Ancient Words, Modern Message

There are those who avoid reading and studying the Old Testament due to the misguided opinion that it is boring and irrelevant. The current episode of “Ancient Words, Modern Message” will certainly demonstrate that such a thought could not be farther from the truth. This portion of the Book of Judges recounts what might well be considered one of the most intriguing and dramatic scenes to be found among the narratives of Israel’s many conflicts with their enemies in the nations surrounding them. And yet, the two principal players in this scene are not battling warriors, but a sleeping general and a woman with camping gear! Out of this incident comes yet again a reminder that God delights in using the most ordinary of people and the most humble of instruments to accomplish His plans, so that there can be no doubt as to the source of success. With this in mind, let’s turn to the fourth chapter of the Book of Judges to meet another of the “Stout-Hearted Men and Women” in this fourth study in the series, an episode we call “The Hammer of Justice in the Hand of the Brave." Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

A highly respected Christian leader and Bible teacher famously said, “Just once I’d like to walk into a church and have it smell more like after-shave than perfume!” His point was that far too often women take the lead when it comes to spiritual matters because the men have shirked their responsibilities. It is this troublesome weakness of male leadership that is very much in evidence in this next study in the Book of Judges, as the repetitive cycle of Israel’s disobedience to God, divine judgment at the hand of their enemies, appeal for help from Heaven, and deliverance under the leadership of a judge is once again on display. A careful consideration of the Biblical record suggests that God’s “man for the hour” to lead Israel to deliverance from a twenty year oppression by the Canaanites was actually Barak, but he sadly shrank from his duty, at which point a Godly woman named Deborah stepped in to bolster his resolve and courage. It might be said that the two main characters in this account could be identified as “a stout-hearted woman and a faint-hearted man.” We will take note of Deborah’s inspiring reminder to Barak as they faced their enemies, “Does not the LORD go out before you?” It was this assurance that Barak needed to “step up to the plate,” and it is the assurance that we need likewise to face challenges in our lives today. So let’s open our bibles to Judges 4:1-15 for the next study in this series, an episode entitled, “Behind Every Good Man. . .” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The iconic instruction of the classic Hollywood movie director was: “Lights, camera, action!” In some ways these same instructions could apply to a study of the Old Testament book of Judges. “Lights!” A careful study of the text shines a light on what took place in Israel over three thousand years ago. “Camera!” We want to be sure that what we see and learn is something we retain and apply to our own lives here and now. “Action!” There certainly is plenty of dramatic action to be seen in the lives and service of the twelve individuals featured in these accounts. But then there is yet another command barked out by the aforementioned director: “Cut!” That order is given when the scene does not go well and the one in charge wants everything to come to a halt and the scene improved. That instruction, too, could apply to the book of Judges with the same scene repeated over and over again in its troublesome form as a four-step cycle is seen in its pernicious form over a 337-year period of time. In watching the action unfold, we feel like shouting, “Cut!” And so we begin a consideration of the script acted out by the first three of twelve judges featured in the Book of Judges in this series of studies entitled, “Stout-hearted Men and Women” in this episode entitled, “Fit for the Master’s Use.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The plot of Groundhog Day, the 1993 comedy film starring Bill Murray, revolves around a television weather broadcaster who reports from Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on February 2, covering the annual appearance of that town’s famous groundhog and its impact upon winter weather patterns. In a bizarre set of circumstances, he finds that every day is a repeat of the day before it, February 2, “Groundhog Day,” until he breaks the chain with a change of character and attitude. In some ways, Ancient Israel had its own “Groundhog Day” that lasted for 337 years, with a cycle of events that was repeated over and over throughout that long period of time. In today’s episode of “Ancient Words, Modern Message” we begin a study of the Book of Judges and learn about this distressing cycle and its disturbing consequences, interrupted periodically by the appearance of a courageous, bold leader, only to resume when the leader is gone. With this in mind, let’s turn to the fascinating, and all-too-relevant book of Judges for the first of six installments in a series entitled, “Stout-hearted Men and Women,” an episode we call “Stuck in History.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Regular listeners to this podcast know that every seventh episode is different from the other six. Each of the six includes a Bible study, usually of an Old Testament book. The seventh is a break in style and content as I, Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship, sit in front of a microphone in my home, with a cup of coffee and ideally a bagel with a “shmear” of Philadelphia cream-cheese, for an informal “Bagel-side Chat.” In these I like to discuss a variety of subjects related to the Jewish people—Their history, culture, religious thinking and practice, and current events in Israel and worldwide affecting them. In this thirteenth “Bagel-side Chat” I touch on the fascinating subject of “keeping kosher,” with some of its nuances and peculiarities, but also with some spiritual principles growing out of the subject. For some listeners this may be a review of what they already know, but for others it might be an introduction to a subject little understood outside of Jewish communities. In which of the two groups you may be, or somewhere in between, we are glad that you have joined us for this “Bagel-side Chat,” an episode entitled “Nosh-knowledge.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

