The Family Bible Journey Podcast

Mark's gospel is short, sweet and to the point! We see Jesus winning the victory over the dark spiritual forces of the world. This is good news for us, especially when it seems God is slow in answering our prayers.

The Old Testament sacrifices were bloody and personal. The act of laying one's hand on the head of the sacrificial animal as it was slain was a personal connection. We will be introduced to a small flock of goats to feel a small measure of this powerful connection.

We consider how the grain offering was a literal first-fruits offering to the Lord. When God's people gave a portion of their grain, their sustenance, they were trusting God with their livelihood. When we give, we give God opportunity to bless us, just as we bless Him with our gifts.

The faithful women who had attended Jesus through his death and burial returned to the tomb early Easter morning and were blessed to be the first witnesses of Jesus's resurrection. He had kept all His promises! The angel told them to, "go and tell the disciples." At the end of the gospel, Jesus encourages all His disciples to, "go and tell." But we go not without His help. Matthew's gospel ends with one more great promise of Christ's enduring presence that we hold onto today.

We begin Leviticus by learning how the principles that undergirded the Old Testament sacrifices still apply to God's people today. We also consider three different types of law found in Leviticus and learn to distinguish which apply and which don't apply today.

Exodus ends on a high note. The presence of God, which overshadowed His people in the pillar came to rest on the Tabernacle. The God Who had led them on their journey now promised to dwell among them. We consider the blessings of His presence that overshadow us in our journey.

When Jesus died, darkness covered the earth, the curtain in the Temple that divided God's presence from men was torn and the dead were raised. At these events, the Centurion declared Jesus to be the very Son of God. We too praise Him for finishing the work of our salvation for us. He was laid in the tomb, sanctifying death as our way to the Father.

The holy robes God gave Aaron and the High Priests was a splendid foreshadowing of how all God's people will be adorned in glory. He wore jewels and a holy crown to remind God's people of how special they are to God. This because God clothes us in love, even when we don't deserve it.

The generosity of faithful women and men is highlighted this time. Bronze mirrors used to beautify self were donated to beautify the Tabernacle. Faithful craftsmen were honored for their workmanship. In this episode, all who serve with their talents are celebrated.

In the upside-down world of Jesus' final hours, where wrong was right and right was wrong, He got what He deserved. He had taken the sin of humanity upon Himself and was being treated as if all sin was His. It was. He had made it so! Judas and the Jewish people would also get what they deserved. But we, like Barabbas, don't get what we deserve because in Jesus, we are forgiven and receive the reward for His righteousness.

The work on the Tabernacle began with God reminding His people of the importance of worship and rest. He didn't want them to get so consumed with what they were doing that they missed the blessing of time with Him in worship. How often do we get so busy we don't take time for God or ourselves? Here we learn the blessings of rest and godly generosity.

Moses cut new tablets and met with the Lord, Who renewed His covenant with His people. Even as the law is given, God's mercy outweighs His wrath. This is good news for all who struggle with self-worth. God loves us despite the things we don't love about ourselves.

When Jesus was arrested, He found Himself living in an upside-down world. Right was wrong. Truth was a lie. His best friend thrice betrayed Him. Yet Jesus continued through it all, knowing the worst was yet to come, thinking of you and your salvation every step of the way.

We learn of the close intimacy Moses had with God. While we pray for blessing and prosperity, it is often the difficulties of life that draw us closer to family, friends and the Lord. In this episode we explore the blessings of these close relationships.

It's hard to imagine how the Israelites could make a golden calf and worship it while they could see God meeting with Moses up on the mountain. But they did. Aaron, their called worship leader, led this idolatrous worship. In this episode, we learn how the idol worship of Israel grew out of Egyptian religious practice and the depth of God's mercy.

In the opening salvo of events of Jesus' final days on earth, He is annointed by a sinful woman, betrayed by one of His closest friends, and ends up in the Garden of Gethsemane. In this episode, we consider the weight Jesus carried, why Gethsemane was the perfect place for Jesus' agonizing prayer and who it was that actually betrays Jesus.

Why does the world so celebrate celebrity and entertainers that they get special awards just for existing? In today's podcast, we are celebrating every woman and every man who's work is essential to society, by giving them an award inspired by two men in today's lesson who built the Tabernacle and all its furnishings.

We will compare the holy calling that Aaron and his sons received as priests to the calling God gives each of us. Some are called today to serve as pastors or priests. All are called in their baptism to a life of service. We will learn how all are affirmed by God's calling.

Jesus tells a frightening parable of judgment, comparing God to a shepherd who must sort out His flock by seperating sheep and goats. Am I a sheep or a goat? How can I know? In this episode, we consider why we do good as God's people and determine the place of grace and good works when it comes to the question of salvation.

