Best Forerunner Ministries Podcasts (2025)

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Mt 3:1-12 Dec 7-25 The Forerunner’s Mindset: Understanding John the Baptist’s Life and Ministry 14:46

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27d ago14:46

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Send us a text I focus on information from the Scriptures and try to figure out what likely was the back story. I will attempt to explain more in detail as we unpack the life of John the Baptist. I am very careful in using tradition and historical context to gain insight into biblical times. Often tradition may have a political agenda and may not a…

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Mt 2.1-12 Jan 4-26 - The arrival of the Magi 9:19

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Send us a text This Gospel speaks about the days after the birth of Jesus. What should have been a joyous event has a very dark layer behind it. In this account we have the Magi coming to acknowledge the birth of a king. On this note I encourage my listeners to check out the editions of this podcast published on December 29, 2024, and December 30, …

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Mt 2.13-15, 19-23 Family December 28-25 7:22

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Send us a text In today’s Gospel we hear of another dream that Joesph had. If you are joining us for the first time, I urge you to listen to last weeks podcast edition where I speak about the dreams that Joseph had. I also recommend that you listen to the December 17th edition published in 2023 where I speak about Joseph’s mission. Today I want to …

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Mt 1:18-24 Dec 21-25 Dreams and the Divine: Pathways to Spiritual Growth 10:54

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Send us a text In this podcast today I will be focusing on the dreams that Joseph had. We don’t have much else on St. Joseph. We don’t hear much about him after the birth of Jesus. He is mentioned in the story of the finding in the temple when Jesus was 12 years old but that is it. We learn that Joseph was a dreamer. There are four dreams recorded,…

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Matthew 5:43-48 What's Love Got To Do With It? 47:05

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. Jesus’ teachings in Matthew 5:43-48 emphasize loving our enemies, a command that goes against human nature. This love is not based on human wisdom but on imitating God’s love for both good and evil, just and unjust. By loving our enemies, we demonstrate our identity as chil…

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A Adv 3 Mt 11:2-11 Dec 14-25 Voices in the Wilderness: Guiding Spiritual Growth Together 9:13

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Send us a text John was the Hearld of the Messiah. His role was simple, increase the awareness of the people of the coming Messiah. In the Gospel of John 3:30, John the Baptist says, "He must increase, but I must decrease," referring to Jesus Christ. This expresses John's understanding that his own role and influence were meant to diminish as Jesus…

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Psalm 100 Aroma of Thanksgiving 43:18

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Mt 24.37-44 Nov 30-25 "Being Spiritually Alert: Reading the Room in Life and Faith" 7:42

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Send us a text I recognize that staying alert can be exhausting at times and there may be times when taking a break would be appropriate. I highly recommend developing skills to reflect on our lives when we might not have been as alert as we needed to be. Retreats, Devotions such as the Daily Examination of conscience, a prayerful reflection develo…

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Matthew 5:17-30 Matters of the Heart 50:49

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Luke 23.35-43 The Outlaw’s Insight: Understanding Jesus Through Unexpected Eyes 7:38

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Send us a text This Gospel describes some of the last moments of the life of Jesus on Earth. The Gospel seems more appropriate for Lent and Easter. Jesus says very little. He is dying on the cross, he is dismissed by the leaders who are responsible for his death. The most interesting conversation is between the two condemned men who are being cruci…

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Matthew 5:10-16 You Are Salt and Light 43:56

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The Beatitudes, particularly the final one about persecution, emphasize the ideal characteristics of followers of Christ. Jesus uses the metaphors of salt and light to describe the influence believers should have on the world. Salt brings healing, preservation, purification…

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Luke 21.5-19 Nov 16-25 From Judas to Us: Understanding Betrayal Through Scripture and Science 10:55

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Send us a text Jesus warns us that we will be betrayed not just by anyone but by people who are close to us, family members. Experiencing betrayal is unfortunately more common than we would like. Being betrayed by those who are close to us is especially hurtful. Betrayal undermines our ability to trust. Have you ever experienced betrayal? Betrayal …