It is painfully obvious in so many ways that there presently is division, polarization, and hostility rampant within the American population to a level not seen for many years. While such a condition is regularly the subject of commentary in news media, with some even offering ideas and suggestions of a solution, the problem seems to be getting only worse. In the midst of this sad and alarming climate there comes the invitation to look into God’s Word, the Bible, for a real remedy. And that’s exactly what we do in this episode of “Ancient Words, Modern Message,” the sixth and final installment in the series, “Six REALLY Ordinary Men: The Overlooked Half of the Apostles.” Among the six lesser known members of the apostolic group are two men who were natural and virulent enemies of each other. . .until they were brought together by the call of Jesus to follow and to serve Him. Rarely do we see such a vivid reminder of the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus to not only reconcile men to God, but also to reconcile them to one another. So let’s zero in on a man seething with hatred and hostility, especially toward one other man in this small group, and how they became, as the title of this episode indicates, “Beloved Enemies.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

At the end of 2025 the population of the world was estimated at 8.3 billion. With that many human beings inhabiting our planet at one time, it is understandable that many would feel terribly insignificant. And yet, the Scriptures make it clear that in God’s sight, no one is insignificant. In fact, the best known verse in the Bible makes this point when it says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) The apostle John reminds us that God loves the world and everyone, every single one, in it, so much that He sent Jesus to provide the path of salvation. In this episode of the series, “Six Really Ordinary Men: The Overlooked Half of the Apostles,” we focus on two of the twelve who might certainly have considered themselves to be insignificant. In fact, the first of the two even had a nick-name based on his inferior status, and the other had a nick-name equally unflattering. The first has not one of his spoken words recorded in scripture and the second has just one question of less than twenty words recorded. And yet, the names of these two will be engraved into the foundation stones of the wall surrounding the city of the New Jerusalem which will stand forever, according to Revelation 21:14. And so it is that we can be assured that in God’s sight there are really no “little” people, and that’s the title of this episode, “No Little People. . .Really!” With that, let’s begin. Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

“Oh, he’s a ‘Doubting Thomas” or “Don’t be a ‘Doubting Thomas”—We’ve all heard the expression and maybe even used it ourselves. Of the twelve men chosen by Jesus to be with Him and to be sent out by Him, one has seemingly distinguished himself by his negative attitude, not exactly what he might prefer. However, in the description of this REALLY ordinary man, we find a heavy measure of encouragement for all of us who are followers of Jesus. In this fourth in the series, “Six REALLY Ordinary Men: The Overlooked Half of the Apostles,” we zero in on one known as “The Twin,” whose story reminds us that regardless of personality, including the negatives, God can use anyone who will say to Jesus, as did he, “My Lord and my God!” With the gospel record open before us, we delve into this study of the ups and downs of this interesting man in an episode entitled, “From Doubts to Certainty.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Nearly everyone has had the experience of meeting someone who appears to be warm, engaging, and deeply interested in others, but later learning that the initial impression was based on a veneer, under which was a very different person, one who is really much more interested in his or her own advancement than in anyone or anything else. Such an experience can lead to a sort of skepticism regarding others we might meet along the way, causing us to wonder, “Is there anyone who is really genuine and authentic—the real deal?” In this third episode of the series, “Six REALLY Ordinary Men,” we learn of one of the twelve individuals Jesus called to follow Him, to be with Him, and to be sent out by Him, who actually was “the real deal.” From the time Jesus first met him He recognized: “This is a plain-talker, not a phony, and what you see is what you get!” So, let’s turn to a careful study of one about whom there is very little known, but one who displays this rarest of qualities: authenticity and sincerity, a man in whom there is no deceit. We call this episode, “REALLY Ordinary, but Really Real!” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

It’s not often in this series of podcasts that the listener will hear the speaker singing a song! However, this episode begins with that unusual feature as I lead the “Shmooze, News, and Views” group in singing a little “ditty” from years gone by, designed as an aid in remembering the names of the twelve apostles. The first of the six “overlooked Half of the apostles” to be considered is Philip, about whom not a great deal is known. In fact, all of the information we have about him is found in only one of the four gospels, the gospel of John. However, tucked into the compact package of information about Philip is a powerful lesson for each one of us as we wonder, “Do I have what it takes to be used by God?” The answer to that question is the “takeaway” from this second study in the series, “Six REALLY Ordinary Men: The Overlooked Half of the Apostles.” Feel free to join in the singing as we begin this episode entitled, “The Boy from Bethsaida.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The nineteenth century New England poet Emily Dickinson began her brief poem with this quip: “I’m nobody; who are you?” So many of us can identify with Miss Dickinson’s self-recognition, noting that there are seemingly disadvantages being “a somebody,” of whom there are far fewer than “the nobodies,” though sometimes we might like to try it for ourselves! The Gospels introduce us to twelve men who could certainly be considered “nobodies,” but who were used in extraordinary ways after meeting Jesus and being called and prepared by Him. In this next series of six studies we will consider six of the twelve apostles, the ones to whom there has been given little attention, but who must be included in the group of “nobodies” mightily used as Jesus’ human instruments to “build His Church.” And in this there is great encouragement for all of us “nobodies” as we move into a series entitled, “Six REALLY Ordinary Men: The Overlooked Half of the Apostles,” with this first study we call “Getting To Know the Nobodies.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

