Pure Faith: A Bible Discussion Podcast
Pure Faith: A Bible Discussion Podcast
Halloween Humor Meets Holy Illumination (Matthew 5:11-16...Part 7)
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What happens when you sit down to record a podcast and forget to hit the record button? Well, let's just say it leads to some hilarious retakes and a lot of sweet tea! Join us as we laugh about our recent podcasting mishap and recount our delightful Halloween escapades, complete with Mitchell's boys' adorable costumes and Grandma Kathy's infamous candy bags.
But there's more, we also delve into some profound spiritual insights. Ever wondered about Jesus' metaphor of a 'city on a hill'? We unpack its significance and explore the connection between ancient oil lamps and the light of Jesus. We also discuss what it means to let your light shine and how developing a personal relationship with Jesus helps you to do just that. So, whether you're here for a good laugh, spiritual enlightenment, or a mix of both, tune in for an episode that's sure to enlighten and entertain!
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Podcast Mishap and Trick-or-Treating Recap
Speaker 1Take two . Take two Hello and welcome to another episode of the Pure Faith Podcast , a podcast where we discuss all things Bible . I am your host , michelle Wehmeier . This is my brother , mitchell . He's the co-host . If you haven't done so , we ask that you like this video , subscribe to our YouTube channel and make sure that you hit the notification icon to be notified when new episodes are released . So that was a take two , because the first time I did that reading it , not reading it from my paper Mitchell forgot to hit the record button , so I was trying to help you , you know , give you more practice .
Speaker 1Yeah , I was right on it too . It was actually pretty good the first time , but the second time was good , that's okay , and we were talking before we knew we weren't recording , that we're recording a different day than we usually record , so we were both kind of out of whack today . So hence I didn't hit the start record button Exactly , and the laptop wasn't even charged today because today is not Thursday , today is Wednesday .
Speaker 2Luckily it had a charge , so it's fine .
Speaker 1Oh boy , let me tell you , out of routine , out of routine , the rest of my week is going to be off , probably . So . We had Trick or Treat this last week , so Mitchell will show a picture of his boys . They're the only ones that well , sadie Trick or Treated . Oh , she was cute too , did you see her ?
Speaker 2I did .
Speaker 1Oh , she was .
Speaker 2Nemo .
Speaker 1Nemo , the cutest outfit . Let me tell you she was super cute and your boys went as the Mario Brothers .
Speaker 2And I even had my phone and . Zeke's little Trick or Treat pale . So whenever you walk up to the house and hit play on my phone and to play the Super Mario is the best song .
Speaker 1Oh , I cracked up for that . I even had to run the house like Don , you've got to come out here , You've got to hear this . So they were super cute .
Speaker 2They lost their mustaches , but yeah , that was the last , very long .
Speaker 1I figure not , but in the picture they have mustaches and they're super cute . So you'll have to show people the picture of . Well , and then Ephraim went as Stroller Baby . Yeah , he did he just wanted all the food .
Speaker 2Yeah .
Speaker 1Yeah , he was cute too . He was very clingy because you had just gotten back from your weekend , I think too . So they missed their dad when he's gone . So they were very clingy to dad , but they probably got lots of candy .
Speaker 2They did good .
Speaker 1Yeah , are you hating on that candy .
Speaker 2I would not confirm nor deny my involvement in any candy consumption .
Speaker 1So I can tell you that Grandma Kathy gives bags of candy , ziplock bags of candy , and she gave one to Daniel and we put Daniels on the swing so that way it was away from all the other trick-or-treat candy . We had one kid come up to the swing to try and take that bag of candy just some trick-or-treat powder that came by . I was like , oh , I'm sorry , sweetheart , that's not for trick-or-treat , that's for my son . And then we had another trick-or-treator come by . He might have been the Luigi . Is that the green one ? Yeah , it might have been that one . And he might have taken the only Kit Kat out of there and that's the only thing Daniel wanted . He's like where's my Kit Kat ? I'm like , uh , sorry , they like .
Speaker 2Kit Kats .
Speaker 1Honestly .
Speaker 2Yeah .
