Open the Bible UK Daily
Colin Smith
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Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Open the Bible UK Daily episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Open the Bible UK Daily for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Open the Bible UK Daily episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Who Believes That Jesus Is the Son of God?
Open the Bible UK Daily
10/03/24 • 2 min
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Mark 1:1
Someone might read Mark’s words and say, “Well, the confession that Jesus is the Son of God is just one man’s opinion...” Is it?
It’s the unanimous confession of the New Testament
“These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31). Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, and Peter all say the same thing—check it out!
It's the confession of heaven
As Jesus was being baptised, “A voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Mark 1:11). Maybe you think it would be easier to believe if you heard a voice from heaven. Well, there was a voice from heaven!
It's the confession of hell
“Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, ‘You are the Son of God’” (Mark 3:11). People on earth may have had problems figuring out who Jesus was, but they knew who He was in hell.
It's Jesus' own confession
After Jesus was arrested, the High Priest asked Him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus said, “I am...” (Mark 14:61-62). Jesus’ answer could not have been clearer.
It's the confession of those who believe
“When the centurion... saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, ‘Truly this man was the Son of God!’” (Mark 15:39).
If you confess that Jesus is the Son of God, you are agreeing with the unanimous witness of the New Testament, the one thing on which heaven and hell agree, the testimony of Jesus about Himself, and you’re identifying yourself with the faith of every true Christian.
So, what do you say?
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The First Thing That Happens When You Come Near to Jesus
Open the Bible UK Daily
10/06/24 • 2 min
John appeared, baptising in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
Mark 1:4
When you come near to Jesus, He will show you your need, but He won’t leave you in despair. He will show you your need, so that in Him you will find forgiveness. This is the reason He came into the world.
Baptism is a wonderful picture of what happens to you when you come near to Jesus Christ. When you come to Him in faith, you become aware of your own sinfulness, you see that you are a sinner, and Jesus Christ washes you. The Son of God forgives you, and if the Son of God forgives you, who’s going to condemn you? You are forgiven. You are washed. You are clean!
Baptism is a wonderful sealing of this. Baptism is a wonderful way of you saying to God, “I am a sinner who needs to be washed. I need to be forgiven. I see so much that is wrong in my life, and I need you to put it right.” And in baptism Jesus Christ says to you, “I am the Saviour who forgives you. I am the Saviour who washes you.”
Never forget that it is the Son of God who washes you. Forgiveness isn’t just a matter of saying a quick prayer. It’s coming to the realisation that you need to change and realising that that change is only possible through Jesus Christ.
Are you struggling to find forgiveness? Does it seem far away from you? Where are you hoping to find it?
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God Is Able to Keep You from Falling (When You Are Tempted)
Open the Bible UK Daily
09/29/24 • 2 min
Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling...
Jude 24
God is able to give you victory over the power of temptation. Do you believe this?
No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. (1 Cor. 10:13)
What temptation do you think Jesus is not able to deliver you from? This goes to the heart of whether we believe the gospel. Some of us simply do not believe that Christ can break the power of cancelled sin and set the prisoner free.
Think about a boxing title fight. There is always a great deal of “trash talk,” and nobody was better at this than Muhammad Ali, who said about himself, "I float like a butterfly, sting like a bee." Imagine his challenger saying, “He is much bigger and faster than me. He punches harder. And, besides, he’s the champ. I don’t really have a chance.”
This is how some of us talk when it comes to sin. It’s the language of unbelief. You need to make up your mind if you believe in the God who is able to keep you from falling. Many people believe that Jesus can forgive their sins, but they’re not convinced that He can give them victory over temptation.
We sometimes say, “You can talk the talk, but you have to walk the walk.” That’s true, but here is a new spin: “If you want to walk the walk, you have to talk the talk.” Don’t talk defeat before you even get in the ring. Sin shall no longer be your master. The Spirit of God lives in you. God has put you in a position to fight, so use the power He's given you. Fight!
Are you fighting your sin? Or are you trying to walk the walk without talking the talk?
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Why Jesus Is Called “the Christ”
Open the Bible UK Daily
10/01/24 • 3 min
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ...
Mark 1:1
Jesus was a common name among the Jews until the beginning of the second century, but Christ is a title, telling us what this person named Jesus came into the world to do.
Today, we might speak about Dave “the plumber,” or Diane “the teacher.” Plumbing is what Dave does. Teaching is what Diane does. Similarly, Jesus is “the Christ.” This means He is “the Messiah,” or “the Deliverer.” Confronting what is wrong and putting it right is what Jesus does.
