277 | Invest in the Kingdom With Joanna

Ever wonder how thirteen guys without jobs traveled around for three years without starving? We’re diving into the "shadow cabinet" of Jesus’ ministry to meet Joanna, the wife of Herod’s own household manager. It’s a story of "The Spy Who Funded Me," where we see God’s brilliant irony at work — using Herod’s resources to sustain the very Gospel he tried to suppress. But as we’ll see, Joanna wasn’t just a distant donor. She was a devoted disciple who stood by the cross and was among the first at the empty tomb. Let’s explore what it looks like to leverage our status for the Savior and find our true identity in following Him.

The Big Idea: Joanna’s story reveals how God uses even the most unlikely political and financial connections to sustain and advance the work of the gospel.

This Week's Challenge: Identify and reach out to an "unseen MVP" in your community whose behind-the-scenes service makes the mission possible.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 277 (VIDEO)
• Vote in the Bible Bracket (LINK)
• Joanna and the Supporting Women (PASSAGE)
• Joanna at the Empty Tomb (PASSAGE)
• Women at the Crucifixion (PASSAGE)
• Plainfield Ponderings: Women in 1 Timothy (PODCAST)

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276 | Encounter the God Who Truly Sees

Ever felt like a background character in your own life, reduced to a role or pushed to the edges by someone else’s choices? This week, we’re looking at Hagar — the servant and foreigner who was treated like a shortcut but became the first person in the Bible to encounter the "Angel of the Lord". We explore how God calls us by name when others only see our status, and what it means that He "sees to provide" even in our driest wilderness seasons. From the meaning of Ishmael ("God hears") to the comfort of El Roi ("the God who sees"), we’re finding hope in the truth that God isn't just watching us — He’s looking after us.

The Big Idea: The God who saw Hagar in the wilderness sees and hears us in our wilderness seasons.

This Week's Challenge: Sing “I Am His Child” (link) and enjoy the assurance of his presence.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 276 (VIDEO)
• Vote in the Bible Bracket (LINK)
• Hagar’s First Wilderness Encounter (PASSAGE)
• Hagar and the Well of Life (PASSAGE)
• The God Who Searches and Knows (PASSAGE)
• Emmanuel: God With Us (PASSAGE)
• I Am His Child (SONG)

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275 | Reclaim the Valor of Proverbs 31

We're coming to on location (and a little disoriented) from the Pondering Studio in Plainfield, Indiana! Ever felt like Proverbs 31 was just a crushing checklist of impossible standards? We’re reclaiming that famous passage and looking at the "valiant warrior" heart behind the "excellent wife" persona. We also dive into the high-stakes drama of Exodus 1-2, where God used a bunch of courageous daughters to totally flip the script on Pharaoh’s murderous plot. Since when does a tyrant get outmaneuvered by a few midwives and a baby in a basket? Join us as we celebrate how daily diligence and quiet strength are actually God’s chosen weapons.

The Big Idea: Scripture celebrates “women of valor” whose daily diligence and quiet strength become God’s chosen weapons to transform their communities.

This Week's Challenge: Find a way to honor a woman in your life that reminds you of the Proverbs 31 woman.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 275 (VIDEO)
• Ryan’s Sermon “Woman of Valor” (SERMON)
• Ryan’s Sermon “Providence & Parenting” (SERMON)
• Vote in the Bible Bracket (LINK)
• The Valiant Woman (PASSAGE)
• God's Deliverance Through Daughters (PASSAGE)
• Plainfield Ponderings: Women in 1 Timothy (PODCAST)

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274 | Draft Your Favorite Bible Women

Voting is officially open! Before you cast your ballots in the Favorite Bible Women Bible Bracket, we're' wrapping up our draft with the final two regions. In Part 2, we tackle the "Friends and Followers" (the devoted inner circle of the early church) and the "Nameless Notables" (the anonymous women whose faith left a permanent mark on Scripture). We debate whether Mary Magdalene or Mary of Bethany deserves the overall #1 seed, and we marvel at how many of our most frequently preached sermons feature women whose names we don't even know. We finalize the bracket, share a few honorable mentions who almost made the cut (sorry, Gomer and Mary of Clopas!), and invite you to join the fun.

The Big Idea: The stories of biblical women — from famous matriarchs to unnamed women of valor — are foundational examples of courage, leadership, and faith that still shape us today.

