Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

551. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 8): Pluck out Your Eye, Cut off Your Hand

June 5, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

As Jesus continues ministering the law to His Jewish disciples during the Sermon on the Mount, we find some peculiar statements that seemed to make keeping the law something that was impossible. People often wonder just exactly what Jesus meant by cutting off body parts in order to avoid sin. It's not rocket science. Jesus meant what he said as He ministered the Old Covenant law in order to help them realize the hopeless position they were under at that time.

550. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 7): Teach the Law and Do It?

May 29, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus had a purpose of revealing to His disciples what the law truly required in order to attain righteousness. He was ultimately teaching that it would be futile for them to maintain the standard it demanded in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. Religion will try to make this out to be a new Christian teaching that Jesus was laying before His Jewish audience, but what He was actually laying down was the law. Jesus would begin to show they needed to find a different way other than through the works of that law.

549. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 6): Unsalty People & Fulfilling the Law

May 22, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was having an Old Covenant conversation with Israelites. They had been considered the salt of the earth. Those under that first covenant understood the connection between salt and the covenant, also known as the covenant of salt. In that former covenant, God found fault with the salt (the people) and salt with no flavor is good for nothing except to be thrown out. If this doesn't sound like good news, it's because it is not the gospel. By God's grace, it would be the covenant that would be tossed out instead of the people. Jesus went on to talk about the law needing to be fulfilled. He would accomplish this in us through His finished work, but first He is getting ready to show his Jewish audience how hopeless their situation was in their current state under that law.

548. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 5): The Beatitudes

May 15, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

When ministers teach a combination of the law that came through Moses and blend it with the gospel of Jesus Christ as a Christian application, it will leave people confused and often condemned. Teaching those old commandments as a way of life does not reduce sin but leads to an increase in sin. Israel was trapped in a system that could not bring life or righteousness. They needed to be shown their inability to abide by the law and be redirected to something better. Jesus is about to teach the law in a way they had never heard it before during the Sermon on the Mount. He begins with something known as the Beatitudes. These were not given to get people to try harder. These are blessings that would eventually be fulfilled by Jesus.

547. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 4): The Law Increased Sin

May 8, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Part 4 in the series lays more foundation about the law and the Old Covenant and the many differences between the New Covenant which began after the death of Jesus. Most Christian teachings have assumed the commandments were meant to decrease sin, but we find just the opposite is true. It was designed to bring hopelessness and despair. Since fault was found with the people for not fulfilling their end of the agreement, God's grace and mercy would allow for the covenant to end, instead of punishing them for their sins.

546. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 3): The Law Shut Boasting Mouths

May 1, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

This is the third in a series of why Jesus taught two covenants, this week looking at some specifics within the Mosaic law from the first covenant. That was a covenant made with Israel and those of us who are Gentiles were not included. Ultimately the law brought a curse because it required all of it be kept perfectly. The New Covenant would not be anything like the Old. The first covenant resulted in death and condemnation, whereas under the second covenant, we've been removed from that and placed into life. The law was meant to shut mouths, stop boasting, and bring people to the end of themselves.

545. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 2): From Adam to Moses

April 24, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Our second in the series of why Jesus taught two covenants lays a further foundation on why Adam fell and how the covenant began through Moses with the Jewish people. A covenant must be agreed upon by at least two parties, so the law within the first covenant was not forced upon Israel, but they agreed to do all of it as required. They declared with pride it would be righteousness for them. They would have been better off humbling themselves by saying they couldn't do it. They chose to trust in themselves and their ability.

544. Why Jesus Taught Two Covenants (Part 1): The Law Tree

April 17, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

We begin a series on why Jesus ministered both the Old Covenant and the New. Before we get to some of the teachings of Jesus, we'll lay a foundation that provides reasons why Jesus did this. We'll start at the beginning with Adam in the garden being faced with an element of law already at work when he was commanded not to eat from The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. It's the tree of law, and Adam's motivation on why he chose to eat from it may sound familiar in the lives of many Christians today.

543. What Does Repentance Really Mean?

April 10, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

When you hear the word repent, what comes to mind? Do you think it means to stop sinning and improve behavior? Perhaps you've been told it means to be sorry for your sins and seek a renewed forgiveness from God. You may assume it involves changing what you do. Did you notice all of the above puts the responsibility on you and depends on your ability? Our response to God should not be based on our ability to perform in a way that is "moral" enough to gain acceptance from Him. Repentance is to have a change of mind. In what way should our thinking be changed? That's our discussion this week.

542. Repeated Repentance vs. Forever Forgiveness

April 3, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Continuing from last week's discussion about 2 Chronicles 7:14, a passage that was directed at Israelites who were under the law... In that first covenant, they repeatedly found themselves in a position of needing to turn from sin whenever a command was broken. They were continuously seeking the face of God, praying, and offering sacrifices so they could be forgiven again and again, over and over. Contrast that with Christ, who obtained a ministry that is much more excellent than the old way that came through Moses. In this new ministry, forgiveness, justification and sanctification came through what He did by the shedding of His blood, once and for all.

541. “If My People…”

March 27, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

A popular verse in the Bible that is often used in the church world is found in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

On this week's program, we'll take a look at why this was pointed at the people of Israel in the first covenant and wasn't meant to be applied to those of us under the covenant of Christ. It's even better news than what Israel possessed!

540. Jesus Did More Than Enough

March 20, 2016 by Mike Kapler and Joel Brueseke

Are you busy working to try to establish or maintain acceptance from God? Is your idea of repentance tied into reducing your sin count so your good works will outweigh the bad? Do you find yourself feeling the need to ask God for forgiveness over and over again? Are you in a constant state of wondering where you stand with God? Our conversation this week will be a reminder that the gospel was never meant to be about us and our performance, but is entirely contained in the Person of Jesus Christ.