Bibles For America Podcast

Have you ever thought, “Why do I experience so much unrest? Why do I feel as if I’m not at peace with myself?” Although you try different ways to find a solution, the inner peace you yearn for seems unattainable. We’ve all felt this disquiet within, regardless of our background, education, or social status. Why is that? The source of this feeling is rooted in a fundamental problem—we’re not at peace with God. And when we’re not at peace with God, it’s impossible for us to be at peace with ourselves. The disharmony between us and God is the result of sin. Satan, God’s enemy, deceived and poisoned mankind with his evil nature of sin. And although God is truly loving, He’s also righteous and holy. He can’t simply ignore sin. We may think, “I’m not such a bad person.” But can any of us claim we’ve never had a sinful thought, spoken a lie, or done anything we felt guilty about? This is evidence that sin affects every one of us and makes us contrary to God. And in opposition to God, we reject Him, profane Him, and

We need to eat food to sustain our physical life and to keep us healthy. But just because we have to eat doesn’t mean it’s a tedious chore. In fact, eating is an enjoyment to us, especially when the food is tasty. Similarly, the Bible tells us that God’s Word sustains us and keeps us spiritually healthy. But how do we feel about reading the Word of God? Is our time in God’s Word a dry, tedious duty we must fulfill? Or is it a time of enjoyment and nourishment? God desires that our time in His Word would be not a duty but a delight. God doesn’t want us to know Him just mentally in our head. Many verses throughout the Bible indicate God actually wants us to taste Him in our heart through His Word. Let’s look at a couple of them. Psalm 119:103 says, “How sweet are Your words to my taste! Sweeter than honey to my mouth!” And 1 Peter 2:2-3 says, “As newborn babes, long for the guileless milk of the word in order that by it you may grow unto salvation, if you have tasted that the Lord is good.” Since God’s words co

Have you ever been troubled by questions like these: Can I lose my salvation? Can I be “unsaved” if I do something wrong or if I sin? It’s extremely important for us believers to be clear about several fundamental matters. One of these is having the assurance that we’re saved once we believe in Christ. Another fundamental matter we must be clear about is the security of our salvation. Just how secure is our salvation? What safeguards it? Does its security depend on us? Can we lose our salvation? In this podcast, we’ll discuss five points regarding the security of our salvation. First, we need to see that God initiated our salvation, and His calling us is irreversible. Not one of us initiated our salvation. Ephesians 1:4-5 shows us that God initiated our salvation before we knew anything about salvation, before we were even born: “Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and without blemish before Him in love, predestinating us unto sonship through Jesus Christ to Himself, accor

Although we believed in the Lord Jesus and received Him as our Savior, at times we may have wondered, “How do I know I’m saved?” Sometimes we feel we’re definitely saved; at other times, we’re not so sure. When we’re tossed back and forth between certainty and uncertainty, it’s difficult for us to progress in our Christian life. But we don’t have to be unsure, since God provides three clear ways for us to have the full assurance of salvation. In this podcast we’ll discuss these ways. The first way we can know we’re saved is that the Bible says so. We have to realize that the Bible isn’t an ordinary book; it’s the speaking of the living God Himself. And God does not lie, so we can absolutely believe, trust, and rely on His Word. First John 5:13 says this: “I have written these things to you that you may know that you have eternal life, to you who believe into the name of the Son of God.” This verse shows us God doesn’t want us to be unsure about our salvation. We have something in writing—the Word of God—and b

The Lamb of God is a precious name referring to the Lord Jesus. Perhaps you’ve heard it before, or remember reading it in the Word. Many of us may have sung it in Christian songs and hymns to praise the Lord as the Lamb of God. To increase our appreciation of our Lord Jesus as the Lamb of God, in this podcast we’ll dive into the meaning and importance of this profound name of Christ in the Bible. To understand the meaning of the name Lamb of God, we have to go back to the beginning in Genesis. After God created Adam and Eve, He put them in the garden of Eden, and in the garden was the tree of life. God wanted Adam and Eve to eat of that tree, which represented the eternal, divine life of God. God desired to share His life with them and be everything to them. By partaking of that tree, they would be made one with God, He would become their life inwardly, and they would express Him outwardly in their living. God also specifically warned Adam and Eve not to eat of another tree, the tree of the knowledge of good