At a time when so many nations and individuals are turning away from Israel and vilifying the Jewish state and the Jewish people, it is both remarkable and refreshing to hear from those who continue to have “a heart for Israel.” Such a one is Paul Valerio, an American Gentile who, along with his young wife Traci, decided to visit Israel for three weeks and ended up living and working there for eighteen years! I recently had the privilege of sitting down with Paul during a few days with us in Pennsylvania as a stop between his home in Georgia and a visit with family (and running in a half-marathon) in Connecticut where he grew up. With each of us enjoying a cup of coffee and a bagel with a “shmear” of cream cheese, I asked Paul to share how he and Traci surprisingly ended up in Israel and to describe the development of his deep interest in, and love for, Israel and the Jewish people which continues to this day. I also asked him to share from his heart his concern and hope for both the Jewish State and its citizens. I believe you will be blessed and challenged as you listen in on this conversation which is this next Bagel-side Chat in an episode with the intriguing title, “Three Weeks, Two Back-Packs, Plus Eighteen Years.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Over these past months at various times you have been invited to join me, Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship, for an informal conversation about matters related to Israel, the Jewish people, and how they fit into God’s plan and purpose for the world as revealed in His Word, the Bible. Loosely modeled after President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s (FDR’s) “Fireside Chats” in his radio addresses to the American people from 1933 to 1944 during the Great Depression and World War II, these talks have a “Jewish flavor” (read that “Bagel-side”) to them. In this eleventh “Bagel-side Chat” I focus on the example of the Ten Boom Family in the Netherlands during the terrible time of the Holocaust and its connection to what lies ahead for the Jewish people as foretold by the Old Testament prophets and Jesus Himself in the Olivet Discourse. In this present time when so many nations and individuals have turned against the State of Israel and the Jewish people, it is especially important to ponder how Jesus would have us respond in practical ways to the circumstances and needs of “His brethren.” So, settle in with a beverage and a bagel with a “shmear” for this eleventh “Bagel-side Chat” entitled, “Corrie’s Tree and Me.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Of the five supernatural revelations recorded in the Old Testament Book of Daniel, the prophet’s vision described in chapter 8 is certainly one of the most astounding, astounding in its specificity in predicting future events, covering a span of over five hundred years and beyond. Two vitally important truths emerge from an understanding of Daniel’s vision: Every earthly kingdom, no matter how seemingly indestructible, will fall as surely as it arose. . .with one notable exception. If all of Daniel’s predictions were correct, with the exception of the one yet unfulfilled, surely that one will be fulfilled, as well, though sometime in the indefinite future. With these truths in mind, we turn to Daniel 8 in this last in a six-part series entitled, “When Worlds Collide: Studies in the Book of Daniel,” an episode we call “Precision Prophecy.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

There is a “slogan” of sorts heard often in years gone by: “I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.” While the gist of this statement is correct, the first part of it should have an asterisk attached, directed toward the qualification that God has given us in His Word through the prophetic scriptures a glimpse of some of the general movements of the future. Such is the case with a dream Daniel had in the middle of the sixth century B.C., a dream with content similar to the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream some fifty years earlier. Both dreams outline the flow of world history through four great empires—all of which eventually crumble—and its culmination in a fifth empire, which will last forever. So we can know something of what the future holds through careful Bible study, challenging as it may sometimes be. However, what is most encouraging of all is that we indeed know Who holds the future. With that in mind, let’s roll up our sleeves and dive into Daniel chapter 7 for this fifth episode of a six-part series, “When Worlds Collide: Studies in the Book of Daniel,” an episode entitled, “A Frightful Dream with Forever Details.” which are not just stories, but accounts of actual events, there is an overarching theme of the book of which these various accounts are a demonstration. That theme is summarized in verse twenty-one of chapter two: And he [God] changeth the times and the seasons; he removeth kings, and setteth up kings; he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to those who know understanding. “The wise” are those who look around them at current events in the world and ask the question, “Who’s in charge here?” And “the wise” are those who realize the correct answer to that question: “GOD is in charge here!” Especially in this present time the words of the hymn, “This Is My Father’s World,” are particularly relevant, comforting, and encouraging: “This is my Father’s world, O let me ne’er forget that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the Ruler yet.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

