The Truth Of The Matter is - Episode: 139 Special Guests - Paul Granger and Terrance Mcullen

 Continually with the Gospel of Matthew series we come to a point in scripture where Jesus is meant by two blind men seeking to speak with him. Their desire was to see, hoping that Jesus would show compassion towards them and they cried out aloud for mercy. Jesus eventually heals them but asks a very critical question: "Do you believe I am able to do this" ? And with that question I wanted to explore the difference between belief and faith. I wanted to read scriptures and identify where God wants us to exercise faith and belief. Tune in and determine if you agree with my suggestion. The passage I read comes out of Matthew 9:27-31 ESV and AMP.

 Bible study reflection solo or with friends is an inspirational segment for Johnathan as a result of getting together for bible study with friends Erik and Jennifer and still having more to say. Thus far, the segment is about unpacking different passages of scripture read in bible study and feeling the need to explore it even more deeply. This week on the segment Johnathan takes the time to introduce something he applies when reading scripture. That is the idea of letting Scripture interpret itself. Rather being philosophical he allows the Word to speak for itself and defend itself. Tune in to see an example of that and decide if you agree with the method. The passage is Psalms 86:5.

This week on the podcast I have on Branch Isole a friend. He's an Author, poet and storyteller. An author of twenty-two books Some of the topics that he writes about are: choice and consequence, accepting or avoiding personal responsibility, and the power of truth. Branch teaches corporate sales, and marketing, because he is actually a founder and partner of five small businesses .Branch graduated from Texas State University. He also did some post graduate work at the University of Houston, and holds an Oxford M.A. Theology degree from Trinity Bible College. Since we often talk a lot off the air I thought it would be a great benefit to have him on to share the things he is doing for the kingdom of God. tune in to learn some things you can apply to your everyday life and maybe you might want to purchase his books.

  As believers the goal everyday should be to find ways to read, listen and praise God. Joshua 1:8 says, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” Scripture being our example I challenged two of my friends to read one chapter a day in The Word of God and choose three verses that stood out to them and share it. It would be this initiative that God would be more involved in our day. Through this opportunity in faith to spend more time with God I revisited the Gospel of Luke and noticed some things I didn't see when I first read it. Reading Luke and Matthew side by side I saw some differences and received some revelation. Tune in as this episode was not what I intended to post at all. This episode is raw and fresh with only about an hour of preparing. With the raspy-ness of my voice and the unpredictability of this message. I believe God had a say in why this was posted today.

There comes a time when you read the scriptures that you are going to have more questions than answers. Does that mean you should be concerned? No. Here's why: what makes the Word of God interesting and such a mystery is that it will leave you with the opportunity to search for those answers. It will give you the opportunity to get on your knees and ask God for his to reveal things to you. Matthews 7:7 NLT says, Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” So if you don't receive an answer at first, give it time. This episode was inspired by my story of Matthew 9 as we continue in the gospel of Matthew series. After taking a look at verses 18-26 I came out having more questions than answers. My hope in sharing this is to fill the curiosity of those who read and have questions about the text as well. It's perfectly normal to come across that and it's ok.

When it comes to the practice and tradition of fasting I think we all can agree that it's one of those actions that require intent. In episode 112 we did an episode on fasting where we thought it was important to point out that when you engage with such a practice the intent should be to receive rather than receive. Today we take a look at Matthew 9:14-17 in the ESV and unpack a response that Jesus gave to the disciples of John. Do you agree with the analysis ? Well the choice will be left up to you to consider. As always we are just making suggestions to consider and encouraging you to engage with the scriptures genuinely.

After my recovery I decided to revisit what occurred during this 4 day period where I felt emotional and physically drained due to getting sick. I wanted to understand what was the take away from such an experience and I received that response through my reflection time. I also took the time to examine positives and negatives as it pertains to those who are dealing with healthy challenges. What keeps a person who isn't well joyful in Christ Jesus?  This Bible study reflection is an episode that I am most proud of because it allowed me to look at the world much more deeply and honestly it brought me back to square one as I do my best not to take things for granted or as a given. I also believe we should  celebrate those who honor God in spite of their circumstances and remain faithful and content. Tune in to find out if you agree. There's nothing wrong with being reminded, encouraged or corrected on things you might have overlooked.

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The truth of the matter is podcast is all about providing an honest, contextual, historicized, Philosophical and Psychological view of the Bible through the use of Hermeneutics, while sharing some personal experiences from myself, Daniel and on occasion our special guest. This week we have two guests. Paul Granger who has a podcast called: where did you see God? And Terrance Mcullen who has a podcast called: what's the value? Both of these gentlemen are good friends of mind and thought it would be an honor to have both of them in to discuss the purpose of New Year's resolutions, the importance of friendships, the definition of wisdom, the definition of love, how we could measure change and the meaning and purpose of suffering. I hope that this episode is a blessing to whoever decided to press play.

• Johnathan provides you three ways the Lord has blessed him. He hopes that this will inspire people to reflect and see how good God has been and how often he shows up in the details. Continuing with the Gospel of Matthew series Johnathan unpacks Matthew 9:9-13. Out of that passage feeling inspired and wanting to dig deep he comes up with a very interesting question: Can a saved person be associated or acquainted with an unsaved person? The truth of the matter is podcasts  believes this to be a fair question to ask and therefore  explores the response of yes and no on today's podcast episode. Providing biblical and philosophical responses. After tuning in determine which side of the argument you believe in but honestly you can't go wrong with either response we believe. See if you agree.

A week after revealing the theme of the year Johnathan opens up the podcast by giving a personal testimony of how he has been active in applying the theme. Continuing with the Gospel of Matthew series he also takes a divide into Matthew 9:1-8 tune in to hear some of his thoughts. You might be surprised at what he discovers along with an interesting process of things that could be beneficial to you. Remember reading the Word of God should be a practice and just because you read a passage once doesn’t mean you have received all that it has to offer. This is a marathon not a sprint.