Podcasts by Connecting the Dots with Dr. Lanker

Can Our Path of Life Ever Be Changed? from 2022-01-19T22:00

Ephesians 2:1-7
We are so bound and determined to make our lives work that our natural tendency is to shut God out and just work harder. But God couldn't  leave us in that state of rebe...

God's Power&Plan at Work Through the Church from 2021-12-28T18:00

Throughout chapter 1 Paul has been building the point that the church is full of:

·      A bunch of unqualified people are brought into God’s family

·      Given a new identity and m...

Ephesians 1:15-17 from 2021-12-18T12:00

Paul prays that the Church will know why God has called - them. They they are so valuable to God's eternal work. And just how powerfully God could work through their simple obedience. It&ap...

God's Work to Make His Church from 2021-12-08T16:00

Ephesians 1:13-14 - The Church accomplishes its purpose simply by trusting the work of the Triune God more than our paradigms.

The God Who is Pleased to Choose from 2021-11-26T21:00

We often think of predestination as a profound assurance that we get to go to heaven when we die. Paul wants us to know that it is so much more. As we better understand God's reasons for ch...

The God of Blessing from 2021-11-17T06:00

God is blessing itself.  He calls us to His Church and in so doing calls us to a goodness that has no boundaries.  Discover how God's blessings are designed to invade every part of our live...

Ephesians 1 - Our Expectations of the Church from 2021-11-07T15:00

If the Church is God's plan then how perfect does it need to be? We enter into the Church with expectations of what it's supposed to and what it's not.

Season 4 - Why The Church? from 2021-11-05T01:00

Ever been frustrated with the Church? Join us as we explore the book of Ephesians to no only understand why, but how the Church could be radically different.

Abram's Covenant With God from 2021-06-15T22:00

In summary, Genesis 15:6 should be seen as the premise on which the covenant is ratified. Because Abram takes God at his word, God credits him with a legacy on the basis of the “rightness” of th...

Hagar&Ishmael - What Does God Do With Thwarted Plans? from 2021-06-05T19:00

Abram and Sarai try to bring YHWH's promised child to fruition through the use of Sarai's servant Hagar. This was completely normal and allowable in the ancient world, but it did not f...

God’s Covenant With Abram from 2021-05-27T11:00

 God reveals himself through a vision to Abram that not only will He provide him an heir through actual childbirth, but that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars. 
God informs Ab...

Abram Settles in Canaan from 2021-05-19T21:00

As soon as Abram makes it to Canaan a famine drives him to Egypt. So Abram tries to manipulate the situation so he stays safe. God saves him from himself and in so doing prepares him to save the...

The Calling of Abram from 2021-05-09T21:00

If you wanted to change the course of history, who would you pick? God chose to make an unbreakable covenant to work with a man who was at the end of his life and had no chance of passing on the...

Genesis 1-11- Who God Shows Himself to Be Thus Far from 2021-04-30T08:00

1: Establishes and maintains order

2: Shares His power and purposes

3: Enters into our sin to bring redemption

4: Protects us even in our rebellion

5: Sets boundaries on ...

Why Do We Regularly Ask God to Come Down and Enter Our Presence? from 2021-04-23T08:00

Going all the way back to the Tower of Babel we made grand plans to do great things. Most of the time it's all centered around making our name great. So God enters in order to save us from ...

How Good Do We Need to Be For God to Use Us? from 2021-04-13T12:00

What are the first words God tells Noah after the flood? This is our purpose to bring God the most glory and us the most joy.

Why Does God Choose to Save Noah? from 2021-04-06T12:00

In an attempt to put an end to the rampant sin, God chooses to destroy everything- except Noah's family and all the animals they can fit in the ark. Why them? What does this tell us about t...

What Does God Do With a Fallen Society? from 2021-03-31T10:00

Why does God allow things to get so out of hand?

And again, the answer must go back to the foundational issues. If humans were designed to be corruptible, sin must be a possibility. If sin...

Why Does God Allow for Cain to Murder His Brother Instead of Preventing It? from 2021-03-23T19:00

Not only does God meet Adam and Eve with grace and redemption after their rebellion, He allows them to live. With the infection of sin growing will it spread? How quickly and will the choices of...

Why is God's Response to Sin so Strong? from 2021-03-18T09:00

By the third chapter in Genesis the whole “good” creation falls apart after mankind’s choice to rebel. Looking into God’s response tells us a lot about Him.

How Does Our Work as Gendered Beings Show God's Character? from 2021-03-13T17:00

God has no gender, but without our genders we can't see God. When God made man and woman He did it to display His glory. Like the same coin has two sides, we are both needed to show His ful...