This Week's Challenge: Pick one woman from the bracket whose story you aren't familiar with and read about her this week.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 274 (VIDEO)
• Vote in the Tournament: Bible Bracket: Women of Faith
• Mary Magdalene at the Empty Tomb (PASSAGE)
• Mary of Bethany Chooses the Better Part (PASSAGE)
• Martha's Confession of Faith (PASSAGE)
• The Woman at the Well (PASSAGE)
• The Sinful Woman Anoints Jesus (PASSAGE)
• The Widow's Two Mites (PASSAGE)

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273 | Draft Your Favorite Bible Women

Happy Anniversary to us! We’re kicking off Year Eight of the Bible Geeks podcast with March Bracketology. This year’s 64-seed bracket honors our Favorite Bible Women. Before official voting opens on March 12th, we're drafting our ultimate squads. In Part 1, we tackle the "Women of Valor" (brave tacticians like Rahab and Abigail) and the "Matriarchs and Leaders" (foundational voices like Mary and Esther — and don't worry, we didn't pit sisters Rachel and Leah against each other!). We debate the seeding and challenge you to read up on a biblical woman you aren't familiar with this week!

The Big Idea: The stories of biblical women — from famous matriarchs to unnamed women of valor — are foundational examples of courage, leadership, and faith that still shape us today.

This Week's Challenge: Pick one woman from the bracket whose story you aren't familiar with and read about her this week.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 273 (VIDEO)
• Vote in the Tournament: Bible Bracket: Favorite Bible Women (Voting begins March 12, 2026!)
• Rahab the Courgaeous (PASSAGE)
• Abigail's Wisdom (PASSAGE)
• Deborah the Judge (PASSAGE)
• Mary, Mother of Jesus (PASSAGE)
• Queen Esther (PASSAGE)
• Sarah and the Promise (PASSAGE)

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272 | Winter Watch Party | Enjoy Season 2, Episode 8 of The Chosen

It’s time to roll out the red carpet! In the grand finale of our Winter Watch Party, we’re wrapping up The Chosen Season 2 with the ultimate season review. Before Jesus steps up to deliver the greatest sermon ever preached, we dive into the art of His sermon prep. Did Jesus use His disciples as thinking partners? How did He perfectly balance the hard, abrasive truths with profound comfort? Next, we put our Bible Geek knowledge to the test with a rapid-fire trivia challenge all about the newly completed roster of the 12 Disciples. Finally, we hand out the prestigious Golden Sandal Awards! We're celebrating our favorite newly appreciated characters, crowning our Best Supporting Actors, and sharing the "I'm Not Crying, You're Crying" moments that absolutely wrecked us. Grab your golden spreadsheet (we're looking at you, Matthew) and join us as we close out the season and look ahead to March's upcoming Bible Bracket!

The Big Idea: How we listen to Jesus determines how we follow him.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 272 (VIDEO)
• The Chosen: Season 2, Episode 8 - "Beyond Mountains" (VIDEO)
• The Sermon on the Mount (PASSAGE)
• Jesus Calls the Twelve Apostles (PASSAGE)
• Nathanael Under the Fig Tree (PASSAGE)
• Philip Asks to See the Father (PASSAGE)
• Judas and the Moneybag (PASSAGE)

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271 | Winter Watch Party | Enjoy Season 2, Episode 7 of The Chosen

Dun dun! In the criminal justice system of first-century Israel, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the Romans who enforce the laws, and the disciples who accidentally break them. These are their stories. Welcome back to the Winter Watch Party! In this episode, we’re opening the case file on The Chosen Season 2, Episode 7 ("The Reckoning"). The show turns into a full-blown police procedural when Jesus and the disciples are detained by Roman authorities. We review the "suspect lineup" to see who cracks under the pressure. Peter is spiraling, Andrew is ready to start a riot, but Matthew and Mary step up to keep the crew level-headed. We also break down the surprisingly complex Roman characters (shoutout to Atticus and Quintus) playing good cop/bad cop with a perfectly calm Jesus. Finally, we look at how Jesus prepares the Beatitudes amidst the chaos, ending with the ultimate mic drop: teaching His stressed-out followers the Lord's Prayer.

The Big Idea: Peace isn't the absence of conflict; it's the presence of Jesus in the middle of the interrogation room.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 271 (VIDEO)
• The Chosen: Season 2, Episode 7 - "The Reckoning" (VIDEO)
• The Lord's Prayer (PASSAGE)
• The Beatitudes (PASSAGE)
• Jesus Teaches His Disciples to Pray (PASSAGE)

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270 | Winter Watch Party | Enjoy Season 2, Episode 6 of The Chosen

Swap out the HR cardigans for your favorite professorial Letterman sweater (or just stay in your sweatpants) — we're diving into some heavy theology! In this installment of the Winter Watch Party, we're breaking down The Chosen Season 2, Episode 6, where two massive themes collide head-on: God's law and God's grace. Ryan puts Bryan in the "Hot Seat" to untangle a messy question about ethics: what's the difference between just doing whatever feels right in the moment and actually discerning God's will? We're talking King David eating the forbidden showbread, Jesus healing on the Sabbath, and the ancient rabbinic throwdown between the schools of Shammai and Hillel. (Yep, we went full Bible Geek on this one!) But it's not all high-level debates. We also get real about Mary Magdalene’s emotional return to the camp and tackle a tough "Reach Out" question: Why is grace so hard to accept? Spoiler alert: learning to dish out a little more grace to the people around us might just be the secret to finally accepting it for ourselves.

