the Proclaim & Defend Podcast

The Jewish Curse

The Jewish Curse “His blood be upon us and upon our children.” In the past week, the ousted President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, blamed his election [https://proclaimanddefend.org?action=user_content_redirect&uuid=3932638c7d09cd7e1f21ac5f07d78441c4ef13e20626b1276387a06cb941f4a6&blog_id=28564288&post_id=24939&user_id=2444376&subs_id=568597&signature=aad5e360cc292e78f273036739ad5e28&email_name=new-post&user_email=dcsj@telus.net&encoded_url=aHR0cHM6Ly90aGVqZXdpc2hlZGl0aW9uLmNvbS9uZXdzL2lzcmFlbC8yMDI2LzA2LzIyL2NvbG9tYmlhcy1vdXN0ZWQtcHJlc2lkZW50LWJsYW1lcy1pc3JhZWwtZm9yLWVsZWN0aW9uLWxvc3Mv&email_id=d3e22a26f77a560bf9ab78b55e8c68f5] loss on cheating and interference by Israel. At the same time, he had repeatedly called his opponents fascists [https://proclaimanddefend.org?action=user_content_redirect&uuid=fee663e70d36ffd5b85ccaf508e86d27f8b70099368e1c117301d480eb579a76&blog_id=28564288&post_id=24939&user_id=2444376&subs_id=568597&signature=71228895bbf316fd45624919fe0cb7a0&email_name=new-post&user_email=dcsj@telus.net&encoded_url=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubWlhbWloZXJhbGQuY29tL25ld3MvbmF0aW9uLXdvcmxkL3dvcmxkL2FtZXJpY2FzL2NvbG9tYmlhL2FydGljbGUzMTYwNTE2MjEuaHRtbA=&email_id=d3e22a26f77a560bf9ab78b55e8c68f5]. And no, it doesn’t make sense. It seems popular today to blame nearly everything bad in the world on Israel, and sometimes the Jews broadly. Antisemitism is alive and well, and it is rooted in church history. When Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire, he set the stage for modern antisemitism. It existed before that time—the Book of Esther is an example. While the 1st Century New Testament Church was made up of converted Jews and gentiles, the 1st Century Jewish persecution of the Church did not produce fraternal feelings between the two religions (Romans 12:28). Early church history records the struggles. Once the Church became entwined with the state, Christian baptism became a qualification for citizenship (in the late 4th century) and the Jewish communities within the Roman Catholic sphere became outsiders. While modern Catholics argue that antisemitism is not part of historic Church dogma, that idea is incongruent with the fact that the victims of the Spanish Inquisition were “unorthodox” Christians and Jews. … Read the rest of this post here: The Jewish Curse - Proclaim & Defend [https://proclaimanddefend.org/2026/06/28/the-jewish-curse/] or just listen to the podcast. Get full access to the Proclaim & Defend Podcast at proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Interview 115: Multiplication Through Division

Today we are going to begin discussing the July/August edition of FrontLine, it is coming out in a few days, but I feel the need to keep the podcast going so we will get started a little ahead of publication. The early summer is challenging for the podcast as summer travel schedules get in the way of conducting interviews with our authors. I still have a couple of conversations to record from the May/June edition, but we will just fill them in as they come. Today’s conversation is with Matt Walker. He is the pastor of College Park Baptist Church in Cary, North Carolina. I would say he is an innovative thinker which you will pick up on as you listen to the conversation. The subject of this issue of FrontLine is about growing the church, “Built to Grow” is the title. Matt’s burden is for church planting. He suggests that our goal in building churches should be building more churches. It’s hard to argue with that when you consider the patterns the apostles set for us in the New Testament. I hope our conversation gives you some ideas about the growth of your own church and ways in which you can reach your community and beyond. Before we get into that, let me remind you that Matt’s article is available on our Substack right away for paying subscribers. We have previews for everyone else. I hope you will join with us and support the ministry of the FBFI by becoming a paying subscriber. The Contents & Editorial for the May/June FrontLine: FrontLine: Built to Grow: Understanding and Advancing the Mission of the Church [coming soon] The Article: Multiplication Through Division: Rediscovering Reproduction Through Church Planting [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/p/multiplication-through-division-rediscovering] Get full access to the Proclaim & Defend Podcast at proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The Lies of Theological Liberalism in American Politics

