Reverberate: A Berean Bible Church Podcast | Knoxville, TN

Why Work Hard If Life Is Fleeting? | Reverberate Podcast

Title: Why Work Hard If Life Is Fleeting? --- 0:00 Introduction 0:26 Is It Okay to Be Happy? 6:23 How Do We Avoid Putting Identity in Work? 11:55 If Work Is Meaningless, then Why Work at All? 16:12 Do We Have Too Much Access to Wisdom? 20:46 Grasping for Knowledge Like Adam and Eve? 24:45  What's next? --- * Ecclesiastes 1:17-18: And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but striving after wind. For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow. * Ephesians 2:10: For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. * Matthew 10:42: And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward. * Ecclesiastes 12:13: The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. * Isaiah 46:10: Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.’ * Proverbs 9:10: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. * Genesis 2:16-17: And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat.’ * Genesis 3:5: For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. --- In this episode, Pastor Jed and Jason talk through Ecclesiastes and the tension between enjoying God’s good gifts and admitting that those gifts are fleeting. Work, pleasure, achievement, and wisdom are not bad. They are gifts from God. The problem comes when we ask them to give us lasting identity, safety, worth, or control. Pastor Jed explains that Solomon is not calling us to reject joy or stop working hard. He is teaching us to receive good things in their proper place. True wisdom begins with trusting God, not trying to become God. The conversation helps listeners see how to pursue joy, work, and knowledge with open hands while resting in the God who gives meaning beyond life under the sun. --- Berean Bible Church is a non-denominational church in East Knoxville, TN. We are grounded in the Word, celebrating the transformative power of the Gospel. Our community thrives on worship and mutual encouragement, fostering deep connections among members. Committed to our mission, we reach out with compassion and hope, reflecting God's glory throughout our city and beyond. Learn more at berean.church.

Solomon's Question, Jesus' Answer | Matthew 6:25-33

Title: Solomon's Question, Jesus' Answer --- 0:00 Fight, Flight, or Freeze  8:46 Reading Matthew 6:25-33 10:14 Jesus' Heart of Compassion 11:24 What We're Often Anxious About 14:53 Life is More than Food 18:03 Are You Not of More Value? 19:29  What Does Your Anxiety Do Anyway? 21:25 God Makes Your Life Beautiful 24:21  Don't Seek After These Things 26:57  Seek First the Kingdom of God 30:32 Trusting God 32:38 Fear Not 33:44 How to Battle Anxiety --- Matthew 6:25–33 Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (ESV) --- In “Solomon’s Question, Jesus’ Answer,” Jed Gillis shows how Jesus speaks compassionately to anxious people in Matthew 6:25–33. Anxiety often comes from realizing we are not in control while still trying to hold our lives together through effort, withdrawal, or paralysis. Jesus answers that fear by reminding us that life is more than food, our value is greater than the birds, and our future rests in the care of a Father who knows what we need. Instead of seeking safety, worth, and beauty through our own anxious grasping, Jesus calls us to seek first the kingdom of God. The path out of anxiety is to remember what the King says, pursue what the King loves, and trust the King’s heart, because the Father delights to give his people the kingdom. --- Berean Bible Church is a non-denominational church in East Knoxville, TN. We are grounded in the Word, celebrating the transformative power of the Gospel. Our community thrives on worship and mutual encouragement, fostering deep connections among members. Committed to our mission, we reach out with compassion and hope, reflecting God's glory throughout our city and beyond. Learn more at berean.church.

The Peace of Not Being in Control | Reverberate Podcast

Title: The Peace of Not Being in Control --- 0:00 Introduction 0:25 What Do You Mean by ""Control"" and ""Anxiety""? 8:59 Living Wisely Versus Grasping for Control 16:21 How to Encourage Ambition Without Making it an Idol 20:29 Teaching Wisdom Without Promising Outcomes 26:36 What's Next? --- Ecclesiastes 3:11. “God has put eternity in man's heart.” Ecclesiastes 3:12. Paraphrased as “Enjoy God and do good.” Proverbs 15:1. “A soft answer turns away wrath.” Daniel 6. Daniel being thrown into the lions’ den. Acts 7:54-60. Stephen being stoned. Matthew 26:39 and Luke 22:42. Jesus in the garden: “If this is possible, let this pass from me, but not my will, but yours be done.” Job 1:8 and Job 2:3. Job is mentioned as a righteous man whose wise life did not first produce the outcome he would have chosen. Exodus 2:11-15. Moses killing the Egyptian and fleeing into the wilderness. Acts 7:23-30. Moses at 40 years old, then 40 years in the wilderness. Hebrews 11:10. Abraham looking for “a city” built by God. Hebrews 11:35-38. Those who trusted God and suffered or died in this life. Acts 27. Paul being shipwrecked. 2 Corinthians 11:24-27. Paul being beaten, stoned, and shipwrecked. James 4:13-15. “Don’t say we’re going to go to such and such a town, buy and sell, gain a profit… Instead say, ‘If the Lord wills.’” --- Pastor Jed and Jason discuss how Ecclesiastes exposes the limits of human control and points us away from self-trust. The conversation explores the connection between control, anxiety, and our desire to guarantee meaning, safety, and worth for ourselves. They also talk through the difference between wise planning and grasping for control, especially in parenting, ambition, and teaching children wisdom. Rather than promising that wisdom will always produce the outcome we want, Ecclesiastes reminds us to steward what God has given, enjoy his good gifts, do good, and trust him with what we cannot control. --- Berean Bible Church is a non-denominational church in East Knoxville, TN. We are grounded in the Word, celebrating the transformative power of the Gospel. Our community thrives on worship and mutual encouragement, fostering deep connections among members. Committed to our mission, we reach out with compassion and hope, reflecting God's glory throughout our city and beyond. Learn more at berean.church.