Speaker 1Yeah , I think our family like the Kit Kat . I don't like the Kit Kat , it's just me , but I can tell you it is a true favorite in the High Camp family .
Speaker 2Yeah , yeah , I could eat a whole bag of them .
Speaker 1Yeah , I'm glad that you don't .
Speaker 2No , I don't .
Speaker 1That's good On account of your cholesterol .
Speaker 2My cholesterol is really good , I'm okay Okay .
Speaker 1I believe you , I believe you .
Speaker 2I actually had a stress test this morning .
Speaker 1Oh , did you really ? Yeah , how'd that go ?
Speaker 2Well , they didn't admit it . They didn't admit me to the hospital , so it shouldn't have been good .
Speaker 1That's good news , no it isn't , as you were walking in with a Slim Jim and a chocolate milk .
Speaker 2That's heart healthy .
Speaker 1Heart healthy . Yeah , it was a spicy Slim , jim . It was a very spicy , that wasn't so slim .
Speaker 2It was a big Slim Jim .
Speaker 1Oh , shoot , oh . So did you have to run on the treadmill , or did they just shoot the adrenaline in you ?
Speaker 2They got the yeah , the whatever that stuff was . Yeah , Wow .
Speaker 1They did that for Don .
Speaker 2It was weird .
Speaker 1It works , doesn't it ? Yes , yeah , I don't know what's better , it's instantly hot and you're just , I don't know .
Speaker 2You just feel weird all over .
Speaker 1Then they expect you to drive after that .
Speaker 2Now they gave me the stuff and then after that , you know , they monitor you for a short period and then they kick you out and they gave me a meal card so I could go to the cafeteria and get breakfast , basically , and they said that sugar and caffeine will help to alleviate the symptoms from the drugs or counteract the drugs .
Speaker 1Really , that's interesting .
Speaker 2So I was like you're telling me to drink sweet tea . Okay , I'm going to do that . So I got some bacon , some eggs and some sweet tea .
Speaker 1Well , hopefully it was good yeah .
Speaker 2I mean it was . You can't say it was free because you're going to get a bill . Yeah , yeah .
Speaker 1Yeah , so good . Hopefully the results were good then in your past and all is good in the life of Mitchell .
Speaker 2Yeah .
Speaker 1Good , I'm glad to hear that Now to get Matt to go do it .
Speaker 2Yeah , that would probably be a good idea .
Speaker 1Matt , if you're listening .
Speaker 2Stress test .
Speaker 1Your turn .
Speaker 2It's so much fun .
Speaker 1You get breakfast .
Speaker 2If you get a VA , I don't know .
Speaker 1Oh , I don't know .
Speaker 2If you get somewhere else . I don't know If you get breakfast VA gives you breakfast , I'll buy you breakfast .
Speaker 1I will take you and buy you breakfast .
Speaker 2That breakfast will be better than the VA breakfast .
Speaker 1I will take you to Bob Evans .
Speaker 2Anywhere else would probably be better than you .
Speaker 1Oh , my goodness .
Speaker 2They actually had really really good sweet tea though .
Speaker 1Oh . Surprisingly , that's good .
Speaker 2Yeah .
Speaker 1So did the effects then wear off like they said they would ?
Speaker 2The effects only last a few minutes , really , yeah , and even before I was out of the chair they were pretty much gone . I had to have a slight headache and they said that was normal . From all your blood vessels everywhere is doing something , but is it Never they open up ?
Speaker 1If I knew the answer to that , I would not be sitting here right now . Probably I would be on a very large screen . On this little thing , I would be making lots of money .
Speaker 2Okay .
Speaker 1Because I would be like I don't know , like cardiology or something , If I knew that .
Speaker 2If you knew the definition of one word .
Speaker 1If I would work with that , if I would work with it .
Speaker 2Oh , okay .
Speaker 1Yeah , I don't . You don't know the definition of that word , do you ? Even though the word is I know the definition is .
Speaker 2I don't know what the word is , so this is , this is Jeopardy , where you have to .
Speaker 1Still yeah .
Speaker 2What is , whatever yeah .
Speaker 1Bob .
Speaker 2Bob Isn't Bob . What's his name ?
