Witness Wednesday: Good Person Test, False Assurance, Real Gospel

Summary

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Wretched Radio – Witness Wednesday: Good Person Test, False Assurance, Real Gospel

Host: Todd Friel
Location: Georgia Tech Campus
Date: May 20, 2026
Episode Theme:
This “Witness Wednesday” edition of Wretched Radio with Todd Friel features live, on-campus witnessing encounters at Georgia Tech. Todd engages students from a variety of religious and philosophical backgrounds, challenging their views on salvation, morality, and the true biblical gospel. The heart of the episode centers on clarifying the difference between cultural Christianity, false assurance based on “being a good person,” and the actual requirements of repentance and faith according to the Bible.

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Main Themes and Purpose

• Distinguishing cultural/religious affiliation from true faith
• Addressing “good person” theology and false assurance
• Explaining biblical repentance and the exclusivity of the gospel
• Testing if students truly understand the gospel and the seriousness of their sin

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Key Discussion Points and Witness Encounters

1. The “Bible Belter” – Cultural Christianity vs. True Conversion

[00:52–08:21]

• Student: Young Christian Male, raised Southern Baptist
• Todd explores:
  • Does growing up Christian mean you are one?
  • The difference between “accepting Jesus” and true biblical conversion

Key Insights & Quotes:

• Todd (on ‘accepting Jesus’):
  "The word accept is really risky ... you don’t accept, you surrender. And the same thing is true in conversion. It’s not about accepting Jesus as if he’s up there waiting for somebody to vote for him ... The biblical word ... is repent. You don’t accept Jesus, you need to surrender to Jesus." [07:01]

• Student confesses motivation:
  “Mostly because my Christian family. But as I get older, I realized that it was important for me, myself ... to go to heaven, and because I don’t want to be tortured forever in hell.” [03:38]

• Todd clarifies:
  “It’s not about being a good person … you must repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ.” [07:01]

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2. Chris – The Physics Student: Religious Pluralism & The Gospel’s Exclusivity

[09:08–25:51]

• Student: Chris, not affiliated, appreciates all religions, but finds none “complete.”

Key Points:

• Chris wears symbols from several traditions but doesn’t commit to any.
• He argues all religions are incomplete and perhaps equally valid.

Dialogue Highlights:

• Todd challenges relativism:
  “Christianity teaches that every other religion is wrong. Let’s start there.” [10:57]

• Chris:
  “I don’t think anyone is right in particular ... I think they’re all incomplete, really.” [09:43]

• After walking through the Good Person Test (lying, lust, blasphemy, etc.), Todd shares that all stand guilty before a holy God and need the specific forgiveness Christ offers:
  Todd [19:46]: “So that’s the God that you have to face on judgment day ... He judges you. You’d be guilty. Imagine the wrath of that God. Horrifying thought.”

• Todd explains gospel exclusivity using an analogy:
  “The difference [with Christianity] is you can’t earn your way; you’re not good. But Jesus says, if you have a childlike heart and admit and come to him—repentance and faith alone—then you’ll be saved.” [23:00–24:20]

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3. The Muslim Perspective

[29:29–31:38]

• Student: Male, originally from Pakistan, identifies as Muslim

Summary Points:

• Todd asks: How do you get to heaven in Islam?
• Student: “Just basically to believe in God and confess your... belief for him.”
• Todd presses: “But who’s the right God? ... You don’t know until, like, until you’re dead.”
• Todd commends his honesty: “Wish more Christians would talk like that.” [31:38]

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4. Catholics, Christians, and “Being Good”

[31:58–45:19]

• Group of Students: Self-identifying as Christian and Catholic

Central Conversations:

• Todd examines what each believes about salvation—what does it mean to be a Christian or Catholic? Is it about being good?
• Students suggest: “Just do kind deeds. ... Be the best person you can be physically.” [33:44, 33:55]
• Todd introduces the Good Person Test (lying, stealing, lust) and exposes their inability to claim moral goodness.

Notable Exchanges:

• Todd: “So I agree [everyone's a liar]. But everybody who gets pulled before the judge, who’s guilty. ... Just because everybody else breaks the law doesn’t mean they’re innocent.” [36:04]

• On sin’s seriousness:

  • “Morally, I'm a good person.” — Christian Catholic Student [37:23]
  • “No, you're not a good person. You’re a liar, you’re a thief, and you’re an adulterer. ... It makes you immoral.” — Todd [37:25]

• On accountability:

  • “Let’s say you died and God opened up the books on your life ... Would you be found innocent or guilty?” — Todd [37:29]
  • “Innocent. Because ... everybody in America. So it doesn’t matter, does it?” — Student [37:49]
  • “That’s irrelevant.” — Todd [37:59]

• On hell:

  • “I don’t believe in hell.” — Student [38:36]
  • “It doesn’t matter what you believe. ... The judge pounds the gavel and says, ‘You’re guilty. Off to jail with you.’” — Todd [38:59]

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5. How to Respond: Repentance and Faith, not Works or Religion

[44:02–45:19]

• Todd delivers the summary gospel plea:
  “This right here. This is God right there in human form. Died for you because you deserve God’s wrath. Jesus took the wrath for you so that you can go to heaven. But you’ve got to repent. Which means, say you’re sorry, turn from your sins, put your trust in Jesus ... what you’ve earned for yourself is hell. He earned heaven for you.” [44:02]

• On false assurance:
  “So all the talk about being good or being a leader, whatever, it’s all irrelevant. You’ve got to humble yourself like a little child and say you’re sorry and put your trust in Him as if your life depended on it. Because it does.” [44:45]

• Direct questions:
  “Here’s the question. Have you repented and put your trust in Jesus completely?” [45:04]

  • Student 1: “No.” [45:04]
  • Student 2: “Yeah.” [45:06]
  • Student 3: “I just did right now.” [45:18]

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6. Encounter with the Spiritual Seeker / Postmodern Perspective

[45:32–54:49]

• Student: Spiritual, but not religious

Key Topics:

• Todd explores what it means to be “spiritual” and challenges relativism (“truth is whatever you want it to be”).

• Dumpster Analogy:
  “But the question still remains, what is that thing? ... So doesn’t that also apply to beliefs?” — Todd [47:15]

• Postmodernism Exposed:

  • “All truth is valid truth. ... Neither one of us is wrong. ... you’re a postmodern.” — Todd [48:41–49:12]

• Todd challenges: “If Jesus is the true God, then I’d be wrong about Buddha, wouldn’t I?” [49:33]

• Good Person Test (again):

  • Student admits errors (lying, lust, stealing); recognizes he’d be found guilty by God’s standards.
  • “If there’s no tolerance, I would be guilty, absolutely.” — Student [53:33]
  • “So you’d be guilty. ... I think pretty reasonably, we can conclude 100% where you’re going.” — Todd [53:38]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On “accepting Jesus”:
  “You don’t accept, you surrender. ... The word accept makes it sound like I’m in charge, and Jesus isn’t, like I can vote for him or not ... Repent and believe the gospel.” — Todd Friel [07:01]

• On exclusivity:
  “Christianity teaches that every other religion is wrong. ... It’s either true or false.” — Todd Friel [10:57–11:18]

• On hell and judgment:
  “It doesn’t matter what you believe. ... The judge pounds the gavel and says, ‘You’re guilty. Off to jail with you.’” — Todd Friel [38:59]

• On repentance:
  “Repentance and faith. ... You’ve got to humble yourself like a little child and say you’re sorry and put your trust in him as if your life depended on it.” — Todd Friel [44:45]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Cultural Christianity vs. True Faith: [00:52–08:21]
• Religious Pluralism & Gospel Exclusivity (Chris): [09:08–25:51]
• Muslim perspective: [29:29–31:38]
• Catholic vs. Christian—What Must I Do to Be Saved?: [31:58–45:19]
• Gospel Presentation & Plea for Repentance: [44:02–45:19]
• Postmodern Spirituality / Good Person Test: [45:32–54:49]

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Tone and Takeaways

Todd Friel uses direct, sometimes playful, but always urgent and serious language as he interviews and challenges students. He repeatedly steers conversations away from vague spirituality or mere cultural identity, always returning to the central claims of Christianity—that all are guilty before God, and only repentance and faith in Christ grant true assurance. The episode offers both a model for street evangelism and a critique of the shallow, works-based or merely cultural faith so common among young adults.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This Witness Wednesday episode is a masterclass in conversational evangelism:

• You’ll hear students’ honest, sometimes confused, beliefs about salvation, morality, and religion.
• Todd Friel persistently insists that “being a good person” is false assurance; true assurance comes only through biblical repentance and faith in Christ.
• The “Good Person Test” powerfully exposes the heart of the human problem—sin—and points to the exclusive sufficiency of Jesus.
• Listeners are challenged to examine their own standing with God: Have you truly repented and trusted Christ, or are you only “spiritual” or “good”?

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Memorable Sign-off:
“You’ve got to humble yourself like a little child and say you’re sorry and put your trust in him as if your life depended on it. Because it does.” — Todd Friel [44:45]

Transcript

[Todd Friel]

Wretched radio begins in 3, 2, 1.

We're men. We're men in types. We roam around the forest looking for light. If there's one common thread, it might be that men perceive church as too feminine.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

You know, we have to be aggressive in the world when it's appropriate.