Our God is exceedingly great. You only have to look up at the stars at night to see how wondrous He is as the Creator. When we view the physical universe, we’re awed by His greatness and beauty. Yet though His magnificence fills us with wonder, God sometimes seems far away from our personal universe. We know God is real, but as we go about our daily activities and even when we pray, it can seem like He’s distant from us, way up in the heavens. At times we might find ourselves asking, “God, where are You?” We long to access, to contact, to be close to this Person we’ve believed in. And on God’s side, He wants to be close to us, too. In fact, God wants to live in us and to have an intimate and personal relationship with each one of us. So He did some significant things to make this possible. First, God created our human spirit. God never intended to be a distant divine Being worshipped from afar by us. This is why God created man with a very special part—the human spirit. Our human spirit enables us to contact

We Christians naturally want to please God and make Him happy. But what exactly makes God happy? To please God, we first need to know what He wants. Otherwise, we can spend a lot of time doing things we think He wants, but end up not pleasing Him. Let’s take a look at what we think God wants, and what God actually wants for our Christian life. Some of our ideas about a life that pleases God include things like good behavior, helping others, and endeavoring to live in a way that sets an example for people. All these aren’t bad. But are they what God wants from us? Actually, we shouldn’t assume our own ideas match what God really wants. To really understand what God wants, we have to go all the way back to creation. In a previous podcast, we saw that God created human beings to share His divine life with them so He could be their life, and they could be His expression. This is why He created us not as instruments or tools to use, but as vessels to fill with Himself. And even after mankind fell into sin, this de

Have you ever felt unsatisfied, let down, even inexplicably empty, after you got what you thought would make you happy? You’re not alone. This perplexing feeling has been known to strike the most accomplished and wealthy people as well as the less accomplished and less wealthy. In fact, King Solomon had it all—a kingdom, untold wealth, and profound wisdom and knowledge—yet after pondering his life, he said that there was nothing new under the sun, and that everything was vanity. It’s as if something compels us to find the elusive missing piece that would bring lasting satisfaction. We may pursue a successful career, meaningful relationships, material possessions, or fun and entertainment. But nothing cures that mysterious empty feeling way down inside. Why do we feel this way? It turns out that to have this sensation is to be human. The Bible shows us that God created us in a certain way. We can easily realize we have a body, the part of our being that enables us to contact the physical world. But we’re not j

In a previous podcast, we spoke briefly about the life and background of Watchman Nee, one of two authors of the books we give away. The other author is Witness Lee. But who is Witness Lee? In this podcast, we’ll provide a short biography of Witness Lee. By looking into his testimony, we can gain an increased appreciation for his depth as a believer and his ministry of the Word of God. Witness Lee was born into a Christian family in 1905 in northern China. His mother made a great financial sacrifice for him to attend a Southern Baptist Chinese school and later the Presbyterian English Mission College. However, although he received an excellent education, he was not saved at the time. After one of Lee’s sisters experienced the salvation of Jesus Christ, she began to pray for her brother and bring him to church meetings in their hometown of Chefoo. In one of these meetings, the gospel preaching of a sister in the Lord touched Lee deeply, and at the age of 19 he received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Prev

Have you ever felt very discouraged after you experienced a failure in your Christian life? Perhaps you even asked yourself, “Why does God let me fail? Couldn’t He have prevented me from making this mistake? Doesn’t He want me to have a good Christian testimony?” To answer these questions, it’s helpful to first realize what happened when we were saved. We know we were forgiven of our sins and saved from eternal judgment; the Lord’s marvelous salvation took care of our past and assures our future. But more than that, we were also reborn with the divine life, which is for our life today. When we were born again, the Spirit came to live in and be mingled with our human spirit. So 2 Timothy 4:22 tells us that the Lord is now with our spirit. Christ came to live in us so that His life could be our life and His living could be our living. When we live in oneness with Him, we express Him to everyone around us. This is the Christian life. Since this is the Christian life, the Lord doesn’t focus on our successes or fa

