The Whole Counsel

Hope Project 4 Kids with Jeremy Walker and Gilbert M

A few weeks ago, we had Jeremy Walker on The Whole Counsel, and he introduced us to an organization in Zambia called Hope Project. This ministry works to take children off the streets and provide them with four pillars of support: physical, emotional, educational, and spiritual. We were so moved by Hope Project's work and ministry that we wanted to have its founder, Gilbert Mulubwa, on the podcast so he could speak directly to you. We invited Jeremy back to help us cover all our bases. Because were having a conversation on three continents, we had to overcome some technical difficulties with the audio and video quality, which was not up to our usual standard. We appreciate your patience with that. We encourage you to see the show notes for more information about the Hope Project, including how you can sponsor a child. While you’re there, don't forget to check out the video produced by Hope Project.
Show Notes
A note from Gilbert Mulubwa: CARE4 KIDS CHILD SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM At Care4 Kids - Hope Project (a Gospel Initiative), we believe every child deserves to be cared for and loved. Even vulnerable and orphaned Children like the ones in our care, deserve an opportunity to learn, grow and thrive. For just $48 per month, you can make a life - changing difference. The love you show by sponsoring a child ensures that the child will receive the following things: •⁠ ⁠Free Quality Christian Education •⁠ ⁠School Uniforms, Books, Pens, Pencils and other School Supplies •⁠ ⁠Nutritious Lunch every School Day •⁠ ⁠Evangelism & Discipleship •⁠ ⁠Biblical Counseling & Mentorship Program As a sponsor, you are becoming more than a financial contributor but an answered prayer to us as you’re becoming an essential link in our pursuit to maximize the God given potential of these children’s lives, enabling them to end the cycle of poverty in their families and communities. Your support is a lifeline, a chance to bless/ change a life forever. Being a sponsor is an opportunity to build a relationship, offer encouragement, and see the direct impact of your generosity. Join us on this journey of love. Together, we can make a world of difference, one child at a time. Email us on info@care4kidshopeproject.com website is care4kidshopeproject.com You can reach out directly to Hope Project by emailing Info@care4kidshopeproject.com
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The Call of Wisdom IV: Dig Out Your Ears!

Are you listening? It is a common refrain of parents to children, teachers to students, etc. But it is an incredibly important question to us to ask ourselves when it comes to wisdom’s voice. As our highlighted instruction tells us, we must be actively listening, bending our ears, or making sure our ears are cleaned out, to hear her voice.
The battle for truly listening to God’s voice is a constant one that is fought on multiple fronts. We must realize that we live in a world filled with distractions. Furthermore, we have to keep in mind that we have an enemy who seeks to distract us. Lastly, we have a internal will that wants to distract us. With so much stacked against every Christian, it takes the work of God in our souls to make us listen attentively to His voice. So do not fall for the lie of self sufficiency and believe you can just make yourself try harder. It takes the work of God. So come out of the wilderness leaning on your Beloved.
Show Notes:
God Tells a Man Who Cares by A. W. Tozer - https://awtozer.com/books/god-tells-the-man-who-cares
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The Call of Wisdom III: How to Treasure

There are treasures that are placed in safety-deposit boxes, rarely seen and more rarely used. Then there are things we treasure that are used every day, and the more worn and scarred they become, the more precious they are to us.
Wisdom should be seen in the second category. It is a thing to be truly treasured by the Christian, but if it is left on the shelf and collects dust, it is worthless. We must use God’s wisdom in every aspect of life. We must welcome it in, as Dr. John Snyder and Teddy James discussed last week in our series, but we must also treasure it.
This sounds like a very spiritual thing to do. We know we should appreciate wisdom, but to treasure it? To the average person, that sounds like something only academics or the spiritual giants of the past could do. But this command isn’t given just to them. It is delivered by our King to us, the common, ordinary Christian. And we must obey.
But we don’t live on an island. A healthy Christian is living in a community of other believers, and so we must help others treasure it as well. John and Teddy also give some commentary on how we can help church members and our family members walk down this path of answering Wisdom’s call.
Show Notes:
Colossians 3
1 Thessalonians 2:13
Psalm 119
Want to listen to The Whole Counsel on the go? Subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast app: https://www.mediagratiae.org/podcasts
A Way to Pray by Matthew Henry - https://banneroftruth.org/us/store/christian-living/way-to-pray/
Dr. Beeke’s sermon on Church and Family Life Conference - https://churchandfamilylife.com/resources/65bd3672fbd7d4eaadeacd07
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The Call of Wisdom II: Welcoming Wisdom