The Big Idea: Following Jesus means learning how to discern rightly — and learning how to live forgiven when we fall.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 270 (VIDEO)
• The Chosen: Season 2, Episode 6 (VIDEO)
• David Eats the Showbread (PASSAGE)
• Lord of the Sabbath / Plucking Grain (PASSAGE)
• The Two Great Commandments (PASSAGE)
• I Desire Mercy, and Not Sacrifice (PASSAGE)
• Houses of Hillel and Shammai (ARTICLE)

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269 | Winter Watch Party | Enjoy Season 2, Episode 5 of The Chosen

The wheels have officially fallen off the bus. In this episode of our Winter Watch Party, we break down The Chosen Season 2, Episode 5 ("Spirit"). It’s a "spiritual thriller" full of chaos: a demon-possessed man terrorizing the camp, Roman spies in the bushes, and John the Baptist causing a PR nightmare. We put on our cardigans to act as the "HR Department for Galilee," reviewing the incident reports — from John's "scorched earth" policy to Mary Magdalene's heartbreaking relapse. We discuss the realism of backsliding, the terror of the demonic, and the powerful moment Jesus delegates the rescue mission to Peter and Matthew — forcing enemies to become partners in grace. Finally, we challenge you to be the one who makes the call to bring someone back to the Lord.

The Big Idea: When a believer falls, our job isn't to judge the failure — it's to go into the dark and find them.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 269 (VIDEO)
• The Chosen: Season 2, Episode 5 - "Spirit" (VIDEO)
• John the Baptist's "Brood of Vipers" Speech (PASSAGE)
• Jesus on John the Baptist (PASSAGE)
• The Return of an Unclean Spirit (PASSAGE)
• Sending Them Out Two by Two (PASSAGE)
• Where Can I Flee From Your Spirit? (PASSAGE)

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268 | Winter Watch Party | Enjoy Season 2, Episode 4 of The Chosen

Does God want to heal you, or do you want to be healed? In this episode of our Winter Watch Party, we explore The Chosen Season 2, Episode 4 ("The Perfect Opportunity"), where Jesus asks a paralytic who's been waiting 38 years for a miracle one of the strangest questions in the gospels: "Do you want to be healed?" We start with a "Bible Fact Check" to see what’s fact (the pool of Bethesda, 38 years) and what’s fiction (Simon the Zealot’s brother, the name Jesse). Then, we dive into four profound questions Jesus asks in the Gospel of John — questions designed not to gather information, but to act as a mirror for our souls. Finally, we challenge you to pick one of these questions to sit with this week as if Jesus were asking you directly.

The Big Idea: Jesus doesn't ask questions to get answers; He asks them to act as mirrors that reveal our true desires and awaken our faith.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 268 (VIDEO)
• The Chosen: Season 2, Episode 4 - "The Perfect Opportunity" (VIDEO)
• The Healing at the Pool of Bethesda (PASSAGE)
• Jesus Asks: "What Are You Seeking?" (PASSAGE)
• Jesus Asks: "Do You Believe This?" (PASSAGE)
• Jesus Asks: "Do You Not Know Me?" (PASSAGE)
• The Zealots (ARTICLE)

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267 | Winter Watch Party | Enjoy Season 2, Episode 3 of The Chosen

Grab a marshmallow and pull up a log — it's time for The Breakfast Club with swords and sandals. In this episode of our Winter Watch Party, we break down The Chosen Season 2, Episode 3 ("Matthew 4:24"). It’s a classic "bottle episode," meaning no set changes, no travel montages, and 100% character development as the disciples sit around a campfire waiting for Jesus. We play a game of "Bad Teams," debating who would be the worst pair to build IKEA furniture (looking at you, Peter and Matthew) or run a three-legged race. But amidst the bickering, we explore the hard work of unity — realizing that unity isn't about "sameness," but about choosing to love despite our different files on each other. Finally, we look at the creative choice to show an exhausted Jesus, reminding us that He "emptied Himself" for us — and that it’s okay to need a nap.

The Big Idea: Jesus didn't just take on a human body, he took on human limitations — proving that exhaustion isn't a sin and needing rest is part of being human.

This Week's Challenge: The "Nap Challenge" — If Jesus needed help taking off his sandals after a long day of ministry, you’re allowed to stop. Find one moment this week to admit you are at your limit and simply rest.

Show Notes

• Watch Episode 267 (VIDEO)
• The Chosen: Season 2, Episode 3 - "Matthew 4:24" (VIDEO)
• Healed by Jesus (PASSAGE)
• Maintaining the Unity of the Spirit (PASSAGE)
• He Emptied Himself (PASSAGE)
• He Gives His Beloved Sleep (PASSAGE)

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