The Blue Collar Scholar

Епизоде

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  History in My Lifetime, episode 4: Terrorist Attacks 16.09.2026 58мин

  For most of us, 9/11 is the biggest single-day historical event we have ever witnessed. So much changed after that terrible day. But 9/11 was hardly the only act of terrorism that has happened in our time. In this episode we survey the major terrorist attacks from Munich to October 7th.
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  New Testament, episode 4: The Biography of Jesus of Nazareth 15.09.2026 1ч 43мин

  The episode 5 lecture in the New Testament class will examine the actual text of the New Testament. Before we do that, let us back up and see an overview of the life of the New Testament's central figure: Jesus of Nazareth. This episode examines Jesus as a religious figure, but also as an actual person in history who lived in a particular place and at a particular time.
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  Sermon: Assurance of Salvation (1 John 5:6-13) 14.09.2026 31мин

  All of First John comes to a head in chapter 5, verse 13, when the Apostle tells us that he wrote all of the book so that we can KNOW that we have eternal life. It was not God's intention for us to be on pins & needles, never quite sure whether we've done enough to earn His favor. Rather, once we are adopted into His family, then we are part of His family, period.
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  Sermon: How To Handle Strange & Difficult Bible Verses (1 John 5:7-8 & 16-17) 13.09.2026 45мин

  The 5th chapter of John has a couple of passages that are a challenge for Bible translators. In one passage, the Greek text seems clear, but a short clause seems to have been added by a Medieval commentator (the "Johannine Comma" of 1 John 5:7-8) and translators have to decide whether to keep in a passage that is very likely not written by John, but if they translators leave the passage out, it will be controversial. Leaving out the Johannine will lead to accusations of deleting the Trinity, but in this sermon, I have demonstrated that all reputable English translations have many other Trinitarian passages intact. In the other strange and difficult verse - 1 John 5:16-17 - John seems to indicate that some sins lead to death and some do not. I wrestle with this verse and try to come to a reasonable analysis.
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  History in My Lifetime, episode 3 - American Wars: Vietnam to Iran 08.09.2026 1ч 14мин

  This episode is designed to jog your memory and trigger discussions regarding all of the American wars of the last 70 years. Special emphasis is given to the Vietnam War. It was such a drawn-out, bloody, and exhausting conflict. It was sold as part of a great struggle of the democratic West against communism. However, from the very beginning, the War in Vietnam felt like an anti-colonial struggle by the Vietnamese people against their colonizers, especially when they were facing the French in the earliest part of the war. By the time it was over, it was an exhausting war that challenged America's prevailing belief in our own military invincibility. The war spawned an anti-war movement so strong that even many conservative hawks grew to oppose the war by the early 1970s. This episode also digs into a variety of other Cold War-related struggles, as well as the War on Terror, with all of its individual conflicts across the broad Muslim world.
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  New Testament, episode 3 - Context of the New Testament: Alexander the Great, the Apocrypha, & Rome 07.09.2026 1ч 46мин

  The final lecture on the context of the New Testament starts with a review of the major Near East empires leading up to Alexander the Great. We then look at Alexander's conquests to understand how Greek culture & the Greek language became so ubiquitous during the times of the New Testament. We see some of the collision of Greek & Jewish culture in the books of Maccabees in the Apocrypha (a.k.a. the Deuterocanonical books). Finally, we briefly examine the history of Rome.
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  New Testament, episode 2 - Context of the New Testament: The Old Testament 31.08.2026 1ч 53мин

  In the introductory episode of this series, we discussed the context of the New Testament within the history of recorded history and written language. In this episode we keep building upon our understanding of the context of the New Testament by taking a long look at the Old Testament. The Old Testament is the primary and most important context for the New Testament. By looking at the Old Testament, we see the Jewish character of the New Testament, as Jesus and His Apostles were, in fact, Jewish.
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  New Testament, episode 1: Introduction 31.08.2026 1ч 47мин

  What is the New Testament? It is a deeply Jewish book that serves as a sequel -- of sorts -- to the Old Testament. It is a small library of 27 books. It is a biography (or, rather, 4 biographies) of the greatest Man who ever lived, as well as a sequel (Acts) and 22 books that add to Jesus' legacy. It is a series of documents originally written in Koine Greek, and the beautiful collision of Jewish and Greek (and Roman) culture permeate the New Testament. It is also, at its heart, sacred writing. The Apostle John called it "the Logos" or the Word. With that in mind, this introduction places the New Testament in the broader history of written language going back to the earliest human writing. In the following episodes, we will expand on this by placing the New Testament in it Old Testament context, as well as its Greek and Roman context.
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  Sermon: How to Love God (1 John 5:1-5) 29.08.2026 30мин

  The First John series enters the final chapter of the epistle. In this passage, we learn how to love God: (1) love believers, (2) obey God's commands, & (3) have faith in Christ.
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  History in My Lifetime, episode 2: Major Milestones of the Civil Rights Movement 29.08.2026 56мин

  This episode gives a brief overview of the Civil Rights Movement in the US since Brown v. Board of Education. We also take a look at the women's rights movement, as well as movements for the rights of immigrants, disabled persons, and the LGBTQ+ community. This episode ends with over 2 weeks of Daily Journal Prompts to tell one's own story.
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  Sermon: Perfect Love (1 John 4:16-21) 22.08.2026 40мин

