The Jesus Society

How Does God Feel About Me When I Screw Up?

This is Episode 92 of the Jesus Society Podcast, and today, I want to talk about how God views us when we screw up. My sense, after talking to lots and lots of people, is that many, many people still imagine — even in this age where we all supposedly understand grace — that God is still peering down at us over the bridge of his spectacles, largely disappointed with how we’re living up to his standards, and wishing we’d all just try a little harder and do a bit better. So I have some things to say about all that. Join me today as we discuss: 1. The scope of the problem - mired in guilt, fear, and shame. 2. The sources of our guilt, fear, and shame. 3. How God really sees us. 4. Learning to see God as he really is (and not who we think he is). HINT - It's all about Jesus. 5. Two stories illustrating how Jesus dealt with people who screwed up. 6. How God describes himself. 7. Understanding the complicated issue of sin. 8. Sinner or Slave? It makes a huge difference! ______________________________ As always, we’d appreciate it if you’d tell others about the podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe, rate and review us on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please visit us on our Facebook page for The Jesus Society Podcast [https://www.facebook.com/JesusSocietyPodcast] (@JesusSocietyPodcast). And check out our website — https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/].  You can also find episodes of The Jesus Society podcast onto YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/]) and Odysee (https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6 [https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6]). If you search for The Jesus Society Podcast on either YouTube or Odysee, you’ll find us. And, if you’d like to support the show and our related ministry, click on the “Support TJS [https://thejesussociety.com/support/]” link on the Jesus Society website to find out how (https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/]). Thanks for listening! And remember, you are greatly loved. Music and audio production by Nathan Longwell Music [http://www.nathanlongwell.com]  _______________________

What Happens When We Die -- Part 3: Hell and Final Judgment

Today we’re going to continue talking about what happens when we die. We’ve talked about purgatory, and we’ve talked about paradise. Today I want to address the most difficult piece of this — hell. And as I've said in each of the previous episodes in this series, it’s important that we get our thinking straight on all this, at least so we can quit worrying about what happens after death start paying a little more attention to what we do before death. So join me today as we discuss: 1. Why the way we've been taught to read the Bible isn't always helpful in topics such as this. 2. Where our modern idea of "hell" comes from. 3. Homer and Hades 4. Hell & the place called Gehenna 5. What Jesus was actually talking about (and that his hearers understood) when he talked about Gehenna. 6. What about the parable of the rich man and Lazarus? 7. How the evils of the 20th century have impacted our ideas of final judgment. 8. Three important New Testament affirmations about evil. 9. The long-term, dehumanizing results of a life spent in opposition to God. 10. The three traditional views of what final judgment might actually look like, and why each of them has significant problems. 11. Could a loving God actually torture people forever? 12. Another intriguing theory, that takes seriously all the biblical passages, and solves more problems than it creates. 13. A final reminder that the gospel message is one of absolute hope, rescue, and restoration. ______________________________ As always, we’d appreciate it if you’d tell others about the podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe, rate and review us on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please visit us on our Facebook page for The Jesus Society Podcast [https://www.facebook.com/JesusSocietyPodcast] (@JesusSocietyPodcast). And check out our website — https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/]. You can also find episodes of The Jesus Society podcast onto YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/]) and Odysee (https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6 [https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6]). If you search for The Jesus Society Podcast on either YouTube or Odysee, you’ll find us. And, if you’d like to support the show and our related ministry, click on the “Support TJS [https://thejesussociety.com/support/]” link on the Jesus Society website to find out how (https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/]). Thanks for listening! And remember, you are greatly loved. Music and audio production by Nathan Longwell Music [http://www.nathanlongwell.com]  _______________________ Resources for Today’s Show: 1. N. T. Wright, Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWWBL24/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4DQ4CKBNJ3YRG44TN6NT [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWWBL24/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4DQ4CKBNJ3YRG44TN6NT])

What Happens When We Die -- Part 2: Paradise

This is Episode 90 of the Jesus Society Podcast. Only ten more till we hit 100!! Today we’re going to continue talking about what happens when we die. We talked last week about the concept of purgatory, which I definitely don’t believe in, and I laid out why last week. Today I want to talk about a word we don’t talk nearly enough about — paradise. As I said last week, and which I’ll probably say again next week, it’s important that we get our thinking straight on all this, at least so we can quit worrying about what happens after death start paying a little more attention to what we do before death. So join me today as we discuss: 1. Restful happiness in the presence of Jesus. 2. Paradise or heaven??? 3. The three passages in the New Testament where paradise is spoken of. 4. Wait . . . THREE heavens??? 5. How the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses the word paradise. 6. But aren't we "citizens of heaven?" 7. And what about the "many mansions" Jesus says are in his Father's house? ______________________________ As always, we’d appreciate it if you’d tell others about the podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe, rate and review us on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please visit us on our Facebook page for The Jesus Society Podcast [https://www.facebook.com/JesusSocietyPodcast] (@JesusSocietyPodcast). And check out our website — https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/].  You can also find episodes of The Jesus Society podcast onto YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/]) and Odysee (https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6 [https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6]). If you search for The Jesus Society Podcast on either YouTube or Odysee, you’ll find us. And, if you’d like to support the show and our related ministry, click on the “Support TJS [https://thejesussociety.com/support/]” link on the Jesus Society website to find out how (https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/]). Thanks for listening! And remember, you are greatly loved. Music and audio production by Nathan Longwell Music [http://www.nathanlongwell.com]  _______________________ Resources for Today’s Show: 1. N. T. Wright, Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWWBL24/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4DQ4CKBNJ3YRG44TN6NT [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWWBL24/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4DQ4CKBNJ3YRG44TN6NT])