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Matthew 5:1-10 The Beatitudes 50:18

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The Sermon on the Mount, delivered by Jesus on a hillside overlooking the Sea of Galilee, is a manifesto of kingdom living for believers. It outlines the principles and virtues of the kingdom of heaven, describing the traits of a citizen of the kingdom. The sermon begins wi…

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John 2.13-22 Nov 9-25 Jesus speaking his truth to power 11:09

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Send us a text Todays Gospel is quite different from most others. In this Gospel we have Jesus aggressively driving the money changes and sellers out of the temple. At first glance it is quite different from Jesus’ usual way. There are no immediate teachings, healings or witty dialogue. It is clear that Jesus is passionate about his faith, and he i…

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Matthew 4:12-25 The Beginning of Jesus Ministry 39:13

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. Jesus began His public ministry in Galilee after John the Baptist’s arrest. He proclaimed the Kingdom of God, calling people to repentance and belief. Jesus called His first disciples, promising to make them “fishers of men,” and His ministry spread, healing the sick and ca…

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Luke 7,11-17 Nov 2 – 25 "Life Restored: The Widow’s Son and the Jesus Miracle" 7:30

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Send us a text There are three stories in the Gospels where Jesus raises someone from the dead. We have the story of Lazarus being raised (John 11:38-44), Jarius’ 12-year-old daughter being raised as recorded in (Mark 5:21-43, Luke 8:40 and Matthew 9:18-26) and now in today’s Gospel we hear about Jesus raising the son of a widow in a town called Na…

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Matthew 4:1-11 The Temptation of Jesus 52:27

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The Temptation of Jesus in Matthew 4:1-11 is examined. Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit, is led into the wilderness by God to be tested. The devil tempts Jesus with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, but Jesus resists each temptation by q…

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Lk 18.9-14 Oct 26-25 "Faith or Facade? Unpacking Motives in Doing Good" 8:07

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Send us a text So, we overhear the prayers of two very different men. One man, the Pharisees has done a lot and includes what he has done in a list expecting I guess to impress God. He was doing okay until he compared himself to the tax collector. The second man, the Tax collector has said little but admits to his wrongdoing and is truly sorry. It …

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Matthew 3:13-17 The Baptism of Jesus 42:47

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The Baptism of Jesus marked the beginning of His public ministry. John the Baptist, recognizing Jesus’ divinity, hesitated to baptize Him, but Jesus insisted to fulfill righteousness. The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus, signifying His anointing and the Father’s approval, …

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Luke 18:1-8 Oct 19-25 The Sacred Pause: Lessons on Waiting from the Bible 8:34

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Send us a text In the Gospel of Luke 18:6-8 Jesus is teaching his disciples to pray always. He uses a short parable of a woman seeking justice from a corrupt judge. The woman successfully hassles the judge, wearing him down to finally getting the justice she was seeking. Jesus makes the interesting point that how much more will God grant what we as…

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Matthew 3:1-12 The Kings Forerunner 52:00

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, preached a message of repentance, urging people to change their minds and prepare for the coming Kingdom of Heaven. He criticized the religious leaders for their hypocrisy and reliance on heritage for righteousness, warning them o…

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Luke 17:11-19 Oct 12-25 The Leper who Returned: Jesus, Healing, and the Power of Gratitude 9:54

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Send us a text In today’s Gospel we read about a healing, specifically the healing of ten people with leprosy. Although this account is about people getting healed of a dreaded disease it is what happens after the healing that is most significant. Let’s take a step back to help put this Gospel in perspective. Leprosy or now known as Hansen’s Diseas…

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Luke 17:5-10 Oct 5, 25 Exploring the Disciples’ Quest for More 10:07

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Send us a text In today’s Gospel Jesus is asked by his disciples on how to increase their faith. It looks like the disciples are finally understanding the ministry of Jesus. Remember the story of the rich young man found in Matthew 19:16 who asks Jesus what does he need to do to inherit eternal life? It was a fair question but where is the focus? T…