Why Did God Create Humanity? from 2021-03-08T09:00

What's The Most Important Thing God Created? from 2021-03-04T08:00

We all know the creation story. In fact, we regularly debate what it tells about the creation of the world. But what if the story of creation has more to say about our Creative God than it does ...

Introduction to Season 3 - The Story of God from 2021-02-28T19:00

Does God Have a Beginning? from 2021-02-28T17:00

How Can We Bring God's Kingdom? from 2020-08-05T11:00

God being in control is the best thing that could ever happen in our world. But it is at that moment of realization that we are most prone to mess it all up. That's because our natural inst...

What Is the Message Satan Hates? from 2020-08-02T14:00

Innumerable songs, books and sermons have been written to talk about the glory of the cross of Jesus Christ. Many share the explicit thought that Satan will do anything to cut people off from th...

What Does Scripture Say About the Kingdom? from 2020-07-24T15:00

The message of the Kingdom isn't just something that Jesus decided to make the center point of his preaching. It is the center point of the entire biblical story. That's why he and his...

What is The Gospel? from 2020-07-24T15:00

The answer is pretty simple, if we simply apply what we've learned throughout this series: words matter. So when we simply look into the meaning and usage of the word, euvangelion, the answ...

But what about the Thief on the Cross? from 2020-07-08T11:00

Having explored, defined and reformed the foundations of the Christian faith we have come to some startling conclusions. Their implications are far reaching. So much so that we need to wrestle w...

How insightful is the story of Rich Young Ruler to the Gospel? from 2020-07-08T10:00

This scene which is recorded almost identically in Matthew and Luke is well known, but not well understood? In fact, this was the story that transformed my whole view of Christianity. We'll...

What's the Answer? from 2020-07-07T15:00

Can someone be saved, have eternal life in heaven, enter the Kingdom and not be a disciple? We hopefully understand what each term means from a Scriptural standpoint. So now we can come to the f...

How would we do discipleship today? from 2020-07-07T15:00

It's great that we understand what discipleship in the ancient world  looked like - especially for Jesus' first disciples. But what does that mean for us? Would that impact how the Chu...

What does the Kingdom look like in Action? from 2020-06-28T22:00

What happens when God's people begin to simply do what He tells them to do? A quick run through history shows that our obedience is much like a mustard seed. It starts small, but the long-t...

What is It To Be A Disciple? from 2020-06-27T21:00

If discipleship to Jesus is central to the Christian faith, what does it actually entail. We'll look at Jesus' discipleship of his first followers to gain a deeper understanding of the...

Do we really understand the Kingdom of Heaven? - Part 2 from 2020-06-27T21:00

If you're on the edge, someone offering to show you how to fix the situation is the greatest gift you could ever receive. So it is with the Kingdom of God. But it is only those who stay com...

What Is the History of Discipleship? from 2020-06-27T17:00

Discipleship is not something that Jesus invented. It has a rich history which Jesus intentionally built from in order to make the biggest impact on this world. Until we understand what aspects ...

The Kingdom Of God from 2020-06-23T16:00

When we think of Heaven, it's often a place where life will be all that we  imagine. But Heaven is more than a place, it's the realm of existence that is eternally ruled by God. So God...

Understanding the Kingdom of Heaven - Part 1 from 2020-06-20T12:00

The Kingdom of Heaven is not just an idea, it's a place. And once we grasp that Heaven is ruled by God we will be able to understand the eternal Kingdom of God. 

Eternal Life in Heaven- Slaves&Rulers from 2020-06-17T11:00

Two most disparate thoughts are used to describe God’s people - slave & rulers. Listen as we follow Genesis to Revelation to see why God calls us to both. 

Eternal Life in Heaven- New Heavens and Earth from 2020-06-17T11:00

Eternal life in Heaven is meant to be lived- today and tomorrow. But what would that practically look like? We'll go from Genesis to Revelation to answer that question. 

Where is Heaven? from 2020-06-13T18:00

Where Is God? Where is Heaven? What Is Heaven? All these questions will be answered in this podcast.

When Do We Experience Eternal Life? from 2020-06-13T17:00

Eternal life in heaven happens when we are connected with the eternally present source of life, God. Listen to hear how we experience eternal life now.

When Do We Have Eternal Life? from 2020-06-11T09:00

Growing up many of us were taught that when we die we enter eternal life. But that's not what scripture says eternal life is. Listen to find out how we experience this eternal life and when...

How Do We Live Into Salvation? from 2020-06-03T17:00

The deliverance and healing offered to all of creation through God's grace changes everything. Unfortunately it is often only a grand thought. What would our lives look like if we really li...