Speaker 1Oh , you're so 1999 .
Speaker 2Probably .
Speaker 1No , there's not even .
Speaker 2Bob , what was his name ?
Speaker 1I don't know what it was . It wasn't Bob . You sure it wasn't Bob . On the on Jeopardy , price is right , bob Barker .
Speaker 2Well , it was Bob Barker .
Speaker 1Yeah .
Speaker 2Oh my gosh , we are so bad .
Speaker 1I can tell you , though , that the host of Jeopardy did pass way of cancer , I believe . Oh he did , and now they have two other people that do it , and I can tell you that I am not a lover of the new host of Jeopardy . It's just not the same , so it is what it is .
Speaker 2We kind of had this discussion . I think maybe a drill , it doesn't matter what show , it is one of those game shows . Yeah , when they replace the host . That you've known your entire life .
Speaker 1Mm-hmm , it's never going to be as good , it's the same thing that I have with the Willeportian . I heard that Ryan Seacrest or something is going to be hosting that now , and it's just not going to be the same , so boo-hoo . What that has to do with the revival study , I have no idea . Nothing at all .
Speaker 2That is a single thing .
Speaker 1Oh my goodness , this is terrible . See , we're on a different night , so this is .
Speaker 2This isn't Bible study night , this is just talking night . Oh could you even imagine ?
Speaker 1We could definitely talk for 30 minutes , probably so , but we probably shouldn't . Probably not . We probably should do a Bible study . If you insist , I really think we should . Okay , because if not , then we're going to get another week behind . That's not good . No , I can tell you , while Mitchell's taking a drink of a shot of milk , that we did have family home this last week . Noah was in a wedding , so him and Elle and the dogs came for a visit . They were here Thursday , friday , saturday , sunday . They made it back home safely on Monday , so it was very nice to see them and have them around . They got to visit with us , they got to visit with mom , they got to visit with Grandma and Grandpa Waymeyer , they got to see their friends and they got to see Elle's family . So it was very nice to . It was a nice quick trip and I can tell you that last night Noah did not answer a message from his dad and he apparently fell asleep after work and slept for about three hours After work . He was exhausted .
Speaker 2Probably .
Speaker 1Yeah , he was .
Speaker 2How long the drive is that back there ?
Speaker 1Technically a 10-hour drive but they have to stop with the dogs , so they made it in 12 hours . So they did gain an hour on the way home , which is good , but really it doesn't mean much . And then he had to go pick up a washer and a dryer when he got home , so he just was very busy , so he did . He was knocked out yesterday after work , yeah .
Speaker 2I'm still recovering from my drill weekend .
Speaker 1Are you ?
Speaker 2It always takes me like three or four days to catch up .
Speaker 1Really .
Speaker 2Yeah , I don't sleep well up there for some reason , even though I actually slept pretty good this time . It's just , I don't know , it's just weird .
Speaker 1Yeah , but Well , I I sleep pretty good , but today I had an appointment and they told me I looked tired and I was like thanks .
Speaker 2I fell asleep at my appointment .
Speaker 1You did , and then they shot you with adrenaline .
Speaker 2Yeah , I wasn't falling back asleep after that .
Speaker 1Oh my goodness , All right , we should probably do a Bible study . Oh my thanks , trut off , yep , look at that , are ?
Speaker 2we surprised .
Speaker 1No , we're not surprised . So we are in Matthew 5 . Yes , your notes say 11 through 16 , but I don't even know if that's where we start or not .
Speaker 2Well , we're currently on 14 .
Speaker 1Oh , oh , there's 14 . Yeah , okay , perfect .
Speaker 2So we covered the first part of 14 . It would have been two weeks ago . Oh yeah , because last week when we released , we released the sermon , and so it'll be the week for that . We got through this first part of Matthew 5.14 , which you are the light of the world , and that's what we were talking about at the moon .
Speaker 2Oh yeah , and I made the comment that you know , at night the moon comes out and the light that you see from the moon is technically a reflection from the sun . Well , I'm going to drive home from my , from the VA , which is an hour drive . I'm going to drive home from that . The entire way home , pretty much right in front of me , was the moon .