See more podcasts, small group studies, and theological studies for children at www.mediagratiae.org.
Last week, we introduced our new series examining the metaphors Proverbs 2:1-5 gives us for responding to the call of wisdom. The first metaphor the writer of Proverbs gives us is to receive, or take, wisdom. This is not a passive reception; it requires intentionality, purpose, and effort.
Dr. John Snyder and Teddy James focus on two primary applications. The first is to take the word of God into every area of life. We must apply God’s truth to our minds, thoughts, imaginations, relationships, stewardship, worship, and more. To receive God’s Word means to give it full access to every closet, drawer, and dark corner of our lives.
The second application is equally important. We must take care to receive every part of God’s Word. We must fight the temptation to only dwell in our favorite books or passages. All of Scripture is given to us by our King, and it is all necessary for the complete Christian life.
So this week, put forth the effort, do the work, and take wisdom into your life. Next week, we will look at treasuring Wisdom’s commands.
Show Notes:
1 Thessalonians 1 &2
James 1:22-23
Acts 17:11
Philippians 2:3
Zephaniah 3:16
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The Call of Wisdom I: How Long

See Media Gratiae resources including, Behold Your God: Seeking Him Early, Behold Your God: Rethinking God Biblically, Christ Our Treasure, and more: https://shop.mediagratiae.org
Proverbs 1 tells us that “Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice.” Religious systems throughout history have taught wisdom as something often hidden and difficult to find. But Proverbs clearly tells us the opposite. Wisdom is shouting in the busiest part of the city, calling out to anyone willing to listen. The problem isn’t the availability of wisdom; it’s our willingness to hear her.
The writer of Proverbs gives us great insight not only into the call of wisdom but also the response every Christian should have to her call. This is what we will discuss over the next seven episodes. Dr. John Snyder is joined by Teddy James in this new series focusing on our response to wisdom’s call. In this introductory episode, we focus on what that call is and what we must do if we have rejected God’s call for years.
A life that walks closely with wisdom is a happy life, blessed by the presence of God. The life that rejects wisdom is filled with calamity, and God will laugh as calamity strikes. Does this make God mean and vindictive? Quite the opposite. It is out of love that God warns of this reality. We will reap what we sow. If we sow selfishness and self-rule, we will reap destruction. If we sow humble obedience to Christ, we will reap His righteousness.
That leaves us all with one question: How long?
For the Christian, how long will we dull our ears to wisdom’s call before coming to repentance and walking closely with Christ?
For the unbeliever, how long will you resist God’s gracious call to follow Him?
The good news is that if you can read Scripture and hear God’s call, it is not too late for you. Listen today, obey today, repent today.
Next week, we will begin looking at the first of six practical steps Proverbs gives us to respond to wisdom’s call.
Show Notes:
See Media Gratiae resources including Behold Your God: Seeking Him Early, Behold Your God: Rethinking God Biblically, Christ Our Treasure, and more: https://shop.mediagratiae.org
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Union with Christ X: Our Final Glorification

This week, we conclude our series on the union between Jesus Christ and the Christian. We’ve explored several aspects of this union and now reach its apex—the culmination of everything. However, to fully grasp it, we must first correct some common misunderstandings.
Many Christians believe that once we die, we enter into our glorified state. Dr. John Snyder and Acey Floyd held similar views until they studied the topic in-depth and discovered that Scripture teaches something different. This distinction is crucial because a wrong understanding can lead us to see glorification as an isolated reality in the Christian life. It isn’t. It is interconnected with every other aspect of the Christian’s union with Christ and the Father’s promises to the Son.
Seeing glorification as part of these broader realities, rather than as an individualistic event, can significantly impact our assurance of salvation, our pursuit of sanctification, our confidence that God will conquer sin in our lives, and more.
Throughout this series, we have recommended John Murray’s Redemption Accomplished and Applied. As we conclude, we want to highlight it once more. If you haven’t read it yet, we highly encourage you to do so. You can find the link below.
Show Notes:
Communion with God by John Owen https://banneroftruth.org/us/store/christian-living/communion-with-god/
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Union with Christ IX: The Privileges of Adoption