[Todd Friel]

We are warriors. One, two, three warriors. We don't need to scale Mount Everest

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

and then gun down a wild boar in order to be a man. You are a real man when you commit to study God's word, when you

[Todd Friel]

commit to be obedient to what God says.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

And you commit to being conformed and

[Todd Friel]

transformed day by day into the image

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

of Jesus Christ by loving your wife and leading your family.

[Todd Friel]

It's time for Wretched Radio with Todd Friel.

This is Wretched Radio. It is Witness Wednesday. We are at Georgia Tech. Excuse me, young man, could I. Yes, sir. Yikes. How old do I look to you? Do I deserve a sir s? You must be from the South.

[Young Christian Male]

Yes, I am.

[Todd Friel]

All right, then. It's a formality. You don't really mean it. You just say it, right? You got your knuckles beat as a kid if you didn't. All right, I want to talk to you on the radio for a second. All right. You can keep walking if you want to. Are you from the Bible Belt here?

[Young Christian Male]

I am.

[Todd Friel]

Are you a Bible Belter?

[Young Christian Male]

I am.

[Todd Friel]

What is that? What is. What is a Bible Belter person?

[Young Christian Male]

I think it's like someone who grew up in a real Christian atmosphere, for the most part.

[Todd Friel]

A real Christian versus a phony one.

[Young Christian Male]

No, like in Christian family, basically.

[Todd Friel]

So you grew up in a Christian family. All right, so I'm gonna make an accusation. That's only reason you're a Christian. You grew up in a Christian family. If you grew up in Bangladesh, you'd be a Hindu.

[Young Christian Male]

Not necessarily. I think it depends a lot on your family. And then as you get older, more so your beliefs, yourself.

[Todd Friel]

So what do you believe, young man?

[Young Christian Male]

I believe in Jesus, and I'm a Christian and stuff. And I think that a lot of times religion played a more important role, and I think relationship should. So you have relationship with God.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, how do I get a relationship with God? Because I gotta tell you, I think I got one. I'm a spiritual kind of guy. I got a relationship with God.

[Young Christian Male]

I think that you have to truly accept Jesus into your heart. Like, there's a difference between saying the prayer and just, I'm done. That's it. I think you have to live to what the Bible says.

[Todd Friel]

So I have to Be a good person.

[Young Christian Male]

Not necessarily. It's not based on deeds. It's like based on truly accepting it.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, you've used the word accept twice. What does that mean specifically? This is a test. You're going to be graded on this. This is pass or fail. You're either going to get your money's worth on this course or not. What does it mean to accept Jesus?

[Young Christian Male]

It means, like, bring him into your heart to say that you died for me.

[Todd Friel]

Bring him into my heart? I have no idea what that means.

[Young Christian Male]

It means, like, to say that I'm going to give. You gave yourself up for me, so I'm going to give myself up to you. I'm going to do your work in the world. And his work could be like telling other people about Christ.

[Todd Friel]

Or it could be, why would I want to tell other people about him?

[Young Christian Male]

So they can be saved and go to heaven.

[Todd Friel]

So you're inferring that people who aren't saved are going to hell?

[Chris]

I am.

[Todd Friel]

That was pretty strange. Straightforward. Alrighty, let's get back to this accept Jesus business. Because I want him to come into my heart. Why do I want him there?

[Young Christian Male]

Because I think that the heart is where your soul is at. I think that the flesh is just for now and the soul lasts forever.

[Todd Friel]

What denomination did you grow up in?

[Young Christian Male]

I'm a Baptist.

[Todd Friel]

Southern Baptist.

[Young Christian Male]

Right.

[Todd Friel]

I could tell. Okay, so when you accepted Jesus, how old were you?

[Young Christian Male]

I was 11.

[Todd Friel]

And why did you do that?

[Young Christian Male]

Mostly because my Christian family. But as I get older, I realized that it was important for me, myself.

[Todd Friel]

Why?

[Young Christian Male]

To go to heaven. And because I don't want to be tortured forever in hell.

[Todd Friel]

So that's it? This is a get out of hell free card?

[Young Christian Male]

No, not really. I think that it's the right thing to do because I think that the morals in Christianity play along with what I believe. And I think that because Jesus died for me, I think that I should love him back with everything I have.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so I'm going to summarize what you just told me. I'm a stranger. I think that I like the idea of God, although frankly, I don't know why I'd be going to hell. I'm a pretty good person, right?

[Chris]

Right.

[Todd Friel]

So I accept him and he comes into my heart. I have to tell you, I'm a little confused.

[Young Christian Male]

Well, I think accepting him isn't just the prayer like people say.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, wait a second. Furthermore. Okay, here's what I'm thinking about. Let's say that a police officer is on the campus here and he nabs me and says, you are a guilty criminal and you're going to jail. And do I need to accept him?

[Young Christian Male]

I think that he says he has the authority, being a police officer, that you have to do what he says.

