongoing animosity between Galilee and Judea, and the historically under-reported behind-the-scenes story of the turbulent last years of Jerusalem. And so much more. Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Is there such a thing as God-ordained persecution for Jesus-followers? Isn't that a bad thing? How could that be the will of a good father? Great questions. I agree and yet the author of Hebrews seems to see it more clearly than we modern Christians. We must get back to this awareness.  It seems that the author of Hebrews knew that persecution was coming for his listeners—and that is not Plan B, it is Plan A. Did you know that according to Open Doors, 365 Million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith? 1 in 7 Christians are persecuted worldwide. Almost 5000 were killed for faith-related reasons last year. 14,766 churches and Christian properties were attacked. If Hebrews is right, it’s coming here and it’s for our higher good—to put it another way, it is a gift from God for his children he loves. Sounds very strange, right? I am not saying that I like the plan, just saying. Here’s a headline, if you are not being persecuted for your faith and love for the unloved, the implication is that something’s wrong.  Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

There is no more pervasive topic in Hebrews than persecution. Not just that it is a possibility for the follower of Jesus. It is Plan A. It is the way God has designed this. I may not like it—by the way—I don’t—but I don’t have God’s capacity to see—not even close. It is not a surprise to me that we don’t hear much about this today. And I am really sure that this is not a welcomed topic.  All I am saying is that it is wildly biblical. Don’t shoot the messenger. Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

What's up with all of the references in Hebrews to angels? You may be surprised. Likely, there was a very popular jewish mysticism practice that was drawing Jewish Christians away from the gospel. Don't just think of this as a history lesson. It's shadows are alive and well today in Christianity. Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Drift happens! In this second show in our new series on Hebrews, we are going to look at Hebrews 1:1 all the way to 2:4, skipping the section on angels which we will cover in the next show. Very interesting stuff. So today, three questions. What is our biggest problem ? Why do we do it? How do we stop it?Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.