While the Old Testament book of Daniel contains numerous fascinating stories which are not just stories, but accounts of actual events, there is an overarching theme of the book of which these various accounts are a demonstration. That theme is summarized in verse twenty-one of chapter two: And he [God] changeth the times and the seasons; he removeth kings, and setteth up kings; he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to those who know understanding. “The wise” are those who look around them at current events in the world and ask the question, “Who’s in charge here?” And “the wise” are those who realize the correct answer to that question: “GOD is in charge here!” Especially in this present time the words of the hymn, “This Is My Father’s World,” are particularly relevant, comforting, and encouraging: “This is my Father’s world, O let me ne’er forget that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the Ruler yet.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The Old Testament is “chocked full” of great stories of fascinating characters and dramatic events. However, it is important to recognize that the Bible is not just another story-book, but that, in fact, the “stories” it contains are not fictional stories, but they are the record of things that really happened. Time and time again the veracity and authenticity of the record have been supported by archaeological discoveries over the centuries. One of the most exciting and intriguing “stories” in the Old Testament is found in the fourth chapter of the Book of Daniel which is the first-hand account by Babylon’s greatest king, Nebuchadnezzar, of an astounding event in his life and reign. The story is that of how one who could correctly be called a pride-filled narcissist was brought low in order that he might become a humble worshipper of the One True God. And so, in the third episode of this series, “When Worlds Collide: Studies in the Book of Daniel,” we consider this fascinating and ultra-dramatic story, an episode entitled, “How the Mighty Has Fallen!” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Certainly most of us have had the experience of waking up in the morning and asking: “Where did that dream come from? Maybe the bed-time snack of three slices of pepperoni pizza, but more often than not, we simply do not know where those far-fetched and bizarre dreams come from. However, we do know where the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream came from, a strange dream reported in the second chapter of the Old Testament Book of Daniel. Thanks to the divinely inspired insight of a young Jewish exile, Nebuchadnezzar also knew where the dream came from—more correctly from whom it came—and its meaning, as well. While the great majority of dreams defy explanation and understanding, this particular one was deep in its meaning and broad in its scope, so broad, in fact, that it covered a span of 279 years and beyond, outlining in amazing detail a major period of world history. With this in mind, let’s open our Bibles to Daniel 2 for this second in the series we have named, “When Worlds Collide: Studies in the Book of Daniel,” an episode with the intriguing title, “279 Years in Just One Night!” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The Old Testament book of Daniel is one of the books that many people know a little about, but few people know much about. While there is considerable familiarity with some of its “stories” which hold the attention of children and adults alike, there is so much more to these twelve chapters, the content of which could be considered epic in its scope. World history, from the earliest days of human civilization to the present, is actually a record of the rise and fall of governments, cultures, and ideologies in conflict with one another, and it is this panoramic scene which is at the heart of the book of Daniel. However, as expansive as this subject is, its consideration begins in a very basic and simple way with the introduction of four young Jewish men who found themselves in a foreign land, facing the challenge of colliding cultures and colliding world views. It is through one of these four that God has provided an amazing glimpse of His hand at work: past, present, and future. And so, the curtain opens on what can only be described as a dramatized observatory of history in motion. Join us as we begin a six-part series, “When Worlds Collide: Studies in the Book of Daniel,” with this first episode aptly titled, “The Curtain Opens.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Most Gentiles know about the major Jewish holidays and observances throughout the year: Passover, Hanukkah, and even Yom Kippur and Purim. However, there are numerous other special days on the Jewish calendar which are not nearly as well known. Among these is a special day observed by many Jewish people each year in the summer months: Tisha B’Av. Indubitably, no race, no ethnic group has ever experienced the level of adversity and suffering as have the Jewish people throughout their history. This should not surprise us when we realize the special plan and purpose that God has for Israel and the level of spiritual warfare directed against its fulfillment. One day each year is devoted to Jewish recollection, recognition, and response in sorrow to the many tragic events and circumstances faced by previous generations. That day is Tisha B’Av. In this episode of “Ancient Words, Modern Message” in a tenth “Bagel-side Chat” we consider the meaning of Tisha B’Av, how it is observed by Jewish people around the world, and the “light at the end of the dark tunnel,” as promised by the psalmist in Psalm 30:4-5: Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. For his anger endureth but for a moment; in his favor is life. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. Join us now for this episode entitled, “Joy Comes in the Morning.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

It is widely accepted by the rabbis and the Jewish people whom they lead that the Old Testament Prophetic Scriptures clearly indicate that the coming Messiah will be a descendant of King David from the Tribe of Judah. However, what is not widely accepted is that the “Son of David” whose coming is foretold is the One who has already come, namely Jesus. In this series, “Songs of Jesus in the Tanach,” we have considered only a few of the Messianic Psalms, songs in “the Bible’s sacred hymn book” which contain details about the Messiah whom God will send. This information, combined with many other Old Testament prophecies, presents a portrait of the only one whose birth, life, death, and resurrection amazingly and perfectly fit and fulfill all of that specific information. In this sixth and final episode in the series, we look at Psalm 110, into which are woven two cardinal tenets of Christian theology, the doctrine of the trinity and the doctrine of the deity of Jesus. While the great majority of Jewish people have yet to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah depicted throughout the Tanach, the Old Testament, it is thrilling to know that many are at least carefully considering the matter and that a growing number are coming to Faith in Him. So together let’s open our Bibles to Psalm 110 for this study entitled, “King David’s Greater Son.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

