CWR Blog
Christianity Without The Religion BLOG hosted by Brad Jersak.
ptm.org
Our Father
Some call the sample prayer Jesus gave us "The Lord's Prayer" and others call it "Our Father." Join us as we study the implications and significance of the meaning behind this short prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
March 9, 2026 - Quote for the Day:
“Bad News Religion offers us a Santa Claus god who will give us what we want if we are good. Instead, authentic Christianity tells us that God gives us what we need because he is good.
With the focus on what we do, paganism tells us that a god or the gods want us to do the best we can, and at the end he (or they) will judge us based upon our performance. Performance-based religion tells us that a Santa Claus god will let us into his heaven if we qualify, if we overcome and if we are good little boys and girls.
By ...
Tender Mercies: Eye On the Sparrow – by Ruth Tucker
Bless the Lord who crowns you with tender mercies (Psalm 103, NKJV).
When I graduated from Horace Mann High School in 1963, I was entirely unaware of an environmental controversy swirling around in scientific and literary circles. Growing up on a farm in northern Wisconsin, I had always taken for granted the annual parade of big trucks grinding their engines into our driveway and edging through the gate into the fields to spray in wide swaths the insecticide DDT. Insects were bad. Chemicals were ...
The New Math of the Gospel of John
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God (John 1:1).
In the first verse of this first chapter of the Gospel of John, we discover three phrases used to describe the totality, complexity and wholeness of the Word of God. The context leads us to conclude the Word is the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the second person of the Triune God.
In the beginning was the Word, and 2) the Word was with God, and 3) the Word was God.
Three phrases describing one of the three divine Persons of the One Triune God. One yet Three.&nb...
CWR Video: What Do You Mean Progressive Revelation?
In this CWR Video, Brad and Ed discuss what is meant by progressive revelation in Scripture.
https://vimeo.com/1158535694
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Reflections Along the Jesus Way
March 7, 2026 - Quote for the Day:
“Jesus came to lift us out of shame and guilt and fear – not to add to our enormous burdens of self-loathing. He didn’t come to start a new religion or slightly modify and upgrade on what was already in place. He didn’t offer a way in which his followers could live more moral lives by virtue of the character they would build if they faithfully obeyed all the steps he advocated. He didn’t tell his followers to prove their worth to him by climbing the highest mountain and fording every stream because the mountains are ...
Forgiving Others Because God Has Forgiven Us
Join Greg as he explains that God's forgiveness is not conditional on our forgiveness of others, as many believe. God's forgiveness goes far beyond the absence of a penalty - God's forgiveness is his presence.
All Things Beautiful #3 – Ken Williams
"Life Finds a Way; Life is the Way”
Ken Williams
In one scene from the movie Jurassic Park, Dr. Ian Malcolm, a mathematician specializing in chaos theory, was surprised to learn scientists were cloning dinosaurs from blood DNA preserved in fossilized mosquitos. He warned that they had opened the door to enormous power with uncertain consequences. He told the cloners that they were naïve if they thought they could control this extinct animal population, extinct for good reasons. They shared that they were reproducing females alone, controlling their reproduction. ...
Who Shall Separate Us?
Just as young children experience separation anxiety, so too do God's children. During those times when all that we can see or feel may lead us to think that God no longer cares about us, according to our keynote passage in Romans 8:31-39 we can always be assured of the love of Christ.
https://www.ptm.org/mp3/FreeDwnld/RCWR376.mp3
No Carry-on Baggage Allowed – by Greg Albrecht
Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low; their idols are born by beasts of burden.The images that are carried about are burdensome, a burden for the weary.They stoop and bow down together; unable to rescue the burden, they themselves go off into captivity."Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth.Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you." —Isaiah ...
Sample One of Our Daily Audio Messages
"Who Shall Separate Us?"
