📖 Micah 2:12–13 | A Call to Return

This week on Rooted in God’s Word, we step into Micah 2:12–13 as the Lord calls His people back.

It’s Ash Wednesday. The beginning of Lent.
And the message is simple — but not shallow:

Return to Me.

What’s the difference between apology and repentance?

An apology addresses the what.
Repentance confronts the why.

You can say “I’m sorry” and never change.
You can cover the warning light and ignore the engine.
But God is not after surface correction — He is after the heart.

“Rend your hearts and not your garments.”

In this episode we explore:

• Why repentance begins with God’s invitation
• The difference between conviction and condemnation
• Why guilt is not God’s goal — restoration is
• How to actually repent (step by step through Psalm 51)
• Why repentance brings freedom, not shame
• How churches sometimes mishandle repentance
• And why returning to God is not damage control — it is relationship

Repentance is not groveling.
It is not punishment.
It is not self-condemnation.

It is coming back to a gracious, merciful Father
who is slow to anger
and abounding in steadfast love.

Healthy Christians are not those who never fail —
they are those who repent quickly and deeply.

As we enter this Lenten season, the question is not:
“Have I apologized?”

The question is:
“Have I returned?”

🎧 Listen now and join us as we walk through what real repentance looks like — and how it leads to restoration and peace.

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🎙️ New Episode – Rooted in God’s Word Podcast

We’ve completed John Chapter 1 — and today we begin in verse 35 as Jesus calls His first disciples.

What does it really mean to be called?

A calling is not the same thing as an interest.
An interest excites you when it’s convenient.
A calling compels you — even when it costs you.

In this episode, we walk through John 1:35–51 and watch what happens when ordinary men hear the simple words: “Follow Me.”

These fishermen weren’t invited to admire Jesus.
They were called to leave security, submit to His authority, grow through correction, join His mission, and embrace the cost.

We explore:
• What true discipleship looked like in first-century Roman-occupied Israel
• Why John highlights Jesus as Lamb of God, Son of God, and King of Israel
• The powerful moment Nathanael confesses Christ
• The difference between being a “Christian” and being a disciple
• What it means to deny yourself and surrender lordship to Jesus

Discipleship is not passive belief.
It is active allegiance.

Jesus doesn’t say, “Get your life together and then follow Me.”
He says, “Come and see.”

The question is not whether we identify as Christians.
The question is whether we have truly surrendered to follow Christ as Lord.

🎧 Listen now and consider:
What has God entrusted to you that you cannot ignore?

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This week’s message is titled “Behold the Lamb of God” as we continue our study through the Gospel of John, focusing on John 1:29–34.

Last week we stood with John the Baptist as religious leaders questioned his authority. He refused the spotlight. He refused to claim titles that were not his. He called himself a voice — a witness — preparing the way.

This week, he does something even greater.

He sees Jesus and declares:

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”

John does not call Him teacher.
He does not call Him miracle worker.
He does not even begin with Messiah.

He says, Lamb.

To a Jewish audience, that word was loaded with meaning. Lamb meant sacrifice. Lamb meant blood. Lamb meant atonement. Every morning and every evening, lambs were sacrificed at the temple. Generations grew up watching the cost of sin laid on the altar.

And now John points to a Person.

Not another animal.
Not another temporary covering.
But the fulfillment of every sacrifice that came before.

In this episode we walk through:

• Why sin is not small, but deadly serious
• Why justice demands payment
• Why Jesus had to be both fully man and fully God
• What it means that He takes away sin, not merely covers it
• The eternal plan of the Father, the willing obedience of the Son, and the revealing work of the Spirit
• Why the cross reveals both the severity of sin and the depth of God’s love

Romans 6:23 tells us the wages of sin is death. That is not symbolic language. Sin separates. Sin corrupts. Sin brings judgment.

But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Lamb was not an afterthought.
The cross was not an accident.
Redemption was the plan from the beginning.

The Father sent the Son.
The Son embraced the cross.
The Spirit bore witness.

This is unified rescue.

If you grasp this, you grasp the Gospel.

“Behold” means look. Fix your eyes. Don’t glance casually at Christ. See Him for who He is. The Lamb who stood in your place. The One who absorbed the sentence you earned. The Savior who stepped into death so you could step into life.

This is not just theology.
This is worship.
This is salvation.
This is the center of our faith.

Listen now to this week’s episode of Rooted in the Word of God and consider again the seriousness of sin and the greatness of our Savior.

🎧 Rooted in the Word of God

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