While the spectrum of subjects and events presented in the Old Testament Scriptures is very broad indeed, there is a recurring theme that appears from the first chapter of Genesis to the fourth chapter of Malachi; that theme is God’s redemptive plan for lost mankind. That plan has at its very center the person of God’s anointed one, His Beloved Son, the Messiah. And so it is no surprise that a careful reading of this Biblical literature provides repeated glimpses of the One whose very name means “salvation,” and nowhere is this more apparent than in the Book of Psalms where the person and work of the Messiah are foretold centuries and centuries before His birth in Bethlehem. In this episode of the series, “Songs of Jesus in the Tanach,” we consider two of these Messianic Psalms, Psalm 16 and Psalm 34, together providing an amazingly accurate description of a detail of Christ’s death on the cross and of His glorious resurrection on the third day thereafter, amazing to be sure when we realize that these “songs” were written a thousand years before the events to which they point. Through it all can be seen the image of the One who willingly shed His blood in payment of the penalty of sin, not His sins, for He had none, but for the sins of those who would trust in His atoning work on the cross. Truly it can be said that there is a crimson thread woven into the very fabric of the Old Testament Scriptures, something we will clearly see in this episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message, one we call “The Crimson Thread.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The recent Prime Video series on the public ministry of Jesus, The Chosen, does a credible and effective job of presenting not only His deity, but also His humanity, a balance not often achieved in such media. A comprehension, albeit incomplete, of both dimensions of the person who is the Unique Son of God adds to the depth of our appreciation of everything we read about Him in the Gospel accounts. Rarely are we given in the scriptures a glimpse of what might have been the innermost thoughts and emotions of the Savior in any particular situation. However, such an opportunity is presented by a careful reading and understanding of yet another of one of the numerous Messianic Psalms and the impact that Psalm must have had on Jesus on the eve of His death on the cruel cross of Calvary. With that in mind, let’s turn to Psalm 118, as did Jesus and his followers as they gathered in the upper room to observe the Passover Seder, for this unusual perspective in our series, “Songs of Jesus in the Tanach,” an episode entitled, “Singing in the Shadow of the Cross.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The Apostle Paul, in writing to his son in the Faith, Timothy, observes, “And without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness.” (1 Timothy 3:16) This great mystery includes the truth of the incarnation, that over two millennia ago Jesus entered the world as fully God and fully man. Many of the 150 psalms in the Old Testament Scriptures predict this dual nature of Jesus, demonstrated in his life, death, resurrection, and ultimate reign. Among these is Psalm 69, the second most often quoted by the writers of the New Testament, as in their day these prophecies were fulfilled. A careful study of David’s words in this psalm reminds us of the magnitude of Jesus’ suffering on the cross, willingly endured because of the magnitude of His love for lost mankind. In the words of hymn writer Charles Wesley, “Amazing love, how can it be, that thou, my God, shouldest die for me!” With that in mind, we consider Psalm 69 in this third study in the series, “Songs of Jesus in the Tanach,” an episode entitled, “The Mystery of Godliness.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The second in this series entitled, “Songs of Jesus in the Tanach,” draws our attention to another of the many Messianic Psalms in the Old Testament, Psalm 22. Though written a thousand years before Jesus’ day, the Holy Spirit inspired King David to describe his own experiences of suffering in exaggerated terms which would, in fact, provide an extremely detailed and accurate first-person description of death by crucifixion. The details are so precise and vivid that we find the whole account repugnant and repulsive. But then. . .we are strangely drawn to the scene as an expression of the extent of Jesus’ love for us, that he would willingly endure such profound and immeasurable suffering. This episode is released just ten days after Good Friday, so it is timely and fitting that we turn now to this particular Messianic Psalm, Psalm 22 in a study we have entitled, “The Worst of All Deaths, the Deepest of All Loves.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

This first episode in a new series of “Ancient Words, Modern Message” is scheduled to launch on the day after Palm Sunday at the beginning of “Holy Week” which culminates in Easter, the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. What a perfect time to begin a study of six of the numerous Psalms which look into the future and point to Jesus and His redemptive work for mankind through His death, burial, and resurrection and which anticipate His ultimate reign upon the earth and through all eternity. The first of these six Psalms to be considered is God’s declaration to the mightiest of earthly potentates that when His Son, His anointed One, the Messiah, arrives in glory, they will only have two choices—either bow the knee to Him in acknowledgment of His right to reign, or be vanquished. The first choice will surely result in brokenness, while the second will surely result in blessedness. So. . .let’s turn to Psalm two as we begin the series, “Songs of Jesus in the Tanach,” with this first episode entitled, “Bow or Be Broken!” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

In this, his ninth “Bagel-side Chat” Hebrew Christian Fellowship Director, Roger Wambold reflects on decades of ministry as a pastor and as a mission director. This episode is quite different from the previous eight, providing “time-travel” to a church-pew in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a young pastor preaches from 1 Samuel 24 in a sermon entitled, “Loving Until It Hurts.” Join us as we listen in. Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Imagine a job posting on LinkedIn or Ziprecruiter with the following description: Excellent opportunity for a career prophet demonstrating exceptional communication skills, interest in employment longevity, and a willingness to commit to a task leading to disappointment, minimal affirmation, and near-total failure. Clearly there would not be a long line of applicants for such a position, and yet that is the career offered by God to Isaiah, one which he enthusiastically accepted and which he diligently pursued. We read about the hiring process in Isaiah 6:1-13 as we move into this last of six episodes in the series entitled: “I Saw the Lord: Studies in the Book of Isaiah.” With Bibles open to Isaiah 6, let’s consider together this most unusual job search in an episode entitled: “Recruited for Failure.” Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

There are those who dismiss the relevance of the Bible to twenty-first century Americans, calling it archaic and obsolete. However, a careful reading of the observations and pronouncements of the Old Testament Prophets leads one to the sense that they could just as readily be spoken in the United States of America today. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Book of Isaiah in its record of that prophet’s message to his own Southern Kingdom of Israel in the eighth century B.C. As we consider that message we can legitimately wonder: “If Isaiah were to address the moral and spiritual condition of the U.S. and the American people today, what would he say?” It would seem that his words would be strikingly similar to those spoken by him over two and a half millennia ago. In today’s study we listen in on Isaiah’s God-given commission to confront his own people in his day, while carefully facing the question: “Could this also be God’s message to America in 2025?” So, with Bibles open to Isaiah five, verses eight through thirty, we continue the series, “I Saw the Lord: Studies in the Book of Isaiah,” in an episode entitled, “An Old Testament Prophet for Today’s America.” -- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

