The Legend of the Martyr

Funerals are another opportunity to proclaim the hope that you have in Christ to your loved ones. Funeral planning worksheet mentioned: https://www.hope-aurora.org/docs/FPW/FPWWorksheet.pdf

21st century - 30 martyrs killed by ISIS in April 20154th century - 40 martyrs killed by Rome in 320 ADThere's nothing new under the sun!

We take a look at Christian persecution in Finland, Canada, Nigeria, and Iran specifically. Mentioned in the episode was an annual persecution report which can be downloaded here:https://persecution.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/2025-Global-Persecution-Index.pdf

We learn of a faithful family, of whose ten children, five are considered saints by the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. We also study together from Matthew 7:1-6.

Declining populations have already begun to happen in nearly 1/3 of the world's countries, a number that will only increase in the years to come unless children are seen as a gift again. As Christians, how can we love and serve our neighbors faithfully in such a setting?

We read selections from Matthew 21-28 for this our celebration of Holy Week, focusing on Christ's death and resurrection.

Today's interview is with LCMS career missionary, Makia Adler, currently training in the Dominican Republic, preparing to serve as the volunteer coordinator in Belize. You can learn more about her and her work at https://www.lcms.org/adler where you can also sign up to receive her monthly newsletter (it's a link in the right column)

We learn about some of the men who helped bring God's Word into English as well as continuing our Bible study with Matthew 6:16-34.

We learn about Joseph, the Guardian of Jesus and also about Joseph, the Patriarch, and the other ten Josephs mentioned in the Bible. Then we start into Matthew 6.

We explore several New Testament passages for a solid Biblical foundation for why suffering happens and what role it has in our lives.

We learn of the people Paul speaks of in his epistle to Philemon.

We learn of a first century bishop and then hear Jesus' teaching on how we are the light of the world when it comes to anger, lust, and divorce.

1st century bishop of Pergamum, often suggested that he was martyred in 92 AD.

We cover a wide variety of topics: martyrdom, fleeing, violence, worship, vocation, evangelism, worldview, law and gospel, love, hate, judging, truth and lies

We learn about one of the brothers who traveled with Paul on his missionary journeys.

We learn about Timothy, a 1st century Christian, pastor, bishop, and confessor of the faith, and read from one of Paul's letters to him.

We learn of the deaths of 21 Christian men in Libya in 2015.Links referenced in the episode:www.the21film.comhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkhsneGX52I

How can a good God allow evil and suffering? How could a loving God send someone to hell? These are just a couple of the questions we explore today as we seek to share Christ with our neighbor.

We learn of John of Damascus, an eighth century Christian living faithfully in Muslim lands.

The Feast Day of St. Stephen is December 26th.

We learn the story of the man "who through his life away," or so the world sees it.My commentary on the book of Daniel can be found on my website here: https://sandhandrews.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/the-book-of-daniel.pdf

We examine the attacks against the Bible and discuss how the Bible came together as the book we know today.

We learn about Nicholas, the bishop of Myra, whose generosity gave rise to the gift-giving traditions of December throughout Christian communities around the world. And, we see the third vision God gives to Daniel.

We learn of a martyr in the 4th century and study another of God's visions to Daniel.

We read from the Apocrypha today, seeing Susanna falsely accused of adultery, but God saves her. And, we see Daniel cast into the lion's den by King Cyrus for a second time!

Jan Hus was a Catholic priest in the early 15th century whose work influenced the Reformation a century later.

An atheist claim of our day is that Jesus is just a myth, a made up fairy tale. We examine the evidence of history to debunk this one.The page of resources mentioned in the episode: https://sandhandrews.wordpress.com/resources/apologetics/

We read and study Hebrews 11:1-12:3.

Due to the hate of the other officials, Daniel is thrown to the lions, but spared by God.

We see the martyrdom of James, brother of Jesus, and head of the Church in Jerusalem, and see the destruction of the Babylonian Empire in a single night at God's command.

We meet Rev. Paul Nelson, who serves as a career missionary in the LCMS, working as the area facilitator for the region of Asia.

I attended the recent "From the Field" conference hosted by VOM to hear from Christians all over the world how Christians are being persecuted, but also how they are continuing to faithfully serve the Lord in those places.

We learn of the martyrdom of two Christian women in the days of the early Church. And we see Daniel living out his faith before a pagan king.

In just the last few weeks, we have seen three Christians in America martyred for their faith in Jesus. We hear more about their faith, and reflect on the danger of the idols of safety and "God and Country Christianity."

Why is feminism a lie of the devil? What does God's Word actually teach us about His creation of male and female?

One of the most well-known martyrdom accounts in Scripture, as King Nebuchadnezzar casts Hananiah (Shadrach), Mishael (Meshach), and Azariah (Abednego) into the fiery furnace.

Daniel comes before King Nebuchadnezzar to share with him his dream and its interpretation.

What do we know about Mary from Scripture and history? Also we hear of King Nebuchadnezzar's demand that his magicians and officials tell him his dream AND its interpretation.

Rev. Tiews is an LCMS career missionary who works with Persian refugees in Hamburg, Germany.https://www.lcms.org/Tiews

Government is both a blessing and a curse from the Lord. We see them persecute His people all around the world, and yet the Scriptures can say they are from Him. Listen in to learn more about what the Scriptures teach about government, and what role the Christian has with his governor.

Today's episode is largely a review episode, as it is a presentation I shared at the 2025 Higher Things conference for LCMS youth held at Concordia University, NE.

Today we learn about about two of our sisters in Christ in the days of the early Church as well as studying the first chapter of the book of Daniel, where we meet Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

The saint day for the Nativity of John the Baptist falls on June 24 each year (a little late on this podcast, sorry), and we take a look at the context for the Book of Daniel, which we'll begin studying next week.

This is a follow up to the episode on apologetics, science and Christianity, from June 2, 2025. Bryan Osborne joins the show from Answers in Genesis to dig a little deeper into why these conversations matter, and to talk about dinosaurs!

This is the first of hopefully a series of conversations with Christians alive today in other parts of the world who are bearing witness to Christ. What is it like to be a Christian there? What are they risking by bearing witness to Christ? How can we support them in their work? Hear as Mikko Tiira, a Lutheran pastor in Finland, answers these sorts of questions.

We learn about "Good King Wenceslaus," the man behind the Christmas carol, who was actually a duke, and his grandmother who raised him to know Christ Jesus.Sources·        https://www.historyskills.com/classroom/ancient-history/king-wenceslas/·        https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wenceslas-I-prince-of-Bohemia·https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wenceslaus_I,_Duke_of_Bohemia

We look at the prophet Jeremiah and begin the final chapter of Peter's letters.

We learn about the apostle Barnabas from the New Testament and also talk about the danger of false teachers from 2 Peter 2.

Apologetics are a part of martyrdom, as we give a defense of what we believe to our neighbor as we share Christ with them.Sources:-my notes for this episode: https://sandhandrews.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/apologetics-science-and-christianity.pdf- Bill Nye video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHbYJfwFgOU

We look at the role of hymns and joy in our suffering by taking a look at the lives of the 9th century bishop Theodulf and the 17th century Paul Gerhardt.Sources·  “They Went to Their Deaths Singing” article by JD Raymond in Gaudium Magazine, March 8, 2022, https://www.gaudiummag.com/p/they-went-to-their-deaths-singing·    https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/galen.html·    https://catholicexchange.com/conversion-saint-paul/·    Eusebius, The History of the Church, Penguin Books, London, 1989.  Page 148.