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Matthew 1:16-25 The Mystery and Evidence for Messiah's Arrival. 49:28

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The genealogy of Jesus, presented in Matthew 1:16-25, establishes His legal claim to the throne of David. The supernatural conception of Jesus by the Holy Spirit is a fundamental doctrine of Christianity, emphasizing His sinless humanity and divine nature. This doctrine is …

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Luke 16:19-31 Sept 28-25 Guarding Wealth, Forsaking Grace 10:01

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Send us a text In today’s Gospel, Jesus shares a profoundly interesting parable. I would like to examine it further and in detail. In the parable, Jesus introduces the rich man, we do not know his name, but he wears purple, the color of royalty and feasts, not just on special holidays but every day. We then learn about Lazarus, a poor man. Unlike t…

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Luke 16: 1-13 Sept 21-25 The Narrow Path of Loyalty: When Hearts Are Divided 8:17

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Send us a text Today's Gospel highlights the importance of consistency and faithfulness, even in the small things. I find Jesus’ teaching about serving two masters particularly thought-provoking. Often, it feels like we have more than two masters competing for our time and energy. From my perspective, many people drift away from their faith not out…

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Matthew 1:1-16 The Genealogy of Jesus Christ: It's All About Jesus. 56:57

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The genealogy of Jesus Christ, presented in Matthew 1:1-16, establishes Jesus as the promised Messiah and King of Israel. This genealogy traces Jesus’ lineage back to Abraham and David, fulfilling Old Testament prophecies. It also highlights the grace of God, as Jesus’ ance…

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The Bema Seat and Believer's Rewards 46:58

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The Bema Seat of Christ is a future judgment for believers, not about salvation but about rewarding faithful service. Works will be evaluated for their eternal value, with rewards given based on faithfulness and the quality of service. Five crowns are mentioned as rewards f…

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John 3: 13-17 Sept 14-25 Are you ready to participate in creation? 7:24

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Send us a text Today’s Gospel from John focusses on a conversation Jesus had with Nicodemus. To give you some important background information, Nicodemus was a Pharisee. Scripture scholars remind us that despite the negative portrayal of Pharisees in the Gospels not all the Pharisees were against Jesus. Yes, there was a small group that were agains…

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Luke 14:25-33 Sep 7-25 Jesus shocks us with incredible teachings! 8:33

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Send us a text For someone not familiar with Jesus’ style of teaching this Gospel would be shocking. I suspect the Gospel would be shocking for the first listeners. It completely contradicts the 5th commandment about honouring one’s parents Exodus 20:12. While there are no actual scriptural references from Jesus there are Gospel references of Jesus…

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Revelation 22 Heaven And Final Exhortations 43:02

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Luke 14: 1, 7-14 Aug 31-25 Do I really have to be humble to know God? 8:15

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Send us a text Today’s Gospel begins with Jesus accepting an invitation to dine with one of the leading Pharisees. During this gathering, Jesus shares a teaching inspired by His observations that challenges the conventional understanding of social status. He emphasizes a reversal of worldly status through humility. But what exactly did Jesus mean b…

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Luke 13: 22-30 Aug 24-25 Will we be "saved"? 11:22

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Send us a text Luke’s Gospel is very typical of Jesus style. We have read events where Jesus takes an accepted view, custom, or perception and reinterprets into something different. Often when Jesus is asked a question, he invites the questioner into a deeper meaning. What exactly did Jesus mean when he talks about the narrow gate. Let’s look furth…

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Revelation 21:9-27 The New Jerusalem 43:47

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart. The final two chapters of Revelation describe eternity and the New Jerusalem, a city of immense size and beauty, symbolizing God’s glory and the value He places on His people. The city, adorned with precious materials, will be the dwelling place of God and the redeemed, wit…

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Revelation 21:1-8 All Things Made New 54:45

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Luke 12:49-53 Aug 17-25 Do we fully understand the passion of Jesus? 5:54