It wasn’t easy being an Old Testament prophet whose job it was to speak on God’s behalf in denouncing the disobedience and rebellion of his own Jewish people and declaring the certainty of divine judgment if they did not repent and turn from their wicked ways. Sometimes the prophet turned to an unorthodox style to make his point, using metaphors, object lessons, and even a song. Such is the case with Isaiah as recorded in the beginning of the fifth chapter of the book that bears his name. After a glimpse into the future of Israel and the Jewish people in chapter four, Isaiah turns to the weighty task of addressing the present condition of His people in their land. Perhaps, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Isaiah thought, “I think I’ll try something different to make my point. I know; I’ll write a song, a ballad, and maybe they’ll get the message!” And that’s exactly what we find in Isaiah 5:1-7, so let’s turn to chapters four and five for today’s episode entitled, “The Ballad of the Disappointing Vineyard” in this continuing series, “I Saw the Lord: Studies in the Book of Isaiah." -- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Following a number of recent natural disasters in various parts of our country there has been a careful examination of the effectiveness of FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It could well be said that the FEMA of the Old Testament Period consisted of one person, the Old Testament Prophet who was commissioned by God to identify the crisis which posed an emergency, along with managing and addressing that crisis. In the Southern Kingdom of Israel in the eighth century B.C., that position was filled by Isaiah who boldly and courageously declared the emergency and offered a response to manage it, a message which sadly was consistently ignored. We have been moving through a series of studies entitled: “I Saw the Lord: Studies in the Book of Isaiah,” and in today’s episode we find the prophet Isaiah identifying three crises and offering a solution to their threat of danger. So, let’s turn now to the third chapter of the Book of Isaiah in an episode we call simply, “Crisis Management 101!” -- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The Jewish prophets of the Old Testament period whose names are attached to the record of their ministries in Scripture were indeed a “rare” bunch, “rare” in so many ways. What we must remember is that each of those prophets addressed the challenges and opportunities of his own specific time. However, without exception, each of them also was given a message to proclaim concerning events that would transpire long after his own time. For this reason it can be correctly said that each one of the Old Testament prophets had a dual ministry of forth telling (as in addressing the people and circumstances of his own day) and a ministry of fore telling (as in declaring events reserved for the future, and often the distant future). This dual role is clearly evident in Isaiah chapter two, the focus of the second in this series of six podcasts taken from the book of Isaiah, a series entitled: “I Saw the Lord: Studies in the Book of Isaiah.” With a touch of levity on a serious subject, we’ve entitled this episode, “The Bigger They Are, the Harder They Fall!” With Bibles open to Isaiah, chapter two, let’s get started. -- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The eighth century B.C. prophet Isaiah was commissioned by God to confront his own Jewish people in the Southern Kingdom of Judah with their deplorable spiritual and cultural condition, calling upon them to repent and avoid the consequences of His judgment. Then, as now, the question begs to be asked: “If my sinful condition is so extreme, then how can I possibly be cleansed and forgiven?” It is this very question posed by Robert Lowry in the old Gospel song, “Nothing But the Blood,” when he asks, “What can wash away my sin? What can make me whole again?” and claims the answer from the Scriptures, “Nothing but the blood of Jesus.” In today’s edition of “Ancient Words, Modern Message” we will consider Isaiah’s powerful ministry as we begin a new six-part series entitled: “I Saw the Lord: Studies in the Book of Isaiah.” At the heart of the prophet’s message are the poignant words of his challenge to his people expressed in Isaiah 1:18: “Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD: “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” With a Bible open to Isaiah chapter one we begin this episode entitled, “Whiter Than Snow." -- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

In just a few days people in the United States and around the world will be celebrating Christmas 2024, but as that celebration concludes in the evening of December 25, Jewish people around the world will be beginning their observance of the eight-day Festival of Lights, Hanukkah. In this episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message, you are invited to join Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship, for his eighth “Bagel-side Chat.” There are numerous traditional observances and activities associated with the annual celebration of Hanukkah, one of which is a favorite among Jewish children, referring to the game played with a special spinning top called a dreidel. But the dreidel is not just a toy; it is a teaching tool with which children are reminded of, and instructed about, the history of their people. It is this instruction and its even greater application that is the subject of this “Bagel-side Chat,” an episode entitled, “The Tale of the Top.” Let’s listen in. . . -- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