What Happens When We Die -- Part 1: The Problem With Purgatory

This is Episode 89 of the Jesus Society Podcast. And today I’m going to start a brief series talking about what happens when we die. Because I find that life after death tends to occupy an inordinately large place in our thinking. In fact, I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that most Christian mission tends to be largely focused on making sure someone goes to heaven when they die. Frankly, I think a Christianity focused on what happens after death is a misguided focus. But nonetheless, there are things we can say (and should say) about what happens after death, and so we’re going to spend the next few weeks sorting through some of those ideas. So join me today as we discuss: 1. When did the idea of purgatory develop? 2. What's the basic idea of purgatory? 3. Why purgatory has become somewhat popular among universalists. 4. How some notable and influential Roman Catholic theologians have significantly walked-back their stance on purgatory. 5. Is there any biblical support for the idea of different categories of Christians after death? 6. How Paul's picture of redemption leaves no room for the idea of purgatory. ______________________________ As always, we’d appreciate it if you’d tell others about the podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe, rate and review us on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please visit us on our Facebook page for The Jesus Society Podcast [https://www.facebook.com/JesusSocietyPodcast] (@JesusSocietyPodcast). And check out our website — https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/].  You can also find episodes of The Jesus Society podcast onto YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/]) and Odysee (https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6 [https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6]). If you search for The Jesus Society Podcast on either YouTube or Odysee, you’ll find us. And, if you’d like to support the show and our related ministry, click on the “Support TJS [https://thejesussociety.com/support/]” link on the Jesus Society website to find out how (https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/]). Thanks for listening! And remember, you are greatly loved. Music and audio production by Nathan Longwell Music [http://www.nathanlongwell.com]  _______________________ Resources for Today’s Show: 1. N. T. Wright, Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWWBL24/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4DQ4CKBNJ3YRG44TN6NT [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DWWBL24/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_4DQ4CKBNJ3YRG44TN6NT])

Following Jesus in the 21st Century -- Part 9: Self-Giving Love

This is Episode 88 of the Jesus Society Podcast. Today, we’re going to conclude our series on Following Jesus in the 21st century, and in particular, looking at the importance and practice of love, particularly as we think about extending that love outward to the watching world. I hope you'll join me today as we discuss: 1. Following Jesus in Love 2. Does love compel or invite? 3. Chasing a rabbit -- repentance 4. How love advances the kingdom 5. How the early church lived out Jesus' victory of love, and how that advanced the kingdom 6. Caring for those who need care. 7. Love means meeting urgent needs. 8. You are God's masterpiece. 9. And much, much more . . . . ______________________________ And with that, I want to thank you for joining us today. I hope you’ll join us again next week. As always, we’d appreciate it if you’d tell others about the podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe, rate and review us on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Please visit us on our Facebook page for The Jesus Society Podcast [https://www.facebook.com/JesusSocietyPodcast] (@JesusSocietyPodcast). And check out our website — https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/].  You can also find episodes of The Jesus Society podcast onto YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEy1ppP5RWd3jXPc6bI6WuQ/]) and Odysee (https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6 [https://odysee.com/@TheJesusSocietyPodcast:6]). If you search for The Jesus Society Podcast on either YouTube or Odysee, you’ll find us. And, if you’d like to support the show and our related ministry, click on the “Support TJS [https://thejesussociety.com/support/]” link on the Jesus Society website to find out how (https://thejesussociety.com/ [https://thejesussociety.com/]). Thanks for listening! And remember, you are greatly loved. Music and audio production by Nathan Longwell Music [http://www.nathanlongwell.com]  _______________________ Resources for Today’s Show: 1. My Song is Love Unknown #202 (https://youtu.be/UCTb1id2GnI [https://youtu.be/UCTb1id2GnI]) 2. Bruce W. Longenecker, “Remember the Poor: Paul, Poverty, and the Greco-Roman World” (Eerdmans, 2010) — https://www.amazon.com/dp/0802863736/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_2C0BNJN0Z8RMREYCQZSB? [https://www.amazon.com/dp/0802863736/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_2C0BNJN0Z8RMREYCQZSB]