Truth Be Told

When Skeptics Pray

A few weeks ago I ran into a guy at the self-checkout that felt the need to share an incredibly personal story about a struggle he was currently experiencing.

I asked if he believed in God. He said, "I don't think so, but I'm not sure since I haven't really looked into all that."

I asked if he would let me pray with him. He said he, "didn't really see the point," and clearly felt skeptical and uncertain of the idea.

Ultimately, however, he was interested in the idea enough to come BACK to me and let me explain prayer and walk him through one.

I left hoping that God would use that moment of this man's openness to show him mercy and love and draw him closer to Himself.

*FAST FORWARD A FEW WEEKS*

I'm reading in the book of Hebrews and come across a verse that says ANYONE who desires to DRAW CLOSE to God, must believe that He exists AND believe He is a rewarder of those who seek Him."

This stopped me in my tracks.

That guy in the self-checkout was very skeptical about God's existence. He was even more skeptical about whether prayer would be any benefit at all.

Does Hebrews 11:6 mean that my interaction with this person was fruitless and a waste of time? Was there no chance for God to do anything in this situation because this man was experiencing uncertainty? If so, how can ANYONE EVER draw near to God?

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#faith #religion #spirituality #doubt #uncertainty #prayer #skeptic #doubtful #Christian #atheist #agnostic #Christianity #God #bible #biblestudy #biblical #God #Jesus #Christ #JesusChrist #Messiah #apologetics #theology #evangelism #Hebrews #Hebrew #Hebrews11 #Greek #NewTestament #OldTestament #podcast #fyp #fypyoutube

Socrates and Scripture

The Question of the Day: What outside/extrabiblical sources and resources are appropriate for a Christian to use?

Word of the Day: Discernment.

Christians tend to fall all along a spectrum of belief on this topic and, while I wouldn't agree with an extreme liberal view that all information is good and created equal, that you should consume information without abandon, and all paths lead to God, a hyper-traditionalist view is also problematic.

In fact, if you are someone who holds the hard line that, "The Bible is all we need," I'd ask you the question, "all that we need for what?"

Absolutely, the text of Scripture is the inspired word of God and absolutely it is truth about God and man and the story of our departure from Him and His rescue of us back to Himself.

However, we know, instinctually, that the Bible does not tell us EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING.

So, where is the line?

Are commentaries good, but works of fiction bad? Is Josephus good but mythology bad? Is empirical truth right but story false? What about philosophy and wisdom - aren't those just attempts at syncretism and gnostic thinking?

As wild as it might seem, the biblical authors seem far less afraid of this possibility and use outside sources and resources about the world around them, morality, and wisdom to HIGHLIGHT biblical truths about God with ease.

Let's learn from their example.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

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The Gospel According to Pokémon

I know it might sound silly to some, but there is, quite literally, no area of life that cannot be transformed completely by God through radical goodness, self-sacrifice, compassion, and love for others - even the world of Pokémon shows us this.

Many people experience feelings of tension when they consider the transformative life they believe Christianity calls them to on one hand, and the confusion they have over how they are to live that out practically on the other.

While I often emphasize the importance of verbally sharing your faith with others and being unafraid to speak about Jesus Christ to those who need Him, one example of good works and Godly action has stood out to me as worth sharing.  ⁨@CoopsCollection⁩  and  ⁨@BeardDadCardz⁩  are two Pokémon card vendors who, regardless of what they believe theologically, have chosen to lead their businesses with generosity, compassion, and love for their customers.

While their constant giving might seem like it is contrary to effective money-making, business strategies, it is IN these actions that others have taken note, followed, and joined in the giving process.

Our words can be a very effective form of communication and they should never be foregone in efforts to preach the Gospel to others. However, SHOWING others the light of God in us is super effective in exemplifying what all people are starved for and searching for, and also provides them with an actionable step after witnessing that Gospel in real-time.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

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Love Your Enemy, Even Now: A Biblical Response to Charlie Kirk's Death (That I Fell Short Of)

In the wake of the assassination of  ⁨@RealCharlieKirk⁩  I, am ashamed to admit, did not have a Christian response.

It isn't a problem that I was angry. It isn't a problem that I was horrified at the insensitivity and inhumanity of some people's responses. It isn't a problem that I hope justice comes swiftly.

