Dewey Bertolini's Podcast

It is without a doubt THE single most unpleasant topic in all of the Bible. The subject of this week’s PODCAST: God’s wrath.   We discuss it here because here in Matthew 10, Jesus made reference to the iconic display of God’s wrath: the twin-cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.   And for good measure, Jesus also referred to “the day of judgment.”   Since Jesus brought it up, we will bring it up -- unpleasant or otherwise -- providing some Much-Needed-Clarification to an Often-Misunderstood topic.   Upon reflection, I suppose the overarching questions raised by this sobering subject are these: Is Jesus a gentle Jesus? Is Jesus a wrathful Jesus? Or both?    And if both, how does the one (gentle) square with the other (wrathful)? Especially in light of what happened in Sodom and Gomorrah.   My friends, as always, we have a ton to talk about.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.   God bless you as you listen.      And

In this PODCAST, we will discover together an amazing privilege that is ours, especially given tormented world in which we live. We have been given a unique gift of God’s blessing that Jesus Himself empowers us to bestow on His behalf to others.   Just so you know, this is the kind of person I long to be.   This blessing and privilege defines a pretty amazing purpose statement for our lives.    This is HUGE!   There are so many troubled people in this tortured world of ours. In case you hadn’t noticed, this world has become a #Very.Scary.Place. There seems to be a fog of uncertainty that leaves many of us reeling from feelings of unease in our world today -- on a global level, as well as on a personal one.   It seems to so many as if the world spinning out of control, as if their world is spinning out of control. To the point where God’s peace is the polar-opposite of what people experience in their self-medicated souls.    Something that is as unsettlingly true in our day as it was in Jesus’ day. Believe me:

Truer words were never spoken. It is an axiom of life. An undeniable reality that is obvious on its face:   You can’t put toothpaste back in the tube.   What does toothpaste have to do with Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 10, you ask? Everything. Everything.   For the fact of the matter is that there are some things in this world of ours which, once they are done, there’s no going back. Which is so ironically true about the passage in this PODCAST.   I suppose on the one hand, one could ask: Then why even discuss this? If indeed it is how it is... If it’s how the game is played today... If it’s how the game has been played for years… If it’s not going to change... Not by you. Not by me. Not by anyone…   Then why even discuss this?   Because on the other hand Matthew 10:8 is in the Bible. Because Jesus did indeed say this. Because Matthew did indeed include this. Because these are the words of Jesus. So God obviously WANTS us to discuss this. So despite the fact that I have no illusions about changing anything,

The day before yesterday, I read a recently released report out of University of Missouri on the subject of Facebook Depression.   Well, as you will hear in this PODCAST, I really didn’t need to read a report about that. I know all-too-well what happens in my own rather sizable soul when I scan my FB newsfeed. Sometimes I just can’t help but to feel so deeply and compassionately and sadly for many of the challenges so many of my friends are going through, especially as they relate to their issues of health.   I, like so many of you, just want to wave a magical wand and fix everything. But I can’t.   Of course, as the cliché goes, I do know Someone (capital “S”) who Can.Fix.Everything.   But what happens when He doesn’t?   Perhaps amplifying my FB depression, this was the week for “I don’t know if I believe in God anymore” messages. Messages sent to me by a few of my friends, unsolicited on my part, each message unrelated to the others, in which their faith is floundering, seriously so. This precisely because

We have come in this PODCAST to a monumentally significant section of Scripture.   And yet ironically one of the most ignored.   As we will learn over the next several weeks, here in Mark 6, and its much more complete parallel passage in Matthew 10, we read of something that was for Jesus enormously emotional, and for us incredibly instructional.   Emotional because of its context (Jesus’ compassion for people will shine ever so brightly against dark backdrop of His own rejection); instructional because of its content (that includes wonderfully practical principles we can readily apply).   There is no way for me to overestimate the value of the insights that we will discover together here as we sort of eavesdrop on Jesus as He prepares His men for ministry.   Just to give you a sneak peak of just some of the things that we will learn together as we dissect and digest this that we could call The Master’s Message to His Men, we will discover:   How Jesus wants His ministers -- both then and now -- to conduct t

As you will hear in this PODCAST, on the night before He went to the cross, Jesus made a series of remarkable statements to His disciples, in the Upper Room, during their final Passover Seder together.   John 13-17, those 5 chapters, are often referred to as Upper Room Discourse. They contain rich and rewarding teaching that we’ll dissect and digest in, oh… 3 years or so when we get there.   There is, however, in that wide swath of Scriptural truth one statement that I want to highlight here, that really sets the stage for this discussion. In John 14, Jesus said this to His disciple Philip, in front of the other 10 (Judas having left to betray Jesus):   “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!” (vs. 9)   “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!”   When we began this study of Jesus in HD, we said then, and I remind you frequently, that we are on a journey of discovery. Over two years ago now, we embarked together on an ongoing quest to discover exactly who Jesus is.   In this statement in John 14, Jesu