Speaker 1Really .
Speaker 2Yeah , and this was at like 10 , 11 o'clock .
Speaker 1Really yeah , okay .
Speaker 2It's the moon , so the moon . You don't see the reflection of the sun off the moon just at night . You can also see it during the day .
Speaker 1Hmm Interesting .
Speaker 2Which even makes that whole analogy even deeper .
Speaker 1Yeah , it does .
Speaker 2So I thought it was cool .
Speaker 1Yeah .
Speaker 2I may have watched it too long .
Speaker 1Yeah , you should have watched it , but I didn't get an accident and say you should have been watching the moon while you're driving for the sun .
Speaker 2No , so we are covering the second part of , or the second half of , verse 14 , which is , a city set on a hill cannot be hidden . In our first glance this kind of seems out of place , because you know we're talking about light .
Speaker 1Yeah .
Speaker 2Well , this doesn't really mention light . This is just a city set on a hill , can't be hidden . But if you look at it deeper , it does fit where it's at . Because if you put it in comparison with the beginning of verse 14 , which was talking about you being the light of the world .
Speaker 1Okay .
Speaker 2And then as we get through verses 15 and 16 , they're also about light . So , since this is kind of sandwiched between all these other verses about light , if we look at this with that same mindset of light , this does fit in because If you put a city on top of a hill , there are ways to camouflage it .
Significance of Light and City Hill
Speaker 2A lot of us have probably seen pictures of I think it was Aztec civilizator Aztec sites where they basically built a city in the wall of a mountain . But if you just look at it it just kind of looks like a mountain because everything is the same color . While building a city on top of a hill you could have that same general effect , you could blend it in , you could camouflage it . But the thing is , as soon as night comes out , if you want any type of comfortable living , especially at night , you're going to want light . Imagine you are in a room , say we're here . You can picture a room of some size and it doesn't have any windows .
Speaker 2It's completely dark and you're in there with 20 , 30 , 40 , 50 people . Imagine you're in there , sitting in there in complete darkness , and then one person turns the light on on their phone . That light is going to be extremely bright and it is going to stand out in this dark room with all these people and , honestly , off that one light you'd probably have enough light to where you can see and do other things . But now imagine a second person turns their light on , and then a third and a fourth then , all the way up to everybody turning their light on on the phone .
Speaker 2It's going to be extremely bright in there . Well , that's where this analogy all kind of comes together . And so now , if you are a city set on top of a hill , it's dark . You have people living in the city . Well , they're going to need light in order to live at night . Well , that's going to turn this city on top of a hill into this huge beacon of light that people for miles and miles away will be able to see , especially through the darkness , and it's going to become something that those who see it are going to want to come to it in order for that , the provision , the comfort , the security of being in a city on the hill .
Speaker 2Okay so we go into a lot more about strategic placing of the city and blah , blah , blah , but I think it really comes down to the light and what that light represents when it comes to being a city on the hill , and this is basically what Jesus is calling us to do . We , you know the reason he's talking about this . The reason he's talking about a city on top of a hill can't be hidden . We , as Christians , just like we're talking about the moon today . You know , it was daylight hours and I could see the moon in the sky reflecting the light of the sun . That's what we need to be , no matter what . We need to be reflecting the light of Jesus , so others can see us , so others can notice us and want to have that same relationship that they want to share in that light that is Jesus .
Speaker 2So let's go straight into verse 15 , which is Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket , but on a stand , and it gives light to all in the house . So we have to remember who Jesus was talking to and who this was written for . This is something I bring up quite often because it is important to understand what is actually being said here . So Jesus was talking , and this was written to ancient Israelites . Okay , so they would have understood what Jesus was referring to about this lamp . Now , granted , this is the same kind of lamps that we have today . If you use those kind of lamps I know I have several of them Oil lamps .
Speaker 1I remember mom used to have one , yeah .
Speaker 2I have four or five of them , do you ? And actually , whenever I was telling the story about being out in the woods till three in the morning , I would use those lamps out there in the woods , that was my fire light . That was my other source of light , wearing those lamps and they they will put off light .
Speaker 1Yes , they will .