Beware the lies of theological liberalism — or, as they like to call themselves today, progressive Christianity. While most theologically conservative pastors would prefer to focus on teaching the Word faithfully and avoid directly addressing political controversies from the pulpit, there are times when the discussion is unavoidable. This is one of those times. Andrew Daugherty, a pastor writing for Salon [https://www.salon.com/2026/06/14/christian-right-calls-james-talarico-demonic-for-quoting-jesus/], took on the Christian right in a defense of Texas Senate candidate James Talarico. Talarico is the openly gay Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas who claims to be a Christian and often quotes Scripture as part of his defense of progressive political views. What we have here is a case of theological liberalism defending political progressivism and condemning conservative Christians to do so. … Read the whole article here: The Lies of Theological Liberalism in American Politics [https://proclaimanddefend.org/2026/06/21/the-lies-of-theological-liberalism-in-american-politics/] - Proclaim & Defend … or just listen to the podcast. Get full access to the Proclaim & Defend Podcast at proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Interview 114: “No Kings”? A Christian Perspective on Government “Rulers”

Today I’m joined by my friend, pastor Mike Ascher, who serves as pastor of Good News Baptist Church in Chesapeake, Virginia. Mike is also an FBFI-endorsed police chaplain. His article appeared in the May/June edition of FrontLine and was called: “No Kings”? A Christian Perspective on Government “Rulers” This article appeared in the middle section of the magazine, the part we call the “Pastor’s Insert.” The articles in this section usually don’t touch on the main theme of the FrontLine edition that they appear in. Mike’s article is drawn from current events. He is addressing an issue that we see roiling the public these days as protesters are worked up about the government they have and seem to think protest is the right way to go about changing it. Some of these protests can turn violent, which concerns everyone. Mike’s burden is that Christians adopt a biblical view of our relation to authority and properly reflect God’s viewpoint rather than the “mob-induced” mentality we see in our streets and seemingly all over the internet these days. I hope you find our discussion helpful. Let me remind you that Mike’s article is available on our Substack right away for paying subscribers. We have previews for everyone else. I hope you will join with us and support the ministry of the FBFI by becoming a paying subscriber. The Contents & Editorial for the May/June FrontLine: FrontLine: The Future of Missions – Proclaim & Defend [https://www.proclaimanddefend.org/2026/05/12/frontline-the-future-of-missions/] The Article: “No Kings”? A Christian Perspective on Government “Rulers” [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/p/no-kings-a-christian-perspective] Get full access to the Proclaim & Defend Podcast at proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Unchristian Thinking about Christian Weddings

If you are truly Christians—both bride and groom—then you should plan a Christian wedding. And both bride and groom should be Christians, but that is another article. The idea that wedding magazines, Pinterest, and bridal websites set the standards and practices for Christian weddings is an abomination. Brides to be (and moms!), stop letting that stuff form your view of what a Christian wedding should be. Here are four commonly held ideas about weddings that run contrary to the teaching of the scripture. This article is intended to free young couples from the bondage of meeting worldly expectations and open them up to the true, beautiful joys of a Christian wedding. It’s the bride’s day. “How dare you tell her she can’t do that! It’s her day! She should be able to do whatever she wants to do.” said the mother of the bride. Really? Is a Christian wedding supposed to be all about the bride? For Christians every day is the Lord’s Day. Every decision is the Lord’s decision. Everything we do must glorify Him. The “It’s her day” thinking is either worldly brainwashing about what a wedding is supposed to be, or it is evidence of an overall unchristian worldview. … Read the whole post here or just listen to the podcast. Get full access to the Proclaim & Defend Podcast at proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe [https://proclaimdefend.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]