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Send us a text This passage might seem surprising—even unsettling. Here, we don’t see the serene, peaceful Jesus, but instead a passionate figure intensely devoted to his mission and faith. I believe Jesus is speaking metaphorically when he refers to fire—using it to symbolize the fervor and intensity he expects in our faith lives. He was not passi…

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Luke 12:32-48 Aug 10-25 Are we TOO busy? 10:06

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Send us a text In this Gospel we learn that the Father is pleased to give you the kingdom, this is incredible! The kingdom is given, not earned but a free gift. This is not the only such reference, in Luke 13:29 we read that "people will come from all over the world—from east and west, north and south—to take their places in the Kingdom of God,". J…

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Revelation 20:6-15 What Happens At The End? 53:02

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Luke 12-13-21 Aug 3-25 Be careful, procrastination is a threat to our spirituality! 9:56

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Send us a text We have someone asking Jesus to help settle his case, to judge the merits of an inheritance dispute. Jesus does not take the bait and makes it clear to the individual that he is not here to judge. This is a valuable reminder to people who so often see God as one who judges and punishes. Jesus is very clear about his role. Jesus tells…

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Luke 13:1-13 July 27, 25 How to pray like Jesus taught us. 9:18

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Send us a text The disciples of Jesus note that John the Baptist has taught his disciples to pray. They had likely seen Jesus pray or go off to a lonely place to pray so they are curious. Jesus gives them direction and insight into prayer. These “instructions” have become a prayer, the well know Lord’s Prayer or the Our Father. Prayer is very impor…

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Luke 10:38-42 July 20, 2025 The story of Martha and Mary, who is your favorite? 8:05

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Send us a text Mary, Martha and their brother Lazarus were friends of Jesus and they are frequently mentioned in the Gospels. We don’t have any record of anythng that Lazarus said but he is one of the three people in the Gospels that Jesus raised from the dead. The biblical record identifies these three explicit resurrection miracles performed by J…

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Luke 10:25-37 July 13-25 Are you ready for eternal life? 9:20

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Send us a text In today’s Gospel Jesus is asked by a lawyer what must he do to inherit eternal life. The question is direct and honest, unlike many of the questions of the Pharisees and Sadducees that are often multi layered and are intended to trap Jesus rather learn from him. Jesus answers directly by asking him about the Law. This was understand…

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Revelation 19:11-21 The Second Coming of Jesus 1:05:04

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Luke 10:1-12 July 6-25 Living our faith with all its rewards and traps! 9:08

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Send us a text This story is unusual because we have two distinct parts. The first part focusses on the advice Jesus gives his disciples and the second part focusses upon their return. When the 72 return,, they are rejoicing after what appears to be a most successful mission.. They are excited about what they saw. It is noteworthy that the first th…

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Mt 16:13-19 June 29 -25 Who is Jesus for you? 9:32

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Send us a text Who is Jesus for you? Jesus asked this question to his disciples. We all know by now that when Jesus asks a question, he already knows the answer and a teaching follows. Today’s reading is no exception. Jesus asks his disciples “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” Jesus gets a variety of answers, most people think he is a prop…

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Revelation 19:1-10 Hallelujah: The Scene In Heaven 52:02

6M ago52:02

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Lk 9-11b-17Jun 22-25 What happened during the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and two fish? 11:37

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Send us a text Today, our podcast focusses on one of the multiplication of loaves miracles. Luke begins describing the story with Jesus healing those who needed to be cured. It appears it’s the end of the day, so the disciples want to send the people into the villages to get something to eat and possibly seek lodging. Rather than sending the people…

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Revelation 18 Babylon Has Fallen 53:48

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.

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Jn 16:12-15 Jun 15-25 What level of spirituality are you on? 8:25

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Send us a text The opening section of this Gospel brings to mind 1 Corinthians 13:11, where Paul uses the metaphor of childhood to describe spiritual immaturity: “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put away childish things.” Spiritual immaturity refers to a stage in whic…

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Revelation 17:1-6 Mystery Babylon 50:02

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Sunday Morning at Calvary Chapel Faith Fellowship with Pastor Jim Sweigart.