[Todd Friel]

Whether I accept him or not.

[Young Christian Male]

Right. I think just because he's a police officer and he's respected within this community as being.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, let's try this analogy. Might be better. I think the last one flopped. Let me try this one. We would both agree that President Barack Obama is the president, Right. Is he the president because I've accepted him or the president because he is?

[Young Christian Male]

Because you've accepted him. Because government legitimacy.

[Todd Friel]

But he is whether I accept him or not?

[Young Christian Male]

Yes. But I think that if people don't accept him, his presidency role means nothing.

[Todd Friel]

Right? Well, it still means something because he still is. He has the authority, he has the power and I don't need to accept him. He is in authority over me, period. And he doesn't need my approval or my acceptance. He just is the president.

[Christian Friend]

Right.

[Young Christian Male]

But I think as an individual, that's possible. But if I think the whole United

[Todd Friel]

States says we're talking individual, okay, then

[Young Christian Male]

yeah, I agree with you.

[Todd Friel]

Now I'm trying to use that paradigm. Wouldn't the same thing be true of God? Why does he need me to accept him? It sort of puts me in the driver's seat like I'm the hotshot.

[Young Christian Male]

Because he gave us free will for his glory. He said. Basically it said, instead of making you love me, I'm gonna give you the choice.

[Todd Friel]

I understand, but I'm talking about this word accept. Alright, here's another analogy. Let's try this one. Let's give this a go somewhere. What state are you from? Georgia. Okay, Georgia. You know of a big fancy country club around here? Oh, Augusta. That's where they play the bastards, right?

[Young Christian Male]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, let's say that I walk up to Masters Country Club and I pull up with my golf clubs and I knock on the gate. I tell them to open the doors because I've accepted them. Are they going to let me in?

[Young Christian Male]

I don't think so.

[Todd Friel]

I think because I don't accept the club, the club has to accept me. Why do I have to accept God? Doesn't God have to accept me?

[Young Christian Male]

God already accepted you. He accepts everybody.

[Todd Friel]

So everybody's going to heaven.

[Young Christian Male]

No, you have to accept him back. There's a difference between a one way relationship and a two way relationship.

[Todd Friel]

But I still don't understand why he needs my acceptance. Dude, I'm Drilling you on this word. Alright. And I'm guessing you and I agree. I happen to be a Christian.

[Chris]

Okay.

[Todd Friel]

The word accept is really risky. Imagine this. I come up behind you instead of with a microphone in front of you, I come up behind you with a gun to your head and I say, give me your backpack or you're gonna die. Would you accept me?

[Young Christian Male]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

No. You'd obey me, you'd submit, you'd surrender to my will. You don't accept, you surrender. And the same thing is true in conversion. It's not about accepting Jesus as if he's up there waiting for somebody to vote for him as opposed to Buddha or Allah. The biblical word, and you haven't used it yet, and I'd encourage you to maybe start using this word is repent. You don't accept Jesus, you need to surrender to Jesus. You need to say you're sorry, you need to turn from your sins, forsake your sins, and put your trust in Jesus Christ. We've kind of used that word accept to kind of COVID all of that, but I was kind of playing the dope. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, you know what it means, But I'm kind of messed up on the whole thing and it makes it sound like I'm in charge. And Jesus isn't like I can vote for him or not. It's up to me to accept him or not. And the issue is his acceptance of us. And his clear command in scripture is, you must repent and put your trust in Jesus Christ. Mark 1:15. He came to proclaim the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel. So the language maybe we should be using is repent. Alright, so you've repented and you put your trust in Jesus when you were 11 years old, before puberty, you understood all that you'd have to surrender?

[Young Christian Male]

No.

[Todd Friel]

No. But you do now.

[Young Christian Male]

I do now.

[Todd Friel]

You're living for the Lord.

[Young Christian Male]

I am.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so I got all your friends together. They would say the number one affection in your life is Jesus for sure.

[Young Christian Male]

Yes, sir.

[Todd Friel]

All right. You reading your Bible every day? I am rock on. Nice chatting with you, young man.

[Chris]

Thank you.

[Todd Friel]

See you. Goodbye. Hey, hold on. Slow down. I'm out of shape. Where are you walking right now? To the physics building. Can I talk to you while you're walking? On the radio? I guess.

[Christian Friend]

I'm sure.

[Chris]

What is this for?

[Todd Friel]

What are you studying? Physics?

[Chris]

Yes, sir.

[Todd Friel]

All right, let me ask you, what are you wearing around your neck?

[Chris]

This is a cartouche of my name in hieroglyphics.

[Todd Friel]

It's a what?

[Chris]

A cartouche. It's my name in hieroglyphics.

[Todd Friel]

Really? What is your name in hieroglyphics?