The Old Testament tells the story of the great human disaster—that our human sinfulness has fouled up God’s world, and it keeps happening. The idea that we have the ability to restore this world, and become what God calls us to be, has been disproved by thousands of years of human experience. But back in the garden of Eden, God promised that someone would come into the world, destroy the work of our enemy, and put things right (Gen. 3:15). And now, Mark is telling us that He has come, and His name is Jesus. He is “the Christ.”
If you hear someone say "Jesus Christ!" in a fit of anger, you might like to say to them: “Do you know what you just said? You just confessed that Jesus is God’s promised deliverer. Is that what you believe? What is it that you need Him to deliver you from?”
The centre point of Mark’s gospel comes when Jesus asks the disciples: “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter says, “You are the Christ” (Mark 8:29). “You are the promised One who has come to confront what is wrong and to put it right.”
Jesus is “the Christ.” Even His name is full of hope.
What would you say if Jesus were to ask you, “Who do you say that I am?”
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What Is the Gospel?
Open the Bible UK Daily
10/04/24 • 2 min
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Mark 1:1
What is the gospel? Here is the simple answer that Mark gives us: The gospel is about Jesus Christ, in whom we find repentance, forgiveness, and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The first thing to notice is that Jesus is the teacher, but He is also the message. Jesus Christ is the announcer of the good news, but He Himself is the good news that is announced.
This makes Jesus different from every other prophet. A prophet has a message, but he does not fulfil it himself. A prophet always points away from himself to someone else who will fulfil it. Jesus is more than a prophet because He points, not away from Himself, but to Himself.
In our journey through Mark’s gospel, we will learn many things. But more than that, we will get to know a person—Jesus Christ. That’s why the resurrection is central to Christianity: You can learn about a figure of history, but you cannot know him or her directly. But if a person is living, then you can know him, speak to him, love him, and enjoy him.
So, when you read Mark’s gospel, you won’t just be saying, “What a fascinating person Jesus was.” No. You will say, “This Jesus I am reading about is the Son of God who, right now, sits at the right hand of the Father. And I can come to Him!”.
When you think about your own approach to Jesus, does it look more like how you'd approach a historical figure or a living person?
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If You Knew You Were Going to Meet with God
Open the Bible UK Daily
10/05/24 • 2 min
“I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord...’”
Mark 1:2-3
What if you knew you were going to meet with God? It’s true, you know. You are going to meet with God. You will see Him. You will stand before Him, and you will have to give an account of your life to Him.
Some people would say, “I’m going to meet God? Great! I’ve got some questions for Him.” Or, “Great, I could use some help.” Other people might yawn and say, “So what? Who cares?” That’s not what these people did: “All the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to [John] and were being baptised by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins” (1:5).
John said, “You are going to meet with God,” and these people responded by confessing their sins. Why did they do that? Because they knew enough about God to realise that if they were going to meet Him, they had better get ready. So, they came in droves. What about you? Would you have gone out with them?
The gospel is about Jesus Christ and in Him you will find repentance. The first sign of knowing God is that you become much more aware of your own sinfulness. When you come near to God’s Son, you see that you’ve fallen short. You feel that you need to change. Your pride starts falling away and you begin to say, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
Which of these responses is closest to your own? 1. “Lord, have mercy on me.” 2. “Lord, why did this happen to me?” 3. “Lord, help!” or 4. Other.
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How Hometown Unbelief Will Harden Your Heart
Open the Bible UK Daily
11/01/24 • 2 min
“A prophet is not without honour, except in his hometown.”
Mark 6:4
Have you ever wondered, “Why don’t I love God more? Why don’t I have greater joy in Christ? Why is my heart so cold in worship?” There are three ways hardness grows in a person’s heart. First, we see that hometown unbelief can harden our hearts.
When Jesus returned to His hometown, He followed His normal pattern of teaching, and the people were amazed at His wisdom and miracles. But they were also offended, causing Jesus to say, “A prophet is not without honour, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household” (6:4). The people who were most familiar with Jesus chose not to believe in Him.
Perhaps you were raised in a Christian home and were brought to church when you were young. The greatest danger is that you learned about Jesus but do not really believe what you learned. Unbelief is the besetting sin of those who are most familiar with God’s truth.
Imagine one night you can’t sleep, so you decide to go to the school sports field. It’s pitch dark, except for one spotlight that is programmed to keep moving around the field. You get in the spotlight. But the light is moving, so you have to move with it, or you find yourself in darkness.
Jesus said, “Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you” (John 12:35). Unbelief is a choice not to follow the light you have received. Make sure you don’t make that choice. Unbelief hardens your heart.
Has God’s truth become so familiar that you have slipped into unbelief without realising it? How could you begin walking in the light you have received?
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God Is Able to Keep You from Falling (When You Have Failed)
Open the Bible UK Daily
09/28/24 • 2 min
Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling...