What IS a problem is that I allowed myself to be overcome by evil rather than overcoming evil with good. What IS a problem is that I desired an enemy to vent my anger on. What IS a problem is that the thought of praying for my enemies sickened me. What IS a problem is that, briefly, I allowed my politics to inform my morality rather than my morality to inform my politics.

"The problem is that all of our hate is 'justifiable.' There's enough evil for us to endlessly pass the blame, justify our actions, keep killing each other, isolate ourselves, and create power structures that protect our own interests. There's only one way out and it's impossible for humanity to do it. When Jesus went to the cross, He demonstrated the ONLY PATH of redemption in an evil world filled with corruption and pain. Jesus is the way. The cross is the way. Forgiveness, releasing debt, choosing generosity in the midst of injustice, sacrificial love, and building relationships with your enemy is the only way to abundant life."

- ⁨@johnmarkdyer7⁩ 

Some will see this as SOFT Christianity but, really, it just IS Christianity and it is INCREDIBLY difficult at a time like this - but it is what we are called to.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#faith #religion #spirituality #Charliekirk #utah #politicalviolence #currentevents #worldnews #conservative #liberal #politics #political #politicalnews #republican #democrat #Christian #Christianity #Jesus #Christ #JesusChrist #God #narrowpath #narrowroad #love #loveyourenemy #romans #Paul #bible #biblical #bibestudy #reaction #response #theology #apologetics #virtue #morality #persecution #podcast #turningpointusa #usa #america  ⁨@turningpointusa⁩ 

What Eye Has Not Seen.. That Yours Might If You Read Verse 10

2 Corinthians 2:9 is a favorite verse of many preachers, pastors, speakers, and teachers who want to communicate JUST HOW GREAT the Kingdom of God will be.

"Eye has not seen," meaning, "You won't believe it when you see it!" "Ear has not hear," meaning, "You've never heard of anything like it!" "Nor has entered into the heart's of man," meaning, "You couldn't even IMAGINE IT if you TRIED!"

But is that what this verse is saying?

For some reason, this verse is one that gets ripped out of context and, it really doesn't even need THAT much context to know that this is not what Paul is talking about.

In this episode, we keep reading, and get to the beautiful truth that this verse is ACTUALLY trying to communicate.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#faith #religion #spirituality #faithful #spiritual #religious #theology #apologetics #Jesus #Christ #JesusChrist #God #Christian #Christianity #bible #biblestudy #1Corinthians #ApostlePaul #Paul #epistles #biblical #scripture #church #context #hermeneutics #fyp #Christancontent #christianliving

What Reason Do I Have For Faith?

When faith is talked about, it is often incredibly complicated or overly simple. It's something we all understand and, also, struggle to comprehend - not to mention live out!

In this episode, we look at an analogy that might help us understand faith a bit better, review one of the Bible's most common stories that illustrate faith, doubt, and fear, and we dig deeper into why belief in what Christ has done is a faith builder.

I know that the biblical authors talk A LOT about faith in the person of Jesus Christ, faith in His life, works, and death, and faith in His resurrection; but how does this translate into faith in my daily life? How does knowing that Jesus existed help me life my life more faithfully? How does knowing that He could do incredible miracles help me have faith that He is working things on MY behalf? How does the fact that He was resurrected make me have more faith that He hasn't left me in the proverbial Valley of the Shadow of Death?

Certainly, believing these things to be true is GOOD and helpful for SOME things.. but it hasn't always correlated, for me, why the authors of the Bible seem to think these things are foundational for faith in God for EVERY part of my life.

This is something I've struggled with for awhile (and probably will continue to to some degree), but the thought process in this episode helped me out a lot!

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

Looking Back on 5 Years of Truth Be Told: Failures, Successes, Atheists, and You

Truth Be Told is 5 years old! Over the course of 5 years, this project has seen a mix of lessons learned and amazing successes that I can only count as blessings from God. In many ways, all of you listening now, or all those who have listened in the past have BEEN blessings yourselves.

Many of you who listen regularly have expressed a desire to see Truth Be Told reach a larger audience and are truly rooting for the success of this channel.

However, we have accomplished quite a bit in 5 years so, in this episode I wanted to share some of those milestones with you and encourage you to continue supporting.