Well, I’ve got good news for you. Great news, at least as far as Jesus and His disciples were concerned. Just in case you were worried about this.   As you will hear in this PODCAST, Jesus finally got a break in the action.   Finally, mercifully, after His enormously long and draining and tiring day -- in which He taught a series of seven parables, sailed to the other side of the sea, stilled a raging storm, sent two thousand or more demons to flight, healed a bleeding woman, raised a dead girl, all of which we have discussed in minute detail over the past (if you can believe it) 4 months -- that one singularly momentous day has now finally come to an end.   Then, after an indefinite period of time, Jesus and His disciples once again took to the road. No sooner did Jesus get out the door, He was met by two blind men, begging Him to heal them.   It is most interesting that of the three Gospel-writers -- Matthew, Mark, and Luke -- who gave us the record of Jesus’ so-called longest day, it is only Matthew who re

OK. So I’ve got to tell you that I find this entire series of events that we will be discussing in this PODCAST…   All of which I will remind you took place in less than 36 hours…   This entire series of events that took place in just one day in the life of Jesus…   I find to be remarkably REFRESHING, while at the same time to the followers of Jesus’ faith utterly unsettling...    Absolutely REVOLUTIONARY to me, while at the same time to the leading rabbis of Jesus’ day disgustingly revolting…   Undeniably IRRESISTIBLE to me, while at the same time to the Torah-teachers of Jesus’ day scorchingly scandalous.   So unsettling, revolting, and scandalous that they hated Him for it.   Yet so refreshing, revolutionary, and irresistible that we love Him for it!   It’s been quite a ride, really, this journey that we’re on together. Two years ago, we began our ongoing study of Jesus in High Definition. The stated purpose of which is to rediscover afresh who Jesus really is, and what Jesus is really like.   Much to my s

She was a footnote in this chapter of the Jesus Story. But she was NEVER a footnote to Jesus.   And neither are you, as you will be reminded in this poignant PODCAST.   If I had to choose one word to describe this woman -- and let me assure you, there are many to choose from, such as desperate, fearful, impoverished, unclean, shunned, rejected, lonely, isolated, alone, damaged --    If I had to choose one word to describe this woman, the one word I would choose is invisible. She was indeed invisible. Totally and completely invisible.   She was invisible to her family, her former friends, her neighbors, her faith community…   No one gave a thought to, or cared one whit about, this poor precious woman.   Except for Jesus.   If you have ever been tempted to think that Jesus is mean, harsh, angry, impossible to please, time to meet this woman -- who will never look at Jesus the same way again.    And neither will you.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to

Whenever I talk about Satan, demons, spiritual warfare, or anything remotely related, the numbers of distractions in the room increase exponentially.   This is a pattern I have documented over 40 years of ministry.   Regardless of time of day, day of week, season of year, or venue in which I teach, it’s as if the devil himself does not want anyone (including you) to hear what the Bible teaches about our (and God’s) archenemy.   That was certainly true at Safe Haven when I recorded this PODCAST.   Coincidence? Maybe.   I can say without fear of contradiction that the principles you will learn in this message from the life and ministry of Jesus to a demon-possessed man, Satan does NOT want you to hear.   Don’t be surprised at the numbers of distractions that you will face when you try to hear this.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.     God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE share a link to this podcast

He is truly an unsung hero of the Christmas Story.   Ironically enough, as you will learn in this Christmas-themed PODCAST, his name means “one who listens.”    Are you ready to listen?   Having read the biblical accounts of the birth of Jesus, I have no doubt that you have heard of him. But I would be very much surprised if you knew much about him.   All of that is about to change.   Ready to view the coming of Christ through a slightly different lens? My Yuletide gift to you, in a little more than 30 minutes.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for the podcast to begin to play.   If it is a blessing to you, PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your family and friends.     God bless you as you listen. And have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Ever feel spiritually inferior? Like you don't measure up? Like you can't measure up? Then you are in the right place. This message is for YOU! In this PODCAST, we bid a fond farewell to the parables.  I cannot put into words how much I have enjoyed our study of each of them. The seven parables of Matthew 13 speak so clearly to us, revealing to us exactly what Jesus said the spiritual climate in the world in which we are now living would be like. With pinpoint accuracy, He said it would be so. And it is. So somewhat sadly, we turn the page and move immediately into the next phase of Jesus’ ministry. I do say “immediately” because we read this in Mark 4 (as we harmonize the four Gospels and present Jesus’ life and ministry in chronological order)... ... And I’ve got to tell you, I cannot help but to chuckle when I read this: "Jesus taught them using parables; privately to His disciples He explained everything. On that same day when evening had come, He said to them, Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.