  "Perfect love casts out fear." - 1st John 4:18 ... In this sermon I break down the idea of such perfect love. In 1st John 4:16-21, see see that if God abides in you, then He will perfect (verb) love within you. We also see the following benefits of such perfect love: (1) perfect love will give you confidence on the Day of Judgment, (2) perfect love will make us "like" Christ, (3) perfect love frees us from fear, & (4) we can love because He loved us first.
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  History in My Lifetime, episode 1: Assassinations & Attempted Assassinations 22.08.2026 51мин

  In this, the Fall 2026 semester, we will be trying something new: a class called "History in My Lifetime: Documenting My Place in History to Tell My Grandchildren." Each week we will discuss a different category of major historical events in the last 80 years or so, with emphasis being on the lived experience of the average person who lived through these historical events. The class will also involve daily journal prompts which will focus more on a person's personal history: marriage, parenthood, careers, etc. ... In this first episode we discuss major political assassinations (like JFK), attempted political assassinations (like Reagan), the assassination of activists (like Martin Luther King, Jr.), and cultural figures who were assassinated (like John Lennon).
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  Sermon: If God Abides in You ... (1 John 4:7-16) 15.08.2026 37мин

  If you have been reading along with us through the book of First John, you have probably noticed that the Apostle John has told us about a dozen times to love each other. It is an important theme for this epistle. In 1st John 4:7-16, we are told once again to love each other and to love God, for God Himself is love. In this passage we also learn that if God abides in you, then (1) you will live by the love of God, who is Christ, (2) you will love each other & you will know God, (3) you will have the Holy Spirit, and (4) you will confess that Jesus is the Son of God.
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  Sermon: Spiritual Warfare (1 John 4:1-6) 09.08.2026 45мин

  Spiritual warfare is an interesting biblical topic. We see glimpses of spiritual warfare in books like Daniel & Revelation, and it is obvious that there is some kind of conflict between angels and demons, between the spiritual forces of God vs. the spiritual forces of darkness. But the Bible does not actually give us many details about what spiritual warfare is, exactly. But there are glimpses. The Apostle John tells us in 1 John 4 to "test the spirits," particularly in regard to testing the spiritual messages brought by false teachers and false prophets. In this sermon, I examine the "test the spirits" phrase and expand on it, particularly in regard to spiritual warfare.
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  Sermon: Relationship with God (1 John 3:19-24) 02.08.2026 36мин

  "It's not about 'religion,' it's a relationship" is an overused Christian trope. In all honesty, I remember this phrase mostly from my youth in the 1990s, when it seemed like this was everyone's Christian mantra. But Christianity is a religion. It addresses religion themes and the truth taught by Christianity has religious implications. But our faith is also a relationship with God. That is best understood when the Christian realizes that the specific relationship is as Lord and follower. God is not our buddy or our peer. Nevertheless, a relationship with God is important.
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  Sermon: Love One Another (1 John 3:10-18) 26.07.2026 39мин

  Litmus tests tell you the pH level of a chemical, and that helps you identify the chemical. The term "litmus test" can be used metaphorically to describe something that is definitely not litmus paper but can similarly help you determine something. In last week's sermon, we learned that sin - particularly unrepentant, continual sin - is a litmus test that shows that a person is not really a Christian. In this week's sermon, we see that the Apostle John also gives us another litmus test: love. We can tell if a person truly belongs to Christ by their love. If there is no love, then the person is not redeemed.
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  Sermon: Do Not Choose Sin (1 John 3:4-10) 18.07.2026 41мин

  The freedom to choose is a key aspect of what it means to be an American. This is true of human beings in general, but the citizens of my nation especially value individual liberty to choose this-or-that. These choices are both simple (like what to eat or what to wear) to very complex (like how to conduct a brutal war). In this sermon, we see how the Apostle John taught us not to use our freedom of choice to choose sin.
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  Sermon: Children of God (1 John 2:28-3:3) 11.07.2026 45мин

  When a person is redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the believer is adopted into the family as Children of God. This week's sermon covers the last few verses of First John chapter 2 and the first few verses of chapter 3. In this passage we learn that (1) Children of God look forward to Christ's return, (2) disobedient children & frauds do not look forward to Christ's return, (3) true righteousness is only available through redemption/adoption in Christ's family, (4) the world cannot truly know or understand God or His Children, (5) our futures are not known in detail, but as Children of God, we look to the future with hope, & (6) true Children of God are loyal but not flawless.
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  Sermon: The Apostle John's Warning Against "Antichrists" (1 John 2:18-27) 08.07.2026 42мин

  Happy 4th of July! The premier liberal democracy to arise out of the Enlightenment is now a quarter a millennium old. But this sermon is not a patriotic holiday sermon. Instead, we continue in our sermon series through the epistle of First John. In 1 John 2:18-27, John warns us against those who oppose the Kingdom of God, seeming to coin the term "antichrist" in the process. End Times enthusiasts have used the term "the Antichrist" to refer to the figure that the Book of Revelation calls "the Beast." Therefore, this sermon addresses that issue, but expands the term to include all those who oppose Christ or His teachings.
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  Sermon: Using Your Spiritual Gifts 28.06.2026 38мин

  Today I was honored to be invited to preach at the First Baptist Church of Parsons (KS). This is the audio of that sermon, where I lay out reasons why some Christians think that they don't have any spiritual gifts, and why they are wrong about that.