Just as young children experience separation anxiety, so too do God's children. During those times when all that we can see or feel may lead us to think that God no longer cares about us, according to our keynote passage in Romans 8:31-39 we can always be assured of the love of Christ.
https://www.ptm.org/mp3/FreeDwnld/RCWR376.mp3
We hope that our articles and resources bring comfort, hope, encouragement, and healing to our readers. If you’re experiencing that, please subscribe freely, share freely, and, if you’re able, please ...
It’s Turtles All the Way Down
What do turtles have to do with the foundation of our solar system? Join us as we discuss the foundation of all that is, seen or unseen.
Reflections Along the Jesus Way
March 4, 2026 - Quote for the Day:
“In what is certainly one of the great mysteries of God’s love and grace, Jesus, revealing the love and grace of the Father, extended and offered forgiveness instead of retribution and retaliation. Indeed, the mere idea of turning the other cheek appears to most humans to be one of the most ridiculous and illogical teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The knee-jerk response to God’s grace and love is that it is impractical and perhaps even impossible. The immediate response to Jesus’ teaching that we pray ...
“… that nothing worse may happen to you.” – Brad Jersak
Question:
I’m curious how you would interpret John 5:14. When Jesus says to the healed paralytic, “Go and sin no more; that nothing worse may happen to you,” is he implying that his disease was caused by his own sin? Wouldn’t that contradict John 9? Or is there something else going on?
Response:
An excellent question! And yes, you would be right to note that if Jesus’ statements to the paralytic and to the man born blind (and concerning the deaths in the first paragraph of Luke 13) were general statements about how sin relates to illness, they would ...
All Times Friend – Stuart Segall
A Friend Loves At All Times.
I am such a work in progress, often sloooow progress, but my mind was so on this proverb.
“A friend loves at all times” (Proverbs 17:17) is not just a statement; it’s a quiet commitment. It speaks of a love that doesn’t flinch when the weather turns, doesn’t vanish when the laughter fades, doesn’t measure its presence by convenience or gain. This kind of friendship is not seasonal or situational. It’s steady. It’s rooted.
To love “at all times” means through the ordinary and the aching. It means showing up when ...
Healing – Beyond Mere Recovery
Healing in and by Christ is not simply a matter of receiving back something you once had - it's receiving something you never had before.
The Light of Jesus – Greg Albrecht
I am the world’s Light. No one who follows me stumbles around in darkness (John 8:12, The Message)
Immediately following the beatitudes that serve as the introduction to the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus says that we, his followers, are lights that shine in our world. He is the uppercase Light of the world, but he shines and lives the Light of his glory in us, we become his lowercase lights.
You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in this world… (Matthew 5:14, The Message).
How are we his lights in this world?...
How Is Your Heart? – by Ed Dunn
Why should I feel discouraged? Why should the shadows come?
Why should my heart be lonely? And long for heaven and home?
Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He.
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me - Classic Hymn, His Eve is On the Sparrow
What a time we are living through together. What divides we listen to daily on the evening news. Political divides, racial divides, social divides, economic divides and more. Foreign wars and local disasters. In these times, many suffer from a crisis of faith. How can we have a heart full of ...
A Matter of Life or Death
Our freely-given relationship with God is literally a matter of life or death. As we prepare to remember his death and celebrate his resurrection, we turn our minds and hearts to Jesus, who is the author and finisher of our faith.
https://www.ptm.org/mp3/FreeDwnld/RCWR370.mp3
Can Science Prove a Divine Creator? Steve Orr
Matters of the Heart:
Do Science and Scripture Reveal a Relational God?
Yes! While those who enjoy a meaningful relationship with God don’t need proof of his existence, sound scientific evidence is available for those who have eyes to see.
Despite the divide between science and faith, surveys show that a surprising number of scientists (50% - 60%) base their beliefs on scientific observations. Their reasons for belief include: the astronomical improbability of the universe’s fine-tuning; the mathematical order of the universe, which points to a super-in...
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