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TranscriptIntroduction
Can you believe another season has come to an end. And not just any season . . . season 33. We hit our 600th episode this season, and we’re in our 10th year of podcasting.
I hope it’s been as much of a blessing and encouragement and challenge for you as it’s been for me. This ministry exists to help all Christian dads and moms mature into the image of their Savior and better worship God with their parenting. This includes me, and this includes you, your friends, and your family. That’s why I’m excited to announce the topics for Season 34, so we can all anticipate just one of the ways God’s wants to work in us this season. Topic
Before I reveal the theme for this season, though, I just want to remind you that as we are completing this 10th full year of podcasting in September of 2026, we’re fervently praying that you will partner with us to raise $100,000. That money will provide one year’s worth of sustainability for TLP. We’ll be able to continue creating this free content, speaking at conferences, writing books, creating new online courses, and hopefully even open a brick and mortar counseling center.
But we can’t do any of this without your help. Please visit TruthLoveParent.com/donate to become a monthly donor or submit a one-time donation. All donations are tax-exempt, and the TLP family and families all over the world will thank you for your support. Okay, so, if you joined us last time, then you know that the entirety of Season 34 is going to focus on the book of I John. I come back to I John so much in my counseling, discipleship, and parenting. It’s an incredibly foundational letter that is both practical and relevant. We plan to dedicate all 14 episodes of Season 34 to this study, and we want you to know that this series is designed for whole families to listen to together. It will focus a lot on parents in particular, and it will address children frequently, but the bulk of the content will be presented from a discipler to a disciplee. We’re going to apply all of the truth we learn to the family, but we’re going to discuss it as John intended—from God to His creations—and we’re going to discuss how the Lord wants to use this truth in our families. So, now we’re going to sample each of the 14 episodes in order to whet our appetites for this study. Our first episode is going to lay the necessary groundwork for what we’re going to call “Biblical Families.” A biblical family is a family in which the individuals are striving to submit their lives to the God of the Bible as He communicates His will in His Word. As each member of the family chooses to live biblically, the family itself will be functioning biblically. Of course, it’s entirely possible for only one or two members of the family to be living biblically and the rest living selfishly. In that case, it wouldn’t really be a biblical family. Now, no one is perfect. We all sin, so we’re not suggesting that a biblical family must be a perfect family. The idea is that we’re all built on the same foundation and moving in the same direction—and that direction is identified and empowered by the Lord Himself. That’s why John starts his letter with the groundwork for our biblical families. Then we’re going to discuss the Start of Biblical Families. This may sound similar, but we’re going to learn that our foundation is a Person, and the start is our introduction into that Person and His plan for our lives. Then we’re going to talk about how we continue as a biblical family. As I mentioned earlier, we all sin, and we all will continue to sin until the day we die. Of course, as we mature, we should be sinning less than we were before, but how would God have our families mature? What’s the process? It’s here in John’s letter than he brings up themes that he will revisit all throughout the rest of the letter. We’re going to study John’s handling of love and hate and see how they are to work in our homes. Then we’re going to issue a warning to every family out there as we consider the true enemy of biblical families. Now, if you think that the great enemy of your family is Satan, I don’t mind telling you here and now that he is not your greatest enemy nor the one that John identifies. From there we’re going to discuss the Shelter of Biblical Families. No matter whether you’re under attack from the Enemy of Biblical Families or facing trials and testings, John identifies the only true and most glorious shelter available to all those striving to live in a Christ-honoring way. We’re also going to talk about what our hope should be. A follower of Christ is going to set his eyes on the goal toward which God would have us live. A biblical family will do the same. Then we’re going to pivot with John from the hope of biblical families to the battle of biblical families. This episode is going to meet us in the trenches of daily family life and identify God’s battle plan. It’s at this point that John revisits his theme of love, and we’re going to talk about the consequences of love in biblical families. Far too often we all want the consequences, but we’re not interested in pursuing what’s necessary to reap that harvest. From there we’ll study the necessity of discernment. Let me tell you, this day and age is one where people are running as fast as they can from discernment. No one wants to be wise. They want to be cool, they want to be accepted, they want to be on the “right side of history,” but the pursuit of truth and wisdom and discernment and logic and rational thought is discouraged. And then we’re going to dip back into the discussion of love. I told you this would be a repeating theme. This time we’re going to identify the purpose of love. But it will be on our next episode that we have to discuss the sting of biblical families. Just like he did in his opening chapter, John is going to set a very high expectation for our family conduct, and it’s going to sting some of us. Hopefully, we all will be convicted in one way or another about the areas in our lives that are not as much like Christ as they should be. In our second to last episode, we’re going to talk about the consummation of biblical families. This study will consider not only the final goal toward which we’re moving, but also what it looks like to actually be on the right trajectory. You’ll never reach the right end without going in the right direction. And our final episode in this family devotional series will end on a really high note as we discuss the confidence of biblical families. As you live in a Christ-honoring way, there will be many times you’ll doubt yourself, but when your family’s confidence is rooted in the right place, it’s so much easier to remain faithful. Conclusion
Again, I hope you’re excited for this opportunity. Sure, you can consume this series on your own, but we hope you’ll plan a time once a week to sit down with the family, listen to the episodes together, and discuss what the Lord would have your family learn.
As we go along, it’s my plan to provide study aids. I’ll give you the passage we’re going to unpack in the next episode, and I also plan to provide LifeWork questions your family can discuss as you seek to personalize God’s truth for your specific biblical family. So, here are two things you can do to prepare for our new study. First, you and your family can read I John 1:1-4 in preparation for next week’s episode. And second, you can share this episode with your friends and extended family as well as your church so that—Lord willing—all of their families can better worship God. As always, if you have any personal needs that require biblical counsel, please email us at [email protected] or leave a voicemail at (828) 423-0894. And I look forward to meeting with you and your family next time as we lay “The Groundwork of Biblical Families.” I’ll see you then.
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