In the entire universe, the name Jesus is a special name. How special? Philippians 2:9-11 tells us that God highly exalted Jesus and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow and every tongue should openly confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. In addition to the name Jesus, we can find many other names in the New Testament for our Lord. Each is rich in meaning, communicating a particular aspect of what He is to us. In this podcast, besides the name Jesus, we’ll cover four other names for Jesus from the books of Matthew and John. Seeing what these names mean will increase our appreciation for this wonderful Person and enhance our experience of Him. Jesus is the very first name in the New Testament in Matthew 1:1 and is the Lord’s God-given name. Matthew 1:21 says, “And she will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins.” But what does the name Jesus mean? Note 1 on this verse in the Recovery Versio

It seems daily we’re assailed by harrowing reports of conflict, hatred, and violence between people, both here domestically and abroad. These events are heartbreaking, disturbing, unsettling. The hatred and violence between people is proof of the fallen condition of humanity. If nothing else convinces us that we human beings are deeply sinful and need a Savior, these traumatic events should. The well-meaning efforts of people to bring peace to this extremely troubled world can only go so far. As believers in Christ, what should our reaction be? The Lord Jesus told us that we should pray and not lose heart. If there ever was a time for us to pray, it’s now. What should we pray for? We’ll discuss two matters to pray for in this podcast. In Matthew 6:9-13 the Lord teaches us how we should pray: “Our Father who is in the heavens, Your name be sanctified; Your kingdom come; Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debto

One of the authors whose books we give away is Watchman Nee. Have you ever wondered why we chose this author? And who is Watchman Nee? In this podcast, we’ll give you a brief biographical sketch of Watchman Nee. The testimonies of believers can be truly edifying and helpful, and more particularly, the testimony of Watchman Nee can give us a sense of his depth as a believer and thereby increase our appreciation for the ministry in his books. First, let’s consider the backdrop to Watchman Nee’s testimony. Starting in the early 1800s, God put a calling into the hearts of many Western Christians to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to China. Through much sacrifice, these missionaries gave themselves to preach the gospel in a place where it hadn’t gone before. As a result, slowly but surely, people who had previously never heard the name of Jesus were brought to Christ the Savior. Then in 1900, during the violence and upheaval of the Boxer Rebellion, Chinese believers were persecuted and martyred. Many missionarie

As Christians, we realize that Jesus shed His blood for the forgiveness of our sins and that because of this we can receive Him and be saved from eternal perdition. But once we’re born again, what is our relationship with Christ’s blood? What does the blood of Christ mean to us right now, today, in our Christian lives? Certainly we want to live in God’s presence. But we have a problem—sin. Sin separates us from God, fills us with guilt, and gives Satan ground to accuse us. But God has given us a solution to these three problems: the precious blood of Christ. Isaiah 59:2 says, “Your iniquities have become a separation between you and your God. And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” God is holy, and He can’t be in the presence of sin. So when we sin, we lose God’s presence. But 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The blood of Christ washes away our sins, and removes all distance be

Today it’s common to hear about people being “socially conscious” or having a “social conscience.” We hear about the need for corporations to be socially conscious, meaning they should care for the environment and natural resources, or help the less fortunate with business profits. We also hear about famous people who go to help in other countries; they are admired and said to have a social conscience. Charitable works are surely admirable, and as believers in Christ we should take heed to the words of the Lord Jesus telling us that we should remember the poor, be cheerful givers, and love our neighbor as ourselves. But concerning the definition of conscience, as Christians we must look to the Bible, and not merely to society’s meaning today. In this podcast, we’ll consider some verses and study notes from the Recovery Version to see what the Bible says about our conscience. Every human being, regardless of culture, ethnicity, or background, has a conscience. Our conscience is the part of our human spirit tha

