Jesus said, “I have overcome the world” ...

BEFORE his arrest, death, and resurrection.

What kind of victory had he already won at that point?

The Bible also says WE are overcomers, but I don’t feel like it.

What if overcoming means something different from finally getting on top of my circumstances?

In this episode, I explore the tense and timing of Jesus’ words in John 16:33 and how understanding his victory -- before the cross -- can radically change our lives.

Topics:

• Victory BEFORE the cross?
• Trouble is guaranteed. Take heart anyway?
• You fit in. But did you just lose?
• He didn’t say “I WILL overcome”
• The world doesn’t just hurt us. It tempts us.
• What had Jesus already won?
• I’m an overcomer… until my world starts spinning
• Have I been trying to win the wrong way?
• The trouble is real. So is the peace.

It took me a while to build the four individual videos that make up the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Flasks).

So I’ve pulled the whole story together here in one place for convenience.

Known. Unknown. Ready. Not ready. Oil. No oil.

What does it really take to get in?

Known. Unknown.

Ready. Not ready.

Oil. No oil.

What does it really take to get into the eternal party with Jesus?

Is the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Flasks) as scary as it sounds at first?

Or is it actually full of grace?

Hear my take in this finale.

Topics:

• Quick Recap
• Everyone Sleeps
• Why Would Jesus Say, “I Don’t Know You”?
• Could the Unknown Have Once Been Christians?
• It’s NOT: “I Didn’t Know You WELL Enough”
• How Jesus Knows Us
• Why I See Grace in This Parable

This episode is part of the “Scary Verses or Grace?” discussion of passages that sound scary at first, but surprisingly lead us toward grace as we grapple with them and seek the heart of Christ.

In Part 2 of the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Flasks), I talked about the torches the attendants prepared.

But getting a torch wasn’t enough.

The wise brought extra oil with them so they could keep their torches lit.

Interestingly, some scholars believe the oil in this parable represents the Holy Spirit.

Scripture tells us that when we accept Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit as a gift and a deposit of what’s to come.

So, in my mind, if the oil represents the Spirit, then all ten Flasks must have started with SOME oil.

What separated the wise from the foolish was whether they wanted MORE and pursued it. More of the Spirit. More oil. Right?

Maybe...

Topics:

• Does the oil represent the Holy Spirit?
• Receiving the Spirit as a gift and deposit
• Pursuing more oil and staying ready
• Where the oil comparison breaks down

The parable of the ten virgins ends with a scary verse, one my wife and I have talked about a lot.

The wedding banquet door is closed, and some late, unprepared attendants are outside knocking, trying to get in. From behind the closed door, the groom says, “I don’t know you,” and doesn’t let them in.

That’s pretty scary, especially when you realize the groom is Jesus and the parable is about the end times.

As I studied and grappled with what Jesus meant by “unknown” in this context, I must admit that something odd happened. The ten virgins morphed in my mind into ten FLASKS. They became living vessels that could hold the required oil, similar to how the Holy Spirit lives inside us.

In Part 1, I introduced Planet Flask and focused on the fact that all ten attendants said yes without knowing when the groom would come. But what happened after they said yes and before THAT DAY arrived?

All ten of them got torches.

That took time, effort, and preparation. But in the end, only five brought the extra oil they needed to make sure those torches stayed lit. At first, that can seem like a small difference, especially when Jesus calls five of them foolish over it.

But once I started picturing the large torches needed to light the way for a wedding procession, it didn’t seem so small anymore. Their job wasn’t merely to carry a torch. Their job was to be ready to keep it lit so they could help light the way.

And that raises a harder question for me: After saying yes to Christ, what does it mean to keep preparing, keep abiding, and actually be ready?

Topics:

• What happened after they said yes?
• Torches, not lamps
• Getting a torch took time
• Why were five called foolish?
• What readiness means for us

This episode is part of the “Scary Verses or Grace?” discussion of passages that sound scary at first, but surprisingly lead us toward grace as we grapple with them and seek the heart of Christ.

The parable of the ten virgins ends with a scary verse, one my wife and I have talked about a lot.

The wedding banquet door is closed, and some late, unprepared attendants are outside knocking, trying to get in. From behind the closed door, the groom says, “I don’t know you,” and doesn’t let them in.

That’s pretty scary, especially when you realize the groom is Jesus and the parable is about the end times.

As I studied and grappled with what Jesus meant by “unknown” in this context, I must admit that something odd happened. The ten virgins morphed in my mind into ten FLASKS. They became living vessels that could hold the required oil, similar to how the Holy Spirit lives inside us.

In this episode, I cover the beginning of the parable of the Ten FLASKS and introduce their homeland, Planet Flask.

Topics:

• The scary ending: “I don’t know you”
• Why ten flasks?
• The parable starts at verse zero
• They said yes without knowing when

This episode is part of the “Scary Verses or Grace?” discussion of passages that sound scary at first, but surprisingly lead us toward grace as we grapple with them and seek the heart of Christ.

My morning walk was supposed to be simple.

No side recordings. No Shorts work. Just some time with God.

But along the way, God interrupted my routine with a question I hadn't considered.

Not a heavy, condemning one...

A shocking, positive one:

“God, what am I doing right?”

Topics:

• My morning routine
• The question I hadn’t considered
• Why are we so negative?
• Is this even biblical?
• A practical example
• Why do we reject encouragement?

Matthew 7:23 used to scare me.

In it, Jesus says, “I NEVER knew you,” and I always heard that as a scary warning.

Like... Christians could be surprised to find out in the end that Jesus didn’t know us well enough, and we wouldn’t get into heaven.

But what if “NEVER” is a clue?

If Jesus knows me, even once, even briefly, he can’t lie and say, “NEVER.”

So, what is this scripture actually trying to tell me?

Topics:

• Buckle up, here we go
• The words that fooled me
• The twist
• Will Christians hear “I never knew you”?

This episode is part of the “Scary Verses or Grace?” discussion of passages that sound scary at first, but surprisingly lead us toward grace as we grapple with them and seek the heart of Christ.