Great pod today, with some fascinating topics and guest hosts and guest reviewers. We've got a review of a Scottish Soda - Irn Bru, made with steel girders, apparently, and a great guest reviewer there AND ALSO a listener question from Robin F., who asks about the Apocrypha - those mysterious books that are in some Bibles, absent from others, and are the centerpiece for tons of conspiracy theories about the church. What is the Apocrypha, and should you be reading it? WHY is it no longer in most Protestant Bibles? The Truth is out there…and today we begin a multi-part series on the Apocrypha. By the way - what Giant of the Reformation quoted a book from the apocrypha, and called the speaker, and the namesake of that book a "prophet" We will find out!

Before that, our main interview is with Dr. Chris Smith of the Great Commission Association, a former missionary to Spain, and current mission consultant with the GCA and president of the Great Commission Training Institution, which is an online training school that is VERY affordable for pastors and church leaders. Check out www.GCASBC.org for more. Dr. Mike Stewart, our co-host today and the senior director of California's Great Commission Association, and I will talk to Dr. Chris Smith about front-stage vs. Back-stage ministry, and also his favorite food from Spain, and - perhaps most importantly- the difference between Spanish tortillas and Mexican tortillas.

Our focus today is on The roots that nobody sees vs the flower that draws attention. If the flower isn't healthy, or it browns, or falls off - as long as the roots are healthy, the plant will be healthy, and that flower will grow again. But some flowers can persist for a time without any roots whatsoever - they can look healthy - for a time in a vase, or whatever, but their life is limited because their roots for accessing living water are gone. Similarly, there are times in ministry where leaders and pastors can have a healthy looking front stage or flower of ministry, but the back-stage or the roots are sick, failing or missing, and in that case, it is inevitable that a collapse will happen at some point. Most leaders pay more attention to the front stage - the flower of ministry - but we really should pay the far greater attention to our roots - our abiding in the vine of Jesus.

Our next two episodes are with Dr. Kristen Ferguson, VP Gateway Seminary, and we will discuss Christians and AI, Church leader education, online education, women in ministry and being a pastor's wife. Also coming soon: Dr. Cathie Smith on women in ministry and missions and missional complementarianism, Pastor Humberto Hernandez, and many other interesting guests. Stay tuned!

Are you at the end of your rope? Today we discuss how to know you are close to running out of rope and what to do about it. PLUS: Preacher Myths. Will the lion lay down with the lamb? Did Paul fall of his horse on the Damascus Road? Did Mary ride a donkey to Bethlehem? Did Jesus leave a coded message in His tomb with a folded napkin? Does sparing the rod spoil the child? We will cover these preaching myths and more!

Welcome to episode 14 of the Every Church Flourishing Podcast, sponsored by the Great Commission Association of California. If you are a California pastor or church leader looking for a home - get in touch with us through our website GCASBC.org - we would love to partner with you!

Today Senior Director of the GCA Dr. Mike Stewart and I interview Pastor Grant Combs of Lighthouse Baptist in Seaside, California. In addition to pastoring Lighthouse, Grant is an ambassador to other pastors and church leaders, and he is going to help us know when disaster is coming, and some practical steps to avoid disaster in ministry.

We have upcoming episodes on women in ministry, with Dr. Kristen Ferguson Vice President of Gateway Seminary, mom, pastor's wife, lady in ministry, and expert on the Christian use of AI. We will also be talking to Dr. Cathie Smith about women in ministry and women on mission coming very soon AND we are recording with Dr. Cameron Schweitzer, the director of Gateway Seminary's campus in San Liandro, this week, and we've got lots more great guests lined up also.

Lions lying Down with Lambs? The Danger of Preacher Myths and Urban Legends.

Credibility and integrity are important, and I don't think that any real Christian would disagree with that statement. Jesus spoke the truth, and identified Himself as a truth-teller in John 8. In fact, He noted that some of the Jews wanted to kill Him because He told them the truth. The truth isn't always popular. Today we examine five "preacher myths," that may not be true.

2000 years of amazing preaching advice from John Piper to John Chrysostom, from Tim Keller to Augustine and Gregory the Great, From Martyn Lloyd Jones to Haddon Robinson to Gregory the Great to Thabiti Anyabwile, we've got ELEVEN fantastic tips to help YOU teach and preach the Word of God better. Not only that, but we have some amazing stories in this episode too, such as:

What preacher railed at his listeners for buying solid silver toilets? What preacher and future Pope tried to escape from the Roman Emporer in a wicker basket? What Evangelical icon preferred beer over water and NAMED HIMSELF after a dead dog? What famous pastor desired to be a doctor, but a severe bout with mononucleosis in college changed his mind, causing us to miss out on 2000 episodes of the possibly awesome Ask Doctor John Podcast?? You will find this AND MORE on this BONUD episode of the Every Church Flourishing Podcast.

This episode takes listeners on a fast-moving tour through nearly two thousand years of Christian wisdom on preaching and teaching, gathering counsel from church fathers, classic pastors, and modern evangelical voices. The central claim is simple: truly effective preaching has not fundamentally changed. Across the centuries, the best counsel still calls preachers to be prayerful, biblical, heartfelt, holy, and courageously faithful rather than clever, trendy, or applause-driven.

The episode begins with Augustine, who reminds us that preaching is born first in prayer, not in performance. Before becoming "a man of words," the preacher must become a man of prayer, drawing deeply from God before attempting to pour truth into others. From there, Thabiti Anyabwile brings the same warning into the present: a preacher without a Bible has no authority, and a preacher must never go beyond what God has actually said. Scripture governs both the substance and the limits of faithful preaching.

John Chrysostom adds a needed rebuke for every age: preaching must aim at pierced hearts, not amused intellects. Sermons are not meant to be religious entertainment or polished performances designed to win praise. Martyn Lloyd-Jones echoes that concern in a different register, insisting that preaching is theology coming through a man who is on fire and that its goal is to give people a sense of God and His presence. Together, they remind us that preaching should be spiritually weighty, not merely interesting or impressive.

Gregory the Great shifts the emphasis to the preacher's life. Those who teach others must first be corrected by the truth themselves. Hypocrisy in the pulpit is not a minor flaw; it is a scandal. Augustine returns later with another practical insight: do not drone on endlessly, and do not preach without real feeling. Preaching should be animated by genuine enthusiasm born from a heart gripped by the beauty and urgency of God's Word.

The modern voices deepen the same themes. Tim Keller argues that a good sermon should cut to the heart like a sword, not club the will into external compliance. John Piper describes preaching as "expository exultation," joining exposition and worship so that the sermon becomes truth proclaimed with wonder. C.S. Lewis closes with a sharp warning against tailoring Christianity to public demand. The preacher's job is not to guess what people want to hear, but to faithfully proclaim what God has said. The bonus insight from Haddon Robinson then adds a practical challenge: sermons need clarity, unity, and focus, not scattered good ideas. Altogether, the episode argues that the best preaching across the centuries is not man-centered performance, but God-centered proclamation that is prayerful, biblical, holy, vivid, and aimed at transformation.