Glorification from 2020-06-02T13:00

What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and enjoy Him forever. What exactly does that mean? How do we do that in practical ways?

A New Identity from 2020-05-27T18:00

God has paid a huge price for you and me. Because of that we became His special possession, His cherished children. Just like any adoption, it changes everything. What does it mean to have a new...

What is Sanctification? from 2020-05-27T14:00

God's work of salvation in the present is all about being holy. But how are we going to be holy like God is holy? What does it take and how long will it take to get there? 

When Were We Saved? Justification from 2020-05-27T10:00

How exactly were we saved? When does that happen? What are the results?

How Do We Experience Justification? from 2020-05-27T10:00

How do we experience justification? Do we have to do anything or is that all God's responsibility?

What Are the Implications of Justification? from 2020-05-27T10:00

What difference does it make if we are justified before God? How does God relate to us because of this act of salvation? How should we relate with Him?

What Are the Implications of Salvation? from 2020-05-25T10:00

If God wants to set free and heal all of His creation from the bondage of sin, how does that impact our everyday lives?

Just How"Big"Is Salvation? from 2020-05-20T20:00

In this episode we talk about the comprehensiveness of salvation. Many of us grew up thinking that salvation was only for "me" but it is really much larger. Listen to find out the full...

What is the Biblical Understanding of Salvation? from 2020-05-17T17:00

When we hear the term "salvation" what comes to our mind? Often our view has only been informed by half of the Scriptures. In today's episode we will look at the grand narrative o...

Do You Know The Gospel? from 2020-05-16T16:00

Do you understand the Gospel well enough to build your entire life around it? Most Christians think the gospel is fairly simple but when pressed can rarely explain it. If you can't explain ...

017: Revelation - When Are The Prophesies Of Revelation Fulfilled? from 2020-04-29T22:00

Prophecies given to the early church concerning Jesus's final coming.

018: Revelation - How New Is God Going to Make Things in the End? from 2020-04-29T16:00

When Jesus makes all things new, how new will it be?

016: 2 John, 3 John&Jude - How Well Does Jesus Love? from 2020-04-27T16:00

In this episode we go over 3 books, 2nd John, 3rd John and Jude to see how to really love as Jesus loved.

015: 1&2 Peter - Does Persecution Really Build Our Faith? from 2020-04-23T12:00

Overview of the books of 1&2 Peter - Do hard times really build our faith? Are we really being persecuted? Should we pray for persecution?

014: James - How Should Christians Respond To Wealth? from 2020-04-21T16:00

The book of James guides us all in how to live the Christian life whether we have much or little.

013: Hebrews - How literally Should We Interpret the Bible? from 2020-04-16T10:00

Overview of the book of Hebrews - Is Jesus Better than...

012: Philemon - How Do We Engage the Social Issues Around Us? from 2020-04-13T16:00

How as Christians do we speak to social issues in our world today? Slavery was the issue in Paul's day and the book of Philemon gives us insights into how to respond.

011- Easter Special: Where Is God When We Sin? from 2020-04-11T12:00

Does God really turn from us when we sin?

009 - 2 Timothy: What Does it Look Like to Personally Follow Jesus? from 2020-04-10T14:00

An overview of 2 Timothy.

010 - Titus: How Can We Support Our Church Family from 2020-04-10T14:00

Overview of the book of Titus.

008 - 1 Timothy: What Should the Church Look Like (Timothy) from 2020-04-10T14:00

An overview of the book of 1 Timothy

008 - 1 Timothy: What Should the Church Look Like (Timothy) from 2020-04-10T14:00

An overview of the book of 1 Timothy

005 - What Do We Need to Experience God's Good Life? from 2020-04-03T14:00

This episode is over the book of Ephesians, answering the question of "what we need to experience the life God has for us"?

006 - What Do We Need to Be Prepared For to Experience the Best of the Kingdom? from 2020-04-03T14:00

This episode is a review on the book of Philippians.

007 - Do Our Lives Following Jesus Really Make an Impact? from 2020-04-03T14:00

This episode is an overview of the book of Colossians, written to a small church in the country.

004: How Can We Live Out the Gospel? from 2020-03-30T22:00

Dr. Lanker gives us practical guidance in how to live out the gospel in every day life.

002: What is The Gospel? from 2020-03-30T21:00

The book of Romans gives us chapters 1-8 that discusses what the Gospel is in its entirety. 

003: Who Can Be Saved? from 2020-03-30T21:00

Dr. Lanker explores predestination and free will found in Romans.

001: What Should the Church Look Like? from 2020-03-29T13:00

Romans - Many of us have heard that Rome is the foundation for the church, interestly it is one of the last places the church is established. Find out why and what impact this has on our faith.