Speaker 2And so here Jesus is just talking about . Or those who were listening to Jesus say this would have thought it complete idiocracy to take a lamp .
Speaker 1Yeah , put it under a basket Like what's that gonna light up ?
Speaker 2Well , and for one thing , the oil used in these lamps would burn the basket Well it was expensive .
Speaker 1Oh , okay .
Speaker 2So it was pricey . Just to light a lamp and let it burn , but then to light it and cover it up , that was just a complete waste of money . So for them it was . They understood what Jesus was saying here completely and how dumb it was . And one of the the verses that you know for us to know what kind of lamps they were actually using . This isn't just speculation , we're not guessing here . And Matthew 25 , matthew 25 is the parable of the ten virgin virgins , in verses one through four . I want to read that because then this says then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom . Five of them were foolish and five were wise . For when the foolish took their lamps , they took no oil with them , but the wise took flask of oil with their lamps . So these are those oil lamps . And now this parable goes on and talks about how the five foolish virgins that didn't bring any oil they had to go to town to get oil .
Speaker 2And that's when they came back , and Jesus already come back , and it was too late . But so , yeah , this is the type of lamps that Jesus referring to here is the oil lamps .
Let Your Light Shine
Speaker 2So , and then to go a step further , the fact that you're hiding this lamp , well , like I said , for those who were reading this back then , this would have been completely dumb , completely wasteful . But again , this isn't about the oil lamp , this isn't about the cost of burning oil lamp . This is about the light that the lamp gives off . So Jesus is telling us here that remember the light that we are giving off . So the light from this lamp is the light , that is , from the light of the world , which is Jesus . So we are reflecting Jesus's light . Well , we can't cover that up , we can't bury that , we can't hide that . If we are truly living our lives with Jesus , then that light is going to shine . We can't hide it .
Speaker 1Right .
Speaker 2In fact , we need to do the opposite .
Speaker 1Yes .
Speaker 2We need to put it on a stand , put it up , display it for everybody to see .
Speaker 2It's kind of like a city on a hill can't be hidden . This is the same concept . You need to put that lamp , you need to let your light shine for others to see . So it is our job as Christians to let our light shine . Like we just said , you need to put up on that stand , but we need to put on that stand so we can expose others to that light of Jesus . This is the same light as before . This is our light , this is the light of Jesus . So we need to expose others to the light of Jesus .
Speaker 2And here in verse 15 , it is saying to for everybody else in the household . So it's kind of like a small group type thing . And this is going to make more sense as we get into verse 16 , because that's going to drop down to an individual level . Actually , we'll just go ahead and go there , because verse 16 says in the same way let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven . So this metaphor of light is continuing . Again , this is the light of Jesus , not our light . But now it is coming down to an individual level , because now it's saying let your light shine . So whenever this started , it was talking about us , as Christians , being the light of the world . So that's the whole world . And then it dropped down and talked about a city on top of a hill . So we went world to city and now verse 15 was about being a light in your household . So then it went world , city , household and now it's coming down to your individual level .
Speaker 2So it's going out and it's working its way in to you . So here in verse 16 , it says Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works . So we've already hit on this in past episodes , about this whole idea of good works and the fact that the desire , the passion to do good works will evolve out of a deeper personal relationship with Jesus . Well , how do you get that deeper personal relationship with Jesus ? We just covered a whole bunch of different things about how you can develop your relationship with Jesus , and that was the Beatitudes . So there are actually it wasn't just the Beatitudes , though there are actually three different or three main ways that I kind of highlight to help you develop the relationship , and the first is just to read the Bible , read the Word .
Speaker 2If you watch the sermon from well , it was released last week where we talked about the armor of God , the Belt of Truth . The very first one , the most essential piece of that armor , is the Word of God , knowing the Word of God , studying the Word of God . So you have that in your arsenal . Well , that is how you develop that relationship with God . That's how you develop that relationship with Jesus is by reading the Word of God and studying the Word of God .
Speaker 1Right One passage at a time .
Speaker 2One passage at a time .
Speaker 1One passage at a time .