[Chris]

Well, I mean, I don't know how to pronounce it. I don't know the pronunciation.

[Todd Friel]

But why hieroglyphics?

[Chris]

I just like the Egyptian culture.

[Todd Friel]

Is it a religious thing?

[Chris]

Not a religious thing, just a cultural appreciation.

[Todd Friel]

All right. And what's the. And there's a tooth of some sort.

[Chris]

Oh, yeah. So this is a mask? It kind of wore off when I visited South Africa. I just bought this.

[Todd Friel]

And what does it represent?

[Chris]

It's like a. It's a warrior mask.

[Todd Friel]

Ah, you just like it.

[Chris]

I just like the way it looks.

[Todd Friel]

It's jewelry.

[Chris]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

All right. And. Gotta stop for a minute. What is this? Your shirt has got. What exactly is going on? There's like crosses on it. Yeah, different types of crosses. I don't know what they are, but they're different kinds. Kind of scary faces. What's that about?

[Chris]

Yeah, when I saw it in the store, it just kind of grabbed my attention. I just bought it.

[Todd Friel]

It spoke to you?

[Chris]

Yeah, I guess so.

[Todd Friel]

Alright. Are you a Christian?

[Chris]

I don't really belong to a particular religious denomination. I'm kind of. I can appreciate aspects of all religions. I guess you could say that.

[Todd Friel]

Which one do you think is right?

[Chris]

I don't think anyone is right in particular.

[Todd Friel]

So they're all right?

[Christian Friend]

Not.

[Chris]

They're all right. I think they're all incomplete, really.

[Todd Friel]

Like Christianity. How is it incomplete?

[Chris]

I mean. I mean, you can't claim, you know, you know everything about God that you can prove.

[Todd Friel]

I agree with that.

[Chris]

So, I mean, they might have certain aspects that are helpful as far as, you know, living your life in a good way. But.

[Todd Friel]

But how is Christianity incomplete?

[Chris]

How is it incomplete? I mean, just as. As any other religion would be incomplete. They don't know everything about God.

[Todd Friel]

Well, if we did, we would be God. But we can know everything that he's revealed to us, correct?

[Chris]

Maybe, yeah. It depends on your perception of God.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so Christianity, which is kind of what you're modeling on your shirt right there, what does it teach about God? Teach about God?

[Chris]

I'm probably not the right person to ask. I don't study the Bible too much in depth.

[Todd Friel]

But you just told me it's not complete.

[Chris]

I still don't think it's complete. I haven't studied everything.

[Todd Friel]

But you haven't read it.

[Chris]

I'm coming from A more of an overall point of view. I'm saying that no religion can sit there and.

[Todd Friel]

But how do you know? You haven't studied it. If I were your physics professor, I'd be getting my red pen out right now. All right, let's give this a go. All right. This is what Christianity teaches. Christianity teaches that every other religion. Religion is wrong. Let's start there.

[Chris]

Okay, if they teach that, then I don't agree that they should be doing that.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, but what if it's correct?

[Chris]

If Christianity is correct.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah. And everything else is wrong.

[Chris]

I don't know what I could do about that. If they were correct, I don't know what I could do about that.

[Todd Friel]

Well, that's the claim of Christianity. It's right. Everything else is wrong.

[Chris]

I mean, hey, that's one person's opinion that doesn't bother me.

[Todd Friel]

But it's either true or false.

[Young Christian Male]

It's either true or false.

[Chris]

You talking about whether Christianity is correct or incorrect? It's hard to speak about that.

[Todd Friel]

When you talk about.

[Chris]

You're speaking about opinion, opinions.

[Todd Friel]

We're at Georgia Tech. I am here with Chris, whose name comes from Christ. That's right, dude. And we're going to be talking more about him in just a moment on Wretched radio.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

No Retreat. That's the name of Fortis Institute's Spring match campaign. And we chose that name for a reason the church has been quietly backing up for years. A doctrine gets a little uncomfortable, a truth sounds a little too exclusive. So we set it aside, and before long, the gospel sounds more like a apology than an announcement. Fortas Institute is determined to push the other direction to encourage churches to hold fast to hard truth and to proclaim the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, rightly and loudly. That's why we're inviting you to join us on the no Retreat Spring Match campaign. Right now, through the end of May, every dollar you give is matched dollar for dollar, and your gift will help launch two new podcasts, publish Todd Frill's new book, Go Serve youe King through HarperCollins, and fund gospel proclamation on the gospel doesn't move backward, and neither should we. You can find out more right [e-mail]

[Todd Friel]

donate would you like the university experience? Without the, you know, university experience, the Master's University invites you to visit their campus, or you can visit them online at masters. Edu Wretched. To discover a Christian college that is biblical, that offers all of the academic excellence you desire. Sports, athletics, arts, communication, all of the activities of, you know, a Secular university without the, you know, secular parts. Please consider the Master's university online or of course, on campus learning undergrad, master's and doctoral programs. It's Master's University, the university with the university experience, without the university experience. Masters. Edu Wretched.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