One fascinating lesson I've learned over the course of this work is that, much like Joseph telling his brothers, "what you meant for evil, God has meant for good," often, it is those who dislike Truth Be Told, despise Christianity, and can't stand me that end up being one of the biggest helpers to me. Every time they comment something hateful, every time they share my content with their friends to mock, and every time someone skeptical wants to "keep tabs on me," by sharing my content with someone they respect more, the algorithm responds by increasing the visibility of the video that, hopefully, is a reflection of God and His Word to those who need it.

With this in mind, just imagine what your partnership could mean for Truth Be Told! Maybe, in this project, I am doing the planting, but every time you watch, comment, share, subscribe, rate, or interact with this content, you make yourselves the waterer which, SO FAR, has given God the opportunity to cause this effort to yield a lot of good fruit.

Thank you!

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#faith #religion #spirituality #bible #biblical #biblestudy #Christianity #Christian #truthbetold #truth #podcast #Jesus #Christ #JesusChrist #newtestament #oldtestament #youtube #religious #anniversary #5years #God

Israel's Search For Meaning: Isaiah and Romans Through an Existential Lens

How can we deal with some of the incredibly difficult times we go through? How does finding meaning in our suffering make it easier to bear? Does it always?

Exciting episode this week in that, I am able to blend two of my favorite worlds: Christian Counseling and Biblical Study.

While reading Isaiah this week, I FINALLY reached a section (Chapter 32) that began to make sense of some of the confusing prophecies found in previous chapters. God says He'll be protective of His people.... like a lion is protective over its prey *gulp.* He says He will bind up His people's wounds..... that He has inflicted *gulp.* The list goes on. But FINALLY, in Chapter 32, we get a hint at the MEANING behind why God has allowed or caused these things.

There's a theoretical model of counseling called "Existentialism," popularized by Viktor Frankl, that deals A LOT in meaning making as an important part of having a fulfilling life that can endure all things.

Since Israel and Judah are expressly TOLD the meaning of their trials, and finding meaning in our suffering is incredibly important, does that mean they handle it well?

Unfortunately, no.

Why not? How does this effect our lives when we go through suffering and are desperate to find meaning in it?

If we treat Israel and Judah's reaction to the meaning God gives for their suffering as a cautionary tale, we can learn a REALLY valuable lesson in the process.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruthBeToldYouTube

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#existentialism #christiancounseling #counseling #viktorfrankl #manssearchformeaning #meaning #purpose #meaningmaking #reason #therapy #podcast #faith #religion #spirituality #Christ #Jesus #JesusChrist #God #Christian #Christianity #theology #apologetics #bible #biblical #suffering #Israel #Judah #Gentiles #Isaiah #prophet #Romans #Paul #apostlepaul #apostle #biblestudy #hebrew #greek #newtestament #oldtestament #Catholic #Protestant #Jewish #Islam #religious #faithful #spiritual #truth #hope #love

He Said WHO Are Gods??

In John 10, there's a really odd section dealing in a claim that Jesus is God, an obscure Psalm, a supernatural worldview that is only BEGINNING to become more commonplace, and cultural understandings of scripture and expectations of Messiah.

In this episode we go through the 2 main theories that seek to explain this section of Scripture and leave it up to you to decide which option has the greatest explanatory power.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#faith #religion #spirituality #john10 #youaregods #elohim #divinecouncilworldview #divinecouncil #psalms #john #gospels #Jesus #Christ #JesusChrist #God #temple #Israel #bible #biblical #theology #apologetics #truth #biblestudy #spirit #spiritual #pagangods #gods #OldTestament #NewTestament #Christianity #Christian #MichaelHeiser #DrMichaelHeiser #NakedBiblePodcast #TheNakedBiblePodcast #MikeHeiser  ⁨@NakedBible⁩ 

Should Christians Cuss?

While the answer to this question might seem obvious to many Christians on the surface, when we apply some critical thinking, common sense, and look deeper at the Scriptures, we might come to different conclusions.

This episode won't teach you WHAT to think but, hopefully, it will give some guidance on HOW to think about this sensitive topic.

 

Email: truthbetoldbiblepodcast@gmail.com

Logo: Matt Hernandez

Music: Acoustic Indie Folk Years By MarkJuly

 

#faith #religion #spirituality #cusswords #cursewords #profanity #christianswhocursesometimes #christian #christianity #Christ #Jesus #God #Christ #JesusChrist #religious #biblical #bible #profane #obscenity #truth #Paul #fyp #fypyoutube