The Palace, the Priest, and the Plow | Ecclesiastes 4:13-5:9

Title: The Palace, the Priest, and the Plow --- 0:00 Do You Trust God Enough to Battle Fear When You Know You're Not In Control? 5:09 Reading Ecclesiastes 5:53 Human Leadership is Not Ultimate 7:26 Leadership is Not a Substitute for Genuine Community 10:01 Learning to Take Advice 12:56 There's Always Opportunity for Growth 15:14 Position and Authority Comes and Goes 16:31 Leadership is Frustrating If You Use It to Control Your Life 20:21 Solomon Does Not Just Change Topics 21:35 Guard How You Approach God 23:20 Drawing Near to Listen is Better than the Sacrifice of Fools 25:35 When You Approach God, Are You Listening or Speaking? 30:22 Don't Be Rash With Your Mouth Before God 35:42 Don't Delay Paying a Vow to God 37:30 Our Dreams for Life Are Fleeting 39:59 Human Authority Often Comes With Oppression and Injustice 41:40 Do You Trust the King of Kings to Care About the Lowest Farmer? --- Ecclesiastes 4:13–16 Better was a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king who no longer knew how to take advice. For he went from prison to the throne, though in his own kingdom he had been born poor. I saw all the living who move about under the sun, along with that youth who was to stand in the king’s place. There was no end of all the people, all of whom he led. Yet those who come later will not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and a striving after wind. Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words. When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands? For when dreams increase and words grow many, there is vanity; but God is the one you must fear. If you see in a province the oppression of the poor and the violation of justice and righteousness, do not be amazed at the matter, for the high official is watched by a higher, and there are yet higher ones over them. But this is gain for a land in every way: a king committed to cultivated fields. (ESV) --- Jed Gillis explains that Ecclesiastes exposes our restless desire to control life through work, success, leadership, speech, worship, and human systems. Solomon shows that human authority rises and falls, public approval fades, and even wise leaders cannot carry the weight of ultimate hope. In response, God’s people must approach him with humble listening, careful words, faithful obedience, and reverent fear. Rather than grasping for control in a world marked by injustice and frustration, believers are called to trust the King of kings, who sees the palace, the priest, and the plow, and cares even for the lowest farmer.  --- Berean Bible Church is a non-denominational church in East Knoxville, TN. We are grounded in the Word, celebrating the transformative power of the Gospel. Our community thrives on worship and mutual encouragement, fostering deep connections among members. Committed to our mission, we reach out with compassion and hope, reflecting God's glory throughout our city and beyond. Learn more at berean.church.

Cake Was Never Meant to Last Forever | Reverberate Podcast

Title: Cake Was Never Meant to Last Forever --- 0:00 Introduction 0:33 Is The Translation "Vanity" Misleading? 9:12 Can Life Be Hevel and Still Be Good? 13:14 The Opposite of Hevel is Eternal 15:23 Why Is Hevel Sometimes Translated "Idol?" 20:31 What's Next? --- * **Ecclesiastes 1:2**: “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” * **Ecclesiastes 1:3**: “What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun?” * **Ecclesiastes 1:9**: “What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.” * **Ecclesiastes 1:14**: “I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.” * **Ecclesiastes 1:17**: "And I applied my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a striving after wind." * **Ecclesiastes 2:11**: "Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun." * **Ecclesiastes 2:15**: “Then I said in my heart, ‘What happens to the fool will happen to me also. Why then have I been so very wise?’ And I said in my heart that this also is vanity.” * **Ecclesiastes 12:13**: “Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” * **Psalm 39:5-6**: "Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! Surely a man goes about as a shadow! Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!" * **Deuteronomy 32:21**: “They have made me jealous with what is no god; they have provoked me to anger with their idols.” * **2 Kings 17:15**: “They went after false idols and became false.” --- In this episode of Reverberate, Pastor Jed and Jason talk through the meaning of hevel in Ecclesiastes and why the common translations “vanity” or “meaningless” can sometimes lead readers in the wrong direction. Rather than saying life is worthless, Ecclesiastes shows us that life under the sun is fleeting, hard to grasp, and impossible to control. The conversation explores how good gifts like wisdom, pleasure, food, family, and work can still be enjoyed when we receive them as gifts from God. But when we ask those gifts to give us eternal weight, lasting identity, or ultimate purpose, they become burdens and even idols. Ecclesiastes calls us to stop treating temporary gifts as eternal things and to find our substance, joy, and worship in the eternal God. --- Berean Bible Church is a non-denominational church in East Knoxville, TN. We are grounded in the Word, celebrating the transformative power of the Gospel. Our community thrives on worship and mutual encouragement, fostering deep connections among members. Committed to our mission, we reach out with compassion and hope, reflecting God's glory throughout our city and beyond. Learn more at berean.church.