Be honest. When's the last time you shared the gospel with a stranger? Not posted something online, not liked a Christian meme, but actually opened your mouth and told someone about Jesus? If your stomach tightened just a little bit, you're not alone. Most Christians would rather do almost anything than evangelize. It's terrifying. What if they get mad? What if I say something wrong? What if they ask me a question I can't answer? Our resource Terrified Too. It exists because Jesus gave us the Great Commission, not the Great Suggestion, and he actually gave us the tools to obey it. And this resource will walk you through how to share the gospel with strangers, even family members, without needing Pepto Bismol to get through it. You'll still be nervous. That's normal. But you'll also be equipped. And equipped beats terrify every single time. Terrified2 it is streaming right now for free on Fortis. Download the app right now on your smartphone, on your smart TV, or head to fortisplus.org.

[Todd Friel]

Titles of Christ in the Bible, Jesus is given many titles that teach us about who he is and what he has done. Jesus is called the Apostle of our confession. An apostle is one who is sent. Jesus is the one sent from the Father and empowered by the Holy Spirit to deliver the gospel in which all Christians confess their belief. This is Wretched Radio with Todd Friel.

This is Wretched Radio. We're at Georgia Tech. It's a beautiful day walking with a physics student. Have you thought of one thing you can teach me about physics that I could use today?

[Chris]

That you could use today?

[Todd Friel]

Something hooking up my tv, making my cable work better, my stereo, my house, air conditioning. Anything that could help me.

[Chris]

I could tell you one thing. Let's say if the universe were to end now, if the sun were to just go out, we wouldn't know for about eight minutes. So you'd have eight minutes of bliss before you just completely die.

[Todd Friel]

Not if I knew about it. Okay. Jesus said that because he is God himself and the only way that you can go to heaven is through him because of what he's done. That's what Christianity teaches. All the other systems teach. You got to work your way there. Jesus says, nope, you got to be forgiven in order to go to heaven.

[Chris]

Yeah, I even remember when I Was. I was raised Christian when I was younger, and I remember sitting in a Sunday school and we brought that issue up, you know, that, you know, what about the other religions? You know, if they, you know, have slightly different beliefs or they don't think that they have to, you know, get to heaven through Jesus Christ directly, you know, what happens to them? You know, she kind of just stated directly that, well, yeah, they go to hell. That kind of, like, angered me.

[Todd Friel]

Here's. You know what? I understand that, but I want to reason with you for a minute. Okay? Here's why everybody. This one's going to kind of. This is going to be a little bold for you. This is why everybody should go to hell. Ready? Everybody in the entire planet should go to hell. Here's why. Because they're lawbreakers. They've broken the rules of the king. For instance, the Ten Commandments. For instance, lying, stealing, lusting, blasphemy. Everybody has broken those laws. They are criminals for breaking the laws. And the just judge must give them what they have earned for themselves, and that is eternal punishment. That is why everybody should go to hell. More specifically, would you agree that everybody on the entire planet has broken the Ten Commandments?

[Chris]

It'd probably be safe to say that everybody.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so let me hone it in a little bit, Chris. Specifically, have you broken the Ten Commandments? Let's see.

[Chris]

I'm probably. Which one of them?

[Todd Friel]

Let's start with lying. Yeah. Monta, thy father and mother before.

[Chris]

That's one.

[Todd Friel]

And you dishonored your parents by lying. Yeah, yeah. And you're a guy, so I presume you've lusted.

[Chris]

Yes, yes.

[Todd Friel]

Which Jesus said is adultery of the heart. Because God sees beyond our actions and he looks at what we do and what we think. Everything that goes on inside of our brain, he has access to. So lusting, you're nabbed. Okay, blasphemy. That's when you use God's name in a bad way. Have you committed that crime?

[Chris]

Probably done that before. Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so forget the world for a minute. You die, you stand before. Or the perfect judge who doesn't overlook crimes. Would you be innocent or guilty according to those rules?

[Chris]

I guess I'd be guilty.

[Todd Friel]

That's right, you would. So what should a just judge do with a guilty criminal on a cosmic scale? Should he take you to heaven or should he send you to hell?

[Chris]

I mean, I guess based on that, I'd have to serve my time, Right? If I'm guilty, then I'd have to do my time.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah, that's Right. And that's bad news, isn't it?

[Chris]

Yeah, that is pretty bad news. I hope that it. They claim that it's eternal punishment, huh?

[Todd Friel]

That's right. And the reason is, it's because it's a crime against an eternally perfect and an infinitely perfect God. How big is a. How fast is a light second?