Jude 24
This doesn’t mean that when you become a Christian you will never fail. We all fail in many ways. But God is able to keep you from falling.
When Jesus was going to the cross, He said to Peter, “Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:31-32). Peter did fail. He denied the Lord three times. He called down curses upon himself. But the prayers of Jesus were answered. Peter's failure was not final.
If you have fallen into serious sin, you need to know that this is not the end. Imagine two climbers scaling a sheer cliff face. They are roped together. As they are climbing, one of them slips and falls. If he was climbing alone, he would have fallen to his death. But he is roped to his friend, and his friend is in a secure position.
Being a Christian means that you are roped to Jesus Christ. If you have fallen you need to know what kind of Saviour you have. If you fall, He is able to hold you. Your fall will not overwhelm Him. He will not cut the rope. He will not let you go.
Maybe you can picture yourself dangling. Get back on the rock face, and start climbing from where you are. Failure is never final in the Christian life. The Saviour looks down and He says, “Get back on the wall and follow me.” That’s what Peter did after his big failure, and God used him in wonderful ways. God is able to keep you from falling when you have failed.
Are you focused on some failure of yours right now? Will you get back on the rock face today and follow Jesus?
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God is Able to Present You to Himself
Open the Bible UK Daily
09/30/24 • 3 min
Now to him who is able to... present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy...
Jude 24
Try and imagine what this will be like.
First, you will be presented before God’s glorious presence... blameless. The word translated “blameless” is the same word that was used to describe a sacrificial animal in the Old Testament that was acceptable to God. It had to be blameless, without defect or fault.
Can you imagine yourself faultless? Every one of the effects of sin will be healed. Now you are like a burned stick pulled from the fire. Sin has done damage to us all, but when you are presented to God, you will be healed from every scar, every wound, every effect of sin.
Your mind will be faultless. You will know God even as you are known. Confusion, uncertainty, and doubts will be gone forever. You will be faultless in your soul. Fears will be gone. You will love God with all your mind and strength. Your desires will be undivided.
Your body will be faultless—no more pain, disease, or medication. You will live at the height of your redeemed and perfected physical powers. And you will be able to offer yourself fully to God. You will reflect the perfect Lamb of God who loved you and gave Himself for you. You will be in a position to offer your whole self to God, who will embrace and welcome you.
Second, you will be presented by God the Son to God the Father with great joy! Imagine what the joy of God is like. Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before Him (Heb. 12:2). He saw the joy of the last day, and it was so great that He counted it worth the agony of the cross. When He looked at the cross and He looked at the joy, He said, “It’s worth it!” If His suffering was so great, what must this joy be like?
God “will exult over you with loud singing” (Zeph. 3:17). Try to imagine this.
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Why Jesus Was Never Frustrated in the Bible
Open the Bible UK Daily
10/10/24 • 2 min
And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out...
Mark 1:23
Think about it. Here is a man going to worship in the synagogue. But his life is bound by a dark power that lurks within him, and coming to the synagogue hasn’t changed that.
This still happens today: A man goes to church, and his life is in the grip of a dark power that he cannot overcome. He has heard the teaching. He has sung the songs. But his life has never changed, because there’s a compulsion within him that’s too strong for him to overcome.
But when Jesus went to Capernaum something extraordinary happened. He confronted the dark power that was holding this man: “Come out of him” (1:25). Mark tells us that the evil spirit “came out” (1:26). The people were astonished. Nothing like this had ever happened in their synagogue: “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him” (1:27).
Many people who heard Jesus speak never followed Him. The rich young ruler would be an example. But in the Gospels, when Jesus calls someone directly, they always respond. When Jesus rebukes a dark power directly, it moves.
You won't find an occasion in the Gospels where Jesus gives a command or rebukes a demon and then He is frustrated. The disciples faced this frustration, but not Jesus. You never read in the Gospels that Jesus tried to heal someone, but it didn’t work. Why? What Jesus determines gets done. What He decrees gets accomplished. When God says, “Let there be light,” there is light. And Jesus is everything that God is in the flesh.
What's your level of confidence in the authority of Jesus?
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FAQ
How many episodes does Open the Bible UK Daily have?
Open the Bible UK Daily currently has 547 episodes available.
What topics does Open the Bible UK Daily cover?
The podcast is about Christianity, Spirituality, Religion & Spirituality and Podcasts.
What is the most popular episode on Open the Bible UK Daily?
The episode title 'Who Believes That Jesus Is the Son of God?' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Open the Bible UK Daily?
The average episode length on Open the Bible UK Daily is 3 minutes.
How often are episodes of Open the Bible UK Daily released?
Episodes of Open the Bible UK Daily are typically released every day.
When was the first episode of Open the Bible UK Daily?
The first episode of Open the Bible UK Daily was released on Jul 2, 2023.
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