When we repent to God and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, some wonderful things happen to us. We are forgiven of all our sins and delivered from God’s condemnation and eternal punishment. As a result, for the first time in our lives we have untold happiness and peace. We can’t help but love the Lord Jesus who died for us on the cross. Being forgiven by God and delivered from eternal punishment are truly wonderful, yet there’s even more! Perhaps the most amazing thing that happens to us when we believe in the Lord Jesus is that we’re born again, or, regenerated. What do the words born again mean? Some think it’s a figure of speech, like the saying turn over a new leaf, meaning you set out to be a better person. But being born again is more profound than that. According to the Bible, born again isn’t a metaphor for having a new beginning. It’s an actual birth, spiritually, with God’s life. Why do we need to be born again? Since we’re forgiven, isn’t that enough? We were born with the physical li

Imagine you go out to eat with someone you love. This is a time to share your thoughts and experiences with each other, to get to know each other more, and to build up your relationship. But what if right in the middle of your conversation, you get out your phone and read your emails? Or you’re distracted by a television in the restaurant? Or you don’t really hear what the other person is saying because something else is occupying your heart? The opportunity to build up a loving relationship is lost. Our relationship with Jesus Christ is like this, too. He wants to have a loving, personal relationship with us, but often, even in our times of fellowship with Him, we’re distracted and preoccupied. In a previous podcast, we saw that our relationship with Jesus is both begun and maintained by our heart. But the problem is that while we want to cultivate our relationship with the Lord, many things in our world vie for our heart’s attention. We need to learn how to care for our heart so we can really get to know th

As Jesus made his way through the throngs of people surrounding him, he suddenly stopped and asked, “Who touched Me?” It seemed obvious to His disciples, so they answered that it was the crowds pressing upon Him. But Jesus insisted, “Someone touched Me.” He knew a particular someone had touched Him, because at that moment, divine power had gone out of Him. A woman stepped out of the crowd and confessed to Jesus that it was she who had deliberately touched Him, and something wonderful had happened to her. For twelve long years she had been suffering from an uncontrollable hemorrhage, year after year losing more blood. She had seen many physicians and spent all that she had, but nothing helped. She knew she was dying. Then she heard about Jesus. Desperately making her way through the crowd, she came close enough to touch Him, believing that if she touched even just His garment, she would be healed. And as she touched Him, her flow of blood stopped. His divine power had been transfused into her. With lovingkindn

Why do we act like the people we’re around? To some extent, we realize this happens. We spend a lot of time with a certain friend and suddenly people are commenting on our similar mannerisms, speech, reactions, etc. Even our tastes and preferences may drift together. The reason this happens is simple: we’re mirrors. A mirror is made to reflect whatever it’s facing. As long as the mirror isn’t covered by anything, it reflects the object in front of it. It doesn’t try to or even want to; it just does. Whatever the object does, the mirror reflects. This ability to reflect is because of what the mirror is, its being. No amount of determination or strength will make it better or worse at its job. A mirror reflects what’s before it simply because of what it is. Human beings are similar. We reflect what we see. And for Christians, this has a very particular application. In 2 Corinthians 3:18 we’re given a powerful secret to the Christian life: “But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror th

When we first repented to God and received Jesus Christ as our Savior, we were forgiven of all our sins. What peace flooded our hearts! And God’s Word assures us that our salvation is for all eternity and can never be undone. But although we’re saved, we know from our personal experience we’re not immune to sin. We still sin after salvation, despite our good intentions and efforts to avoid failure. What should we do when we sin after being saved? The Word of God tells us that we should confess our sins to the Lord. Confessing to God the sins that we commit after we’re saved is absolutely critical for our life as a Christian. In this podcast, we’ll cover why we need to confess our sins, what it means to confess, how to confess, and the results of confessing. First, we need to confess because sin breaks our fellowship with the Lord. Our God is a God of love, but He is also holy and righteous. God cannot tolerate sin, so the sins we commit create a barrier between Him and us and interrupt our fellowship with Him