[Chris]

A light second?

[Todd Friel]

Dude, I know this.

[Chris]

I mean, these are trivial facts, not things that I. That I use every day.

[Todd Friel]

When you're studying physics, don't you need this?

[Chris]

I mean, these are things that you can look up in a reference table. These aren't things that require you to think in depth about solving problems.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, but isn't it kind of nice to have some of these basics right at your fingertips? Yeah, maybe. All right. It's big. It's very. If it's a hundred thousand light years wide. Do you know many galaxies there are similar to the Milky Way galaxy?

[Chris]

Too many to count.

[Todd Friel]

A billion. Yeah, it's just. It's unbelievable. And there's a billion stars in our galaxy, so there's a billion billion stars. It's just huge. And the Bible says that God measures the universe with the span of his hand. Because he's huge, because he's infinite. He's above it all. So to him this is a dream drop in the bucket. It helps us to understand how huge he is. So that's the God that you have to face on judgment day. He's huge. No lawyer, no judge, you God, he's seen your thought life. He's seen everything you've done, everything you failed to do. Like thank him for your food, thank him for parents, thank him for the education, thank him for the air that you're taking from him because it's his heir. So you're stealing his air and not saying thank you. He judges you. You'd be guilty. Imagine the wrath of that God. Horrifying thought.

[Chris]

Yeah, I guess that would be pretty scary.

[Todd Friel]

Alright, now you've got crosses on your T shirt here. That is a major symbol in Christianity and it is humongous. Good news for a guy like you. What is the meaning of the cross?

[Chris]

I mean, from history's point of view, I know that Jesus was crucified on the cross. That's where he was convicted and killed.

[Todd Friel]

That's right.

[Chris]

That represents, and it's like it's his sacrifice for all the people who follow him.

[Todd Friel]

His sacrifice for our sins. It was a sin offering for you. All the crimes you've committed put on Jesus. He took your punishment so that his goodness because he kept all the laws you've broken. His goodness can be credited to your account. So when you die, God could see you as good, in fact, even as righteous because of what Jesus did. Because your badness was put on him, his goodness given to you. You. That's what the cross is about. That's the good news. And that's why he's the only way. Because if you die a Buddhist or you die a Hindu and you don't have that forgiveness from Jesus, God must give you what you deserve. And that is his punishment. He's got to do it. He's got to be just. That's why he sacrificed the son. He can't just turn a blind eye to justice and go, well, boys will be boys, let's just let him go. No, he's got to be just. But he's loving, so he sent his son. For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have everlasting life, justice satisfied, kindness demonstrated to you. And therefore Jesus can make the claim, I am the way, the truth, the life. Nobody can get to the Father because nobody's perfect, but through me and what I've done, that's the good news of the gospel, and that's why it's exclusive.

[Chris]

I always wondered, so what makes Christianity more correct than, you know, any other religion as far as Islam, you know, why can't they praise Allah and still be just as fine? Maybe their beliefs, you know, in heaven and hell are different.

[Todd Friel]

So this will be a really bad analogy. But, but work with me a little bit on this. You don't have kids, do you?

[Chris]

No, I don't have kids.

[Todd Friel]

Imagine that you had some children, okay? And you, when they were little, you changed their diapers, you cleaned them up, you gave them bottles, you fed them, you burped them, you did everything kind. They grew up, you paid for all their food and all their clothes and you showed them kindness and you took them to the park and you gave them an education and they gave all their affection to the next door neighbor. How would you feel?

[Chris]

I could say that would hurt.

[Todd Friel]

