I was delighted to be joined by Neal Harmon, the CEO of VidAngel, a streaming service that allows extensive filtering of non-family-friendly content. VidAngel is fighting an important lawsuit that could be critical for streaming law in the future. For those of us who want the right to be able to filter streamed content, its an interesting service. I was also joined by new friend and pastor Jess Knauft. We continued our conversation on the charismata, really looking here at the question of tongues. Is this gift still around? How should it be employed. Thanks to both guests for their generosity.
Why the name “Sin Boldly”? Martin Luther wrote to his friend Philip Melanchthon in 1521: “If you are a preacher of mercy, do not preach an imaginary but the true mercy. If the mercy is true, you must therefore bear the true, not an imaginary sin. God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners. Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong [sin boldly], but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world.” To sin boldly, therefore, is not to seek unholy living, but to follow the course we believe the Bible demands even if the world is against us. And if and when we sin, trust in an even greater savior.
First Lutheran also publishes a daily podcast called The Scarlet Thread (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-scarlet-thread/id1110938468?mt=2). This podcast is a reading of the appointed texts for the Two-Year Daily Lectionary. After two years, listeners will have heard most of the Old Testament once and most of the New Testament twice. If you are liturgically-minded and want a little more Bible in your life, this is a great podcast for you.