Every thread of the High Priestly garments taught God's people important truths of His love for them. In today's episode, like good tailors, we will pay close attention to each piece of the holy vestments, how they were made, and learn how they communicated God's love then and now.

We live in a world that likes to minimize distinctions and the distinctiveness of people. But sometimes it's good to know who belongs and who doesn't. Even in giving Moses the pattern for the Tabernacle, God made important distinctions that would help His people stay true to Him in their practice of the faith.

The parable of the wise and foolish virgins leaves us wondering, "why didn't the wise share?" We will consider some basic facts of first century Jewish life to learn why they couldn't share and what this means for us and our salvation.

We explore how the eternal reality of worship in God's presence was communicated to those who worshiped in and around the Tabernacle. We learn how the design of the Tabernacle made it a portable, yet functional home of worship for the sojourning Israelites for some 500 years. Every detail of its design made it practical and perfect for God's mercy to be shown His people in worship.

God gave His people many earthly representations of the heavenly reality when He gave Moses the design for the Tabernacle. It's good for us New Testament believers to recognize these signs in His design. We are also blessed when we are aware of how these were fulfilled by Jesus and where we see such signs still today.

Will Jesus return once or twice? What about rapture and tribulation? Is there something we must do in order for Jesus to return? We will consider Jesus's admonition to make the best use of the time, so that He finds us well prepared for His return.

Moses and the elders of Israel were invited to feast with God on Sinai. Here we see a foreshadowing of the feast to come when all God's people get to feast with Him in glory. Hope and joy spring from our hearts as we look forward to that wonderful day.

God protects the most vulnerable in the very first laws He gives His people. In this episode, we learn the three different forms of law expressed at Sinai and which apply to us today. We learn a valuable lesson about God's character and how we can grow to become more like Him.

Jesus told His disciples what would happen to the Temple 40 years before it would be destroyed by Titus and his Roman legion. We are prepared for the End Times not by knowing the details and timeline of events, but simply by trusting our God with the future. As we consider the End Times, we will ponder how to be prepared for Chris't return.

The Ten Commandments tell us God's will for our lives. Life on earth would be much more like heaven if we just kept God's rules. But we don't. So God tells us His way, with a mind to fulfill it for us, so that in Him, we can be holy as He is holy.

Moses learned a painful lesson about leadership when he failed to delegate properly. He was at least partially responsible for gathering all the disgruntled Israelites into one place, day after day, stoking their anger by failing to hear their cases in a timely fashion. God sent Jethro to help Moses by teaching him his error and showing him a better way. There are great lessons here for all who aspire to leadership.

Warning signs tell us of danger ahead, and so too does Jesus who challenged those who rejected His words and love. But He doesn't deal with them in anger. Rather, in love, Jesus warned his opponents, telling them of the tender loving care they would receive from His Father, were they to repent of their stubborn unbelief.

Why did God's people fight with God and Moses when they were fighting for them? It seems human nature can never be content. Even so, in this chapter, we see two powerful types of Christ in Moses and Joshua, who teach us that God fights for His people, despite their tendency to fight with Him every step of their earthly way.

God's people were not impressed enough with the plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea to trust Him. When they got a little rumbly in the tummy they cried out against God and Moses. Why did you bring us into the desert to kill us with hunger? We can laugh at their antics, not even trusting the Lord when bread starts falling from heaven, but lets be on guard unless we forget that the same unbelief lives in our hearts.

The parable of the wedding feast teaches that only those who are clothed in the robe of Christ's righteousness will get to celebrate the life and love of God. Many then, many now, are too busy, too distracted or outright hostile to God and His generous invitation. We do well to embrace His invitation, knowing that in Christ, in glory, the things that detract from our human relationships, the things that interfere with true love and openness will be gone and we will get to live in the light of Christ's love with those we love, without all of the stuff that gets in the way of relationships now.

Rejoicing in the victory God won over Pharaoh, Moses sings unbridled praise for God Almighty. His praise climaxed with the expression, "The Lord has become my salvation!" In this episode, we learn how to praise the Lord, and how Jesus is the key to understanding how God would fully save his people even in this song sung 1,500 years before His birth.

When Pharaoh changed his mind about letting the Israelites go, they found themselves caught between a mountain, the Red Sea and Pharaoh's army. The moment of their salvation seemed to be their demise. But when God divided the Red Sea, the waters that provided their salvation became God's instrument of wrath when He drowned hard-hearted Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea. Here we see a powerful illustration of the saving power of baptism.