While it is fashionable and generally inoffensive—as well as correct—to speak of God as being a God of love, it is incorrect to neglect the equal truth that God is holy and just and therefore a God of judgment. It is the balance between the demonstration of God’s mercy and grace, and his holiness and justice displayed in judgment against sin, that is the theme of both the book of Jonah and the book of Nahum in which the Assyrian Empire and its capital city of Ninevah are the case study. Given the natural proclivity for sin of every human being and the prospect of divine judgment against our sin, a logical question arises: How can I possibly withhold the trouble looming before me when I face God in judgment? We will consider this troubling question and the comforting answer in this second and concluding study of the book of Nahum in the two-part series, “Nahum: Good News, Bad News.” So, let’s open the Bible to Nahum chapter three for this episode entitled, “A Stronghold in the Day of Trouble.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The previous series of studies in the book of Jonah closes with the account of God sparing the Assyrian Empire from His judgment of destruction because of their response to the preaching of Jonah, the reluctant prophet. A “companion” book to the book of Jonah among the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament is the little three-chapter-book of Nahum which again focuses on Ninevah over a century after Jonah’s preaching there. Tucked into its forty-seven verses, the book of Nahum carries a powerful reminder of the disastrous consequences of ignoring God’s call to repentance and trust in Him and Him alone. Welcome to the first in this two-part series of studies of the book of Nahum entitled, “Nahum: Good News, Bad News” in an episode we call, “The Prophet’s Music with a Powerful Message.”

Sadly, there are those who maintain that the God of the Bible is a God of vengeance and wrath who seems to enjoy condemning and punishing people. This could not be any further from the truth, as expressed in both the Old and New Testaments. Ezekiel 33:11—Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. . . 2 peter 3:9—The lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. In yet another demonstration of the Prophet Jonah’s human frailty—warts and all—the final chapter in the book of Jonah begins with him pouting because God chose to withhold judgment from Israel’s enemies, the Assyrian Ninevites, because they actually had “the audacity” to repent! We’ll consider the various dimensions of the contrast between the nature and character of God and the nature and character of man as displayed in the fourth chapter of Jonah as we move through this fourth part of the series: “Jonah: I Did It MY Way,” an episode with a title drawn from an old Gospel song, “It’s Just Like His Great Love!” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The Old Testament Prophet Isaiah reminded the Jewish people of his day that God’s ways are very different from man’s ways as God spoke through him declaring: For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9) Nowhere is this contrast between God’s ways and man’s ways clearer than in the account of another Old Testament prophet who lived a century before Isaiah, the prophet Jonah. What happens when one who should faithfully determine to “do it God’s way” decides instead to “do it my way”? One such scenario is displayed in this next study of the book of Jonah. Chapter three of the book recounts a most unlikely response to a most unlikely message preached by a most unlikely prophet, but even more dramatic is the contrast between the character of God and His ways and the character of the prophet and his ways. Let’s turn to Jonah chapter three for another study in the series, “Jonah: I Did It MY Way” in an episode with the intriguing, but perplexing title: “I Was Afraid That Would Happen!” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Arguably one of the more flawed characters in the Old Testament Scriptures is the prophet Jonah who, in the candid words of some commentators, appears in the text, “warts and all.” While we would expect that a “man of God” would always respond obediently to God’s call, immersing himself in prayer, Jonah is the antithesis of this expectation as he runs away from the divine call of duty and uses prayer only as a last resort. In today’s study in the series, “I Did It My Way—Studies in the Book of Jonah,” we look at Jonah, chapter two, which finds the prophet in the belly of the great fish, about as low as any man could go. What happens next is yet another example of God’s grace and mercy, as well as HIs persistent hand on those He would use to fulfill HIs purpose. So let’s turn now to the second chapter of Jonah for this episode entitled, “Prayer from the Depth of Despair.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

In 1968 Frank Sinatra recorded a song which quickly became his signature musical theme. It was an immediate hit and was later recorded and released by Elvis Presley with similar reception by listeners around the world. No doubt the song’s rapid climb and enduring presence on the charts, including induction of Sinatra’s version to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000, was due to the compatibility of the lyrics with the spirit of self-centered individualism dominating modern thought. It is one thing for people, in general, to agree with Frank’s musical philosophy, but it is quite another when those who know God and are called to serve Him adopt that same philosophy, resolving to do it their way. However, this is exactly the case with the prophet Jonah as demonstrated in the Old Testament book which bears his name. We will examine the pitfalls and consequences of that kind of thinking in a four-part series aptly entitled, “I Did It My Way: Studies in the Book of Jonah.” Join us now for the first episode which we call, “In the School of Big Fish.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The autumn of each year is a very important time for Jewish people around the world as they observe one of the most festive days on their religious calendar, followed shortly by the most solemn day on their religious calendar. In this episode of “Ancient Words, Modern Message,” Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship, invites listeners to put a “shmear” of cream cheese on a bagel and “gnosh” away as he offers his latest informal discussion of all things Jewish in this seventh “Bagel-side Chat.” For Jews and Gentiles alike, the tension between our sinful imperfection and God’s standard of absolute holiness and righteousness poses a major problem, causing us to ask, “Can I ever be certain of God’s forgiveness?” and “How can I know for sure where I’m going when I die?” That’s the subject of this chat, with answers from God’s Word, the Bible, so welcome to this episode entitled simply “Blessed Assurance!” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The title of this six-part series of studies in the Old Testament Book of Ezekiel, “True Grit, Great Glory,” is a spin-off from the 1969 film, “True Grit,” starring John Wayne in the role of Rooster Cogburn, the living embodiment of “true grit,” getting the job done, no matter how difficult. Arguably the best example of “true grit” in the Old Testament Scriptures is the prophet Ezekiel who “got the job done” in spite of adverse circumstances, “the job” being that of proclaiming God’s message concerning the future of Israel and the Jewish people. Ezekiel’s stye was certainly eccentric, though admittedly driven by God’s unusual demands on him, but his obedience was unwavering and his message was clear and powerful. Who would think that a clear and powerful message could be drawn from a handful of sticks, but that is exactly the point of our study of Ezekiel 37:15-28, the last in this series, an episode we call, “Two Sticks, One People, One Promise.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