Speaker 2The second way is to spend time and pray . I mean , how are you going to get to know somebody if you don't talk to them ? That is what prayer is . It's just an ongoing conversation with Jesus . Well , technically it's an ongoing conversation with God through Jesus in the spirit . But then the third , what I think is also very critical , are the Beatitudes , and so remember this little saying I remember you saying it . You don't remember what it was ?
Speaker 1I don't remember what it was , I remember you saying it and being very In that year and out that year and you being very excited about it .
Speaker 2Well , guess what ?
Speaker 1Guess what .
Speaker 2It's still being used .
Speaker 1Oh yay .
Speaker 2So joy comes to the poor in spirit , meek , mourners who hunger and thirst for righteousness . So these first four , so the poor in spirit , the mourners , those who mourn , those who are meek and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness , these four are the key elements in developing your relationship with God . So , as a very , very , very brief overview , so the poor in spirit is living your life dependent on God and completely focused on him . Mourners are not only do we focus on God during physical mourning , so there's something that happens to us . Yes , we will focus on God during those times , but this is also mourning for that deeper relationship with the Lord .
Speaker 2Meek another way of saying this is humble and this is about personal relationships was vertical and horizontal . So vertical is your relationship between you and the Lord and then horizontal is your relationship with you and other people around you . So on this plane , and it's about relationships , but it's about having that servant spirit , so it's about serving others . It's about having , you know , being meek and humble . It's not about it's just about the way you treat others , hunger and thirst for righteousness . It's about having that deep desire within you . Then you're the same kind of desire when you're hungry or when you're thirsty . It's about having that kind of desire for a deeper relationship with the Lord . So the next part of this forgotten saying is Joy also comes to the merciful and to the pure and heart peacemakers who are persecuted for righteousness' sake . And these last three given that fourth one , those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake , is kind of that overview of the previous seven . If you go with that , then these last three are about states of being ways of living your life .
Speaker 2So the first one is merciful , and that is just simply living your life in a state of being merciful and forgiving . So if something should happen to you , you quickly and freely give forgiveness for whatever it is that may happen to you . Pure and heart . That was about keeping the worldly interferences out of your innermost being , so keeping yourself free from idols and worldly things and staying focused on the Lord and peacemaker . That means you are just consistently and constantly searching and seeking peace . You're not keeping grudges or anything like that . You know that goes hand in hand with the other ones is you just want to give that peace and forgiveness and just be nice and calm .
Speaker 2So if you live your life according to those values and you're spending your time in the Word , studying the Word , you're spending time in prayer , talking to the Lord , if you're doing all these things , you are developing a deeper relationship with the Lord , and the more you do it , the more you have a desire to do it , the more things will change and evolve and even a deeper relationship will come out of that and eventually you're going to get to the point where you want to do good works , and so that is where we're at , and whenever we do those good works . Others will see that when we're doing those good works , we are letting that light of Jesus shine so others can see it . They will see the joy that we have in our lives because we are living our lives according to the Beatitudes , because we have a deep personal relationship with the Lord . Others will see that that light will shine .
Speaker 2That's this light that we're talking about . People will see it . They're like man . How does he have joy ? How does she have joy ? What is different about the way they live their life ? Then the way I'm living my life , and that is when they'll come up to you and they're like . They want to know more about why you are the way you are . And that's when you have the opportunity to share Jesus with them , to tell them about Jesus . Pour that light over them so that they can see the truth , they can see the light and they can develop their own personal relationship with the Lord . And when you do that , you are giving the glory to the Father , and that is what we are called to do . Okay , I'll show it now .
Speaker 1That was perfect . Yeah , it's very good . All right , but with that we are out of time , so you did a good job .
Speaker 2And that does wrap up this section . So .
Speaker 1It does . You did a good job .
Speaker 2Next week we will be starting the next section .
Speaker 1All right , perfect . So we thank you for joining us . Please leave a comment on this video or go to our contact page at Purefaithlivingcom to send us a message and , as always , if you like what you hear , then we ask that you share this show with others so we can all work together in spreading the good news of Jesus Christ . Don't forget to subscribe and we will see you again next time .
Speaker 2Have a blessed day everybody .