Jesus challenged the religious establishment of His day by telling them they were giving lipservice to God instead of doing the Lord's work. Too many churches today are suffering for the very same thing. Today we consider how we, as the people of God, can learn what's most important and be blessed by sharing God's love with others.

Mass marketers know how important it is to get us to remember their products, which is why billions are spent every year on marketing. God also knows, so He inspired Moses to record the basis of the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread so that Israel would begin every year by remembering God's redeeming love. Learn how the calendar and worship life of Israel were designed so that they would never forget God's great love for them.

The Passover, the night when the Angel of Death would literally pass over the houses of the Israelites who listened to God, would become the beginning of the year and most important anual remembrance of God's mercy shown to His people in Egypt. The Israelites and the Egyptians who listened to God sacrificed an unblemished lamb and painted its blood upon their doorposts as an act of faith in the God Who saves. In this episode, we explore how this act of faith prophesied many aspects of Christ's work for us on the cross and how church practice still today demonstrates faith in the God who saves.

Jesus fulfilled all sorts of prophecies with his Palm Sunday procession into Jerusalem. The praises sung by the people flowed from the psalms they had been singing for a thousand years as they entered the Holy City. Learn how the events of the triumphal entry encourage all who seek the Lord still today.

Have you ever experienced complete and utter darkness? The plague of supernatural darkness, this one aimed at Ra, the Sun God, who was believed to be the first Pharaoh, crippled Egypt for three days while the land of Goshen was bathed in light. This dark premonition warned of the death that was on the horizon for Pharaoh and all who refused to let God's people go.

While Pharaoh continued his stubborned unbelief, the people of Egypt began pleading with him to listen and let Israel go. What good are slaves if we ourselves are dead? God, in mercy, gave Egypt a 24 hour warning before the plague of hail, so all who listened in Egypt were spared. Here we learn that God is merciful to all who listen to His voice, regardless of tribe or nation.

The parable of the vineyard, where every worker received the same wage whether they worked twelve hours or just one seems an injustice to many, especially those who had done most of the work. But the lesson of the parable is not so much about what the workers earned as it is about the generosity of the master. Here we consider how God rewards faithfulness and what we "deserve."

God's holy war against the false gods of the Egyptians and hard-hearted Pharaoh continues, with God now afflicting the land of the Egyptians, but not the land of Goshen, where Israel dwelt. Every step of the way God has demonstrated his power over everything Egypt has to counter with. Pharaoh feigns repentance, offering to let Israel sacrifice in Egypt, but that is not what God had asked for, so the plagues continued and the suffering of Pharaoh's people grew.

Learn how each of the ten plagues inflicted on Egypt was an attack on specific deities of Egypt. God wasn't just redeeming His people in the Exodus. He was making a public statement of his superiority over the false Gods of the Egyptians. Here we get to see how God begins to deliver His people as only He could.

Jesus continued to teach the blessings of putting other people first, while dismissing the notion that anyone is good enough for His kingdom. The disciples were perplexed by his rebuke of a rich young man who seemed to have done everything right, but was not worthy of God's kingdom. Jesus responded to the confusion of the disciples saying, "With man it is impossible, but all things are possible for God." The chapter ends with Jesus describing the blessings of living one's life in grateful appreciation for the miraculous gift of faith.

"Night is darkest just before the dawn." The Israelites learned the hard way the truth of this statement when Pharaoh made their lives unbearable. God was not deterred because He was determined to secure the freedom of His people. In this chapter, we count ourselves among the Israelites when things get worse before getting much better.

When Moses asks Pharaoh's permission for Israel to leave and worship God, Pharaoh responds by increasing the burdens of his Israelite slaves. Conflict erupts between Israel, her leaders, Pharaoh and Moses is left crying out to God, "what have you done to your people?" In this episode, we consider how we respond to difficulties and how we treat our leaders. It seems people are way more interested in taking the easy way out than being patient and doing what it takes to see lasting positive change.

Matthew 18, particularly 15-17, is one of the most weaponized passages in scripture. But the message of this chapter is not condemnation, but rather one of restoration and forgiveness. As we consider the parables of the Lost Sheep and the Unforgiving Servant, we learn how God's children seek to restore broken relationships in the spirit of humility and forgiveness, not willing that anyone should be lost.

The powerful signs God gave Moses to demonstrate his authority as a prophet of the Most Big God were unmistakable. The perfect correlation between God's words and works gives us opportunity to consider how our words and actions are not always in alignment. Moses was living proof of this fact, wavering between faith and fear even on the mountain with God. Yet, God had mercy on Moses, and sent Aaron to be his spokesperson, accommodating Moses waffling faith.