Pentecost 13 (C): You Can Get With This

·29 min·2 clips

Jacob explains why the Bible would end at Deuteronomy if humans could actually choose to obey God.

The episode opens with hosts Aaron Zimmerman and Jacob Smith noting the transition to September and referencing cultural touchpoints like pumpkin spice lattes and Mariah Carey. They introduce the lectionary readings: Deuteronomy 30:15-21, Philemon 1-21, and Luke 14:25-33. They begin with Deuteronomy, where God commands Israel to choose life by obeying commandments or face death through idolatry. The hosts critique the common preaching emphasis on free will, noting that if humans could rationally choose good, the Bible would end here. Jacob connects this to human failure, using personal anecdotes about fitness goals. They argue Deuteronomy sets up receptivity to the gospel by exposing human inability. The discussion shifts to Philemon, where Paul writes from prison to Philemon about his runaway slave Onesimus. Aaron explains the background: Onesimus escaped, met Paul, became a Christian, and Paul sends him back with a letter urging Philemon to receive him as a brother, not a slave. Jacob highlights how the gospel reshapes categories, making master and slave co-heirs in Christ. Aaron notes Paul appeals out of love, not command, and references a possible happy ending with Onesimus becoming a bishop. They then turn to Luke 14, where Jesus says disciples must hate family, carry their cross, and give up possessions. Aaron interprets this as hyperbolic language inviting detachment from worldly identities, since we lose these things anyway. Jacob contrasts this with modern pursuits of self-mastery, arguing Jesus' way looks like death but leads to life. He emphasizes Jesus chose the cross first for us, enabling our response. The hosts use illustrations like building a tower and going to war to show discipleship's cost. They conclude by framing following Jesus as freedom from clinging to life, into deeper attachment through Christ's prior choice.

As heard by us

A loose sermon-prep conversation finds Philemon's grace pressing hard on status, belonging, and control.

Same Old Song reads Paul's letter to Philemon as more than a personal appeal. In Aaron Zimmerman and Jacob Smith's hands, it becomes a test case for what grace does to status, ownership, and unequal standing.

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Why you'd press play

Press play when you want Philemon to meet pumpkin spice season, Labor Day banter, and a gospel word that overturns social rank.

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