Our current series has focused on our union with Christ, with the last few episodes emphasizing our adoption. In the last episode, Dr. John Snyder and Acey Floyd explored the biblical foundation for our adoption in Christ.
This week, they examine the privileges available to every Christian because of our adoption. For this, they refer to John Owen's small work “Communion with God.” While the entire book is a treasure, they focus on chapter 17 in this episode. In these pages, Owen discusses what we have access to because of our relationship with Jesus and some of the objective realities that should appear in the life of a Christian.
Show Notes:
Communion with God by John Owen https://banneroftruth.org/us/store/christian-living/communion-with-god/
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Cur Deus Homo: Why God Became Man | Navigating the Classics

A few times a year we want to visit a classic work of Christendom. Rather than spending a long series walking through the work, we try to discuss it all in one long-form discussion. For this episode of Navigating the Classics, Dr. John Snyder is joined by Chris Green and Steve Crampton to take a look at Anselm’s Cur Deus Homo, which translates to “Why God Human.”
Anselm, who was a church leader eleventh century and sought to answer two criticisms of the Christian faith. The first was a claim that God is too holy to have become a human. The other claim was that if Jesus was the God-man, His death on the cross was no essential to our salvation.
The approach of the book was not unique for Anselm’s time, but he utilizes a device not often seen today. It is written in the form of a conversation between Anselm and a pupil. He sets up questions from his pupil that he wants to answer and then begins the conversation.
Throughout the work, Anselm shows that he is very gifted in both logic and communication. While Cur Deus Homo is a work of philosophy, it is a treasure trove for the Christian.
Perhaps you have never heard of this book, but if you have and you have put off listening to it, let us encourage you to take on the task and reap the rewards it contains.
Read what R.C. Sproul had to say about Cur Deus Homo: https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/cur-deus-homo
Physical Copy: https://www.amazon.com/Cur-Deus-Homo-Saint-Anselm/dp/1411646436
Digital Copy: https://www.monergism.com/search?keywords=cur+deus+homo&format=All
 
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Theological and Doxological with Dr. Stephen Yuille

A few weeks ago, Teddy James visited Granbury, Texas, to meet with Dr. Stephen Yuille. Dr. Yuille is Professor of Church History and Spiritual Formation in the School of Theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and pastor of Fairview Covenant Church.
The Media Gratiae team was introduced to Dr. Yuille through several of his books including The Blessed and Boundless God and The Inner Sanctum of Puritan Piety: John Flavel’s Doctrine of Mysical Union with Christ. Both of these books we wholeheartedly recommend to you.
Teddy’s visit wasn’t just to spend time in one of the most welcoming little towns he has ever seen. It was to film a new study for Media Gratiae, taught by Dr. Yuille, on the book of Galatians. You can expect to hear more about that study in the coming months. But this week we wanted to give you a chance to meet Dr. Yuille and hear a bit of his heart for Christ and His bride, the church.
We pray this episode will be a blessing to you, but also give you fuel to pray for us and Dr. Yuille as we continue serving in the ways and means God has given us to further His kingdom and train the church.
Show Notes:
Blessed and Boundless God - https://www.heritagebooks.org/products/the-blessed-and-boundless-god-swinnock.html
The Inner Sanctum of Puritan Piety: John Flavel’s Doctrine of Mystical Union with Christ - https://www.heritagebooks.org/products/the-inner-sanctum-of-puritan-piety-john-flavels-doctrine-of-mystical-union-with-christ-ebook-yuille.html
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Union with Christ VIII: The Foundation of Adoption

This week, Dr. John Snyder is joined by Acey Floyd again to continue discussing the Christian’s union with Jesus Christ. If Jesus were only our kinsman redeemer, high priest, and propitiation, that would be more than anything we could dream of. But Scripture goes further and tells us He is also our elder brother. We are joint heirs with Him. This is a reality that, if we were told it by a preacher, we would say he was going too far. But we can read those very words in Hebrews 12.
So what does this relationship with Christ have to do with adoption, and what effect does adoption have on our Christian lives? Everything. Adoption is how we can be certain that our relationship with God isn’t based on our merits or on our progressive sanctification. Our relationship with Him is as certain as His relationship to Jesus. Even though Jesus is begotten and not adopted, the Father is still pleased to call us His children. That will never change because it is based on Himself and upon the work of Jesus Christ.
We have mentioned this book throughout this series, but if you have not gotten a copy of John Murray’s "Redemption Accomplished and Applied," let us encourage you to find a copy and read it. Then read it again. Then read it again. It has been a tremendous blessing to us, and we believe it will be a help to you as well.
Show Notes:
Redemption Accomplished and Applied by John Murray
John 1:12-13
Galatian 4:6
Romans 8:15-17
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