It has become THE doctrinal debate of our time -- Is there really a Hell?    It is THE question that is addressed clearly and unambiguously in this PODCAST.   Is there Really a Hell?   This 7th of 7 parables answers the question.   And if the answer is “Yes,” the logical followup question would be, “What is Hell Really like?”   Turns out that the Bible is amazingly straightforward about whether or not there is a Hell; if so, what it is truly like, who will be going there, and why they will be going there.   As I often say, It’s amazing what we learn when we read the Bible.   Well, get ready to be amazed.   Please remember that depending upon your connection speed and web browser, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to being to play.   God bless you as you listen. And PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your friends.     Happy listening.

You are in for a Thanksgiving treat! One PODCAST consisting of two precious parables.   Why these two parables don’t get more attention, I’ll never know. For contained within them are two of the most blessed truths of our faith.   The two parables of which I speak: The Parable of the Buried Treasure, and the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price.   Two parables that, despite their similarities, reveal two totally distinct but equally precious truths.   If you need a jolt of overwhelming encouragement, you need look no further.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.   God bless you as you listen.   And PLEASE share a link to this podcast with your friends.      Enjoy!!!

It is without a doubt one of the most beloved and timeless stories in the entire Bible, courtesy of Jesus Himself.   In this PODCAST, you will hear the story has you have never heard nor read it before.   A story for Jesus’ day; a story for our own day.   A story for Jesus’ disciples; a story for us as Jesus’ disciples.   Just imagine that the principle player in the story told you his story in his own words, in his own voice.   A much needed story for us all to hear, especially at this tender time in our nation’s history, especially in this day when so many precious people are so woefully divided one from another.   This is one of those special stories that gives us a glimpse into the enormous heart and sizable soul of Jesus.   Think of it as a Thanksgiving gift, from my heart to yours.   Sit back, relax, and enjoy.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to sixty seconds for this podcast to begin to play.     God bless you as you listen.

OK… So... I am rarely one to say “I told you so.” But sometimes I just can’t help myself.   As you will hear on this week’s PODCAST, my dear friends, I told you so.   All courtesy of Jesus.    All centered upon a #MostSignificantParable.   One of a duet of parables, actually. The first having been discussed at length last week. The second to be discussed here and now.   Get ready to think. Be prepared to process. Buckle yourself in as we once again (thanks to Jesus) shift a paradigm.   In short, get ready to view the world differently.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.     God bless you as you listen!

Oh, my friends. You are about to be amazed... In this PODCAST, you will be amazed that in such a few words, Jesus taught such a tremendously timely and thought-provoking parable. Exactly WHAT the disciples (and US!) needed to hear; exactly WHEN they (and WE!) needed to hear it. If the world seems to be spinning out of control... If it seems that we are losing... If life becomes for you at times overwhelming... If you ever feel oh so tired, weary, worn down... Then you are in for a treat, courtesy of Jesus. Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play. God bless you as you listen!

It’s a day that receives NO recognition.   I don’t know why. I have no explanation. It’s simply a fact.   This holiday (Holy Day) is the 3rd most important date on our calendars. 3rd only to Christmas and Easter.   And yet, year after year, it comes and it goes with nary a mention. As happened #JustLastWeek!!!   So in this PODCAST, we are going to mention it. What this holiday is. How it came about. What it means to you and me. And why we are the poorer for not observing it.   Get ready to feel affirmed, my friend. Because truth be told, this Holy Day is in reality YOUR day.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it might take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.     God bless you as you listen.

Welcome to this Jesus in HD Encore PODCAST.   I am coming off of an exhilarating week with the best students in the world, the Joshua Wilderness Institute students. So in my absence, and for your edification and enjoyment, I have reached way back into the archives, all the way to Podcast #61. This was at the time a wonderfully received and enormously helpful discussion that brought so much peace to so many troubled (and sometimes tortured) souls.   If you were ever going to hear just one message on the mysterious and majestic practice we call prayer, let this one be the one. For here we come to the crux of the matter regarding this glorious thing we call prayer.   So much is going to become so clear in just the next few minutes: Questions about unanswered prayers. Questions about why God even designed this thing called prayer. Questions about the purpose of prayer. Questions about what we ought to pray for, and what we don’t need to pray for.    Why prayer sometimes doesn’t seem to work. Yet why every time we

Ready to have a somewhat sobering, definitely enlightening, and #Oh.So.Encouraging discussion?    Then welcome to this week’s PODCAST!!!   An encouraging discussion, certainly to me personally, and hopefully to you, because Jesus’ 2nd parable, The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (the 1st we discussed last week, The Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seeds) is spot-on as far as Jesus predicting with pinpoint accuracy EXACTLY what would be taking place in our contemporary Christian culture and communities today...    ...And why!   A thought-provoking portrait upon which you and I need to gaze with insight and understanding.   This is one of those messages that puts so much into its proper perspective. Honestly, I can’t wait for you to hear it.   Please remember that depending upon your web browser and connection speed, it may take up to 60 seconds for this podcast to begin to play.     GOD BLESS YOU AS YOU LISTEN!!!