There may not be many folks within the sound of my voice who are old enough to remember the television western series, “Death Valley Days,” but I am! The series, first aired in 1952, was set in what has been identified as the hottest place on earth in the summer, a place where dry, lifeless, parched bones are scattered, a reminder of the irreversible nature of death. It was to such a place that the prophet Ezekiel was taken in a prophetic vision where he received a revelation of the future of national Israel and the Jewish people displayed in a strange, but vividly dramatic way. Many people are familiar with this story of Ezekiel and the dry bones—even those who don’t know much else about the Old Testament prophets—but most are unaware of the real message contained in the story, namely that God is not finished with national Israel and the Jewish people as a whole, that their ultimate future is as amazing and miraculous as dry bones in Death Valley restored to vibrant life. Especially now, as once again the state of Israel is surrounded by enemies bent on its destruction, it is important to turn to God’s Word for a glimpse into the future to provide strength for today. Let’s do that as we consider Ezekiel 37 in the fifth segment in this series, “True Grit, Great Glory: Studies in the Book of Ezekiel,” an episode entitled, “Lessons from Death Valley.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

The Bible is replete with accounts of dramatic transformations of individuals, of which perhaps the most stunning is the conversion of Saul of Tarsus on the Road to Damascus, thereafter known as the Apostle Paul. In each case it can certainly be said that there was a “change of heart.” While taken together, all of these accounts dealing with single individuals, are certainly astonishing and demand our attention, far more remarkable though is an event in the future foretold by the Prophet Ezekiel, when not just individuals, but an entire nation will have “a change of heart.” Thanks to the great advancements in medical science, a successful surgical heart transplant is no longer such a remote possibility and rare event, though certainly noteworthy and a great accomplishment. However, far more striking is the transplant at the “heart” of national Israel. With this in mind, let’s turn to Ezekiel 36:25-38 in this next part of the series, “True Grit, Great Glory: Studies in the Book of Ezekiel,” an episode entitled, “History’s Greatest Heart Transplant.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

As parents of young children recognize, after sternly correcting and disciplining a son or a daughter, it is important to then provide a warm hug—literally, figuratively, or both—and the assurance of love, with a strong dose of encouragement. This is the essence of “tough love.” The sixth century B.C. Old Testament prophet Ezekiel—a truly stout-hearted man of true grit—pulled no punches in addressing his own Jewish people with the message of divine discipline, but following it up with encouraging words as assurance of God’s everlasting love for them. In this third installment of the series, “True Grit, Great Glory—Studies in the Book of Ezekiel,” we consider the prophet’s message to the Jews of the Southern Kingdom of Israel at a very discouraging time in an episode we call, “Tough Love in the Holy Land.” So, with a Bible open to Ezekiel, chapter thirty-six, let’s carefully consider these “ancient words” and their “modern message.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Of all of the Old Testament prophets—and they were indeed a colorful and “quirky” bunch—it can most certainly be said that the “quirkiest” and the “true-gritiest” of them all was Ezekiel! In today’s study of the book of Ezekiel we consider the prophet’s address, not to the people, but to the very land of Israel, from his exile in Babylon. We will note the God-ordained connection between the Jewish people and their ancient homeland, a connection seen throughout history, but one that becomes more and more prominent in modern history, leading up to the day when Israel’s Messiah, the Savior of the World, will reign from there. So, with Bibles open to Ezekiel thirty-six, verses one through fifteen, let’s listen in as we move through this second study in the series enittled, “True Grit, Great Glory,” an episode we call “God’s Plan for the People and the Place.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.

Though all of the Old Testament prophets could aptly be described as “colorful,” arguably the one who stands out as the most “colorful,” or even the most “eccentric,” would be Ezekiel. Long before the actor John Wayne displayed “true grit” in the 1969 movie by that name, this young priest, exiled from his beloved homeland to far-off Mesopotamia, boldly carried out God’s instructions to proclaim, in some very unusual ways, a message to his fellow exiles and many generations to follow, a message of judgment and of deliverance. So now, let’s begin with an introduction to this fascinating man and his relevant message in the first of six parts in a series entitled; “True Grit, Great Glory.” With a Bible open to the beginning of the Book of Ezekiel, welcome to an episode entitled, “A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.” --- Thank you for listening to Ancient Words, Modern Message. You can expect episodes twice a month on Monday. Ancient Words, Modern Message is supported by Hebrew Christian Fellowship. To learn more about our ministry, or to ask a question, contact [email protected]. We might just answer your question on a future episode of Ancient Words, Modern Message. If you know a person that you think would benefit from this teaching, please share it with them. And if you’d like to support Ancient Words, Modern Message, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the podcast even better and reach new listeners. Ancient Words, Modern Message is produced by Studio D Podcast Production and hosted by Rev. Roger Wambold, Director of Hebrew Christian Fellowship.