It would hurt. And here's what makes it doubly bad. With God. There is no next door neighbor. They don't actually exist. So they're actually giving their affections to what God calls an idol because they don't exist. So they're actually giving their affection, their dedication and their devotion to something that isn't even real. And it makes him mad because he deserves it. Because after all, if he made you, it's fair, Chris, that he should have rights to you. When he's given you everything, he owns you, it's fair that he should get praise from you, right? So the other world systems, and here's the difference. This is. Okay, we're standing on some squares here. Imagine in this square in the concrete, okay? Let's put Islam in there and let's put Buddhism and Hinduism and Mormonism and Jehovah's Witness and Roman Catholicism and any and Oprah Winfrey and New Ageism and anything else you want in there. And here's what they all teach. They say, try to be a good guy, Chris. And overall, if you're a good guy, when you die, you'll either be reincarnated to a better place, you'll be with 70 virgins. You'll become connected to the great big nothing. This. It'll be better if you're good overall. Jesus is in that box over there and he says, you can't do anything good. All you've done is bad. You've broken all of my laws. In fact, you've hated me your entire life. And I'm going to give you exactly what you deserve, and that is my wrath and punishment. But I'm good and I'm rich in mercy, and I will save you because I died on a cross taking the punishment that you deserve. So that if you. You'll respond to what I've done for you in repentance, which means to agree with God, you're not good. To say, I'm sorry, God, I have sinned against you, and against you only have I sinned. And you turn from your sins doesn't mean you become perfect. But you don't like the lusting and the lying and the cheating anymore. And you put your trust in him and him alone, forsaking any other idols or concepts of God. He says, I will forgive you completely and I will take you to heaven. Heaven. Not based on what you've done, like these religious systems say, but based on what I've done. Because, you see, if these systems are true, then you can praise yourself. You know what I did to get reincarnated. You know what I did to go to heaven? I did these good things. Jesus says, no, you've done bad, but I've done good. And therefore you can praise me because I've done everything for you. So if Jesus is right, all of these systems must be right because they contradict each other completely. This is work, righteous, that is, by grace alone, through faith Alone and Jesus alone. This one's got the bad news front loaded here, okay? It says, you're not good, you're in big trouble, you're desperately wicked, and you need a savior. And if you'll admit that, that's the tough pill to swallow. I haven't been good, I've been bad. And Jesus says, if you have a childlike heart and admit and come to him, not pleading your own case and making excuses, I'll save you and I'll adopt you and I will make you my child and I will take you to heaven so that I can be praised for all of eternity for saving a sinner like Chris. So tough news up front, but really great news. If you're willing to admit that you're a sinner. These you better start working really, really hard to make up for all the lying, lusting and cheating you've done. Okay? So you should figure out which system is true. That's the big thing. Because it doesn't even matter what I say, Chris, because I could be. I could be on crack. I mean, I could, you know, I could be really a dope and I don't have any idea what I'm talking about. You should figure out what's true because Jesus made the claim. I am the truth. So either he is or he isn't. Fair enough. Hey, you're a gentleman. I'm glad we bumped into each other. All right, Chris, it was good talking to you. Hey, see you, man.

[Chris]

All right, take care.

[Todd Friel]

Study on. See you witness Wednesday on wretched radio.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

And it's now time for your daily Fortis newsbreak production of Fortis Institute. Congress is finally turning up the heat on Planned Parenthood. Tennessee Republican Tim Burchett and Arizona's Andy Biggs have written 11 Planned Parenthood affiliates demanding to know whether the nation's largest abortion provider has been spending your tax dollars on abortion and so called gender affirming care for minors. Federal law forbids both. The group pulled in roughly $800 in a single year and lawmakers say it stonewalled them for nearly a year. Their own report shows cross sex hormones handed out with little or no medical evaluation. The funding was cut for one year under the one big beautiful bill. But it switches right back this fourth of July. Nothing says Independence Day like refunding the abortion industry in Colorado. The legislature just sent Governor Jared Paulus a bill forcing every university in the state, public and private, to hand out abortion pills on campus. Campus One pro life obgyn points out that student health centers were built for primary care, not for a procedure that often needs surgical follow up. One analysis found nearly 11% of women suffer sepsis, hemorrhaging or other serious harm from these drugs. Colorado's calling it access. In Canada, 84 year old Miriam Lancaster woke up with severe back pain and was rushed to a Vancouver hospital. The first thing she remembers a doctor saying wasn't a diagnosis. It was, I would like to offer you maid. That's Canada's assistant suicide program. The real problem? A tiny crack in her spine. Three weeks of bed rest later, she was riding horses on a volcano in Guatemala. The world appearance rolls on in California, where the state sees the teenage daughter of Alexandra Lyashikino. I hope I said that right. Who's an Orthodox Christian and Ukrainian immigrant for refusing to consent to her daughter's transition. Now the state is wanting to put the girl up for adoption and the family has fled to florid Florida to protect their younger son and California's term that they're using here not just for this parent, but for all parents who won't sterilize their child. They're culturally unfit. Meanwhile, the University of Portland, a Catholic school, has spent six years employing a lesbian pastor named Brandy Daniels to teach queer theology. She tells students the Bible's passages on homosexuality shouldn't be taken literally. And she has an upcoming book titled how not to Be a Christian. At least the title's honest, isn't it? And in Homeland Security, new secretary Margwain Mullen, a former Oklahoma senator, is cleaning house. He's fired officials tied to former Secretary Kristi Noem, paused over a billion dollars in detention spending and pulled ice back from the big splashy raids the White House felt were costing public support. And that wraps up today's Fortis newsbreak. I'm Jimmy Hicks. If you want more, you can download Fortis or sign up to become Fortis Insider for exclusive daily content, both of which you can [e-mail] and don't forget, you can subscribe to Fortis News all at your favorite podcast app in order to get updates daily. And until tomorrow, go serve your king.

[Todd Friel]

Books of the Bible. The apostle Peter wrote to the elect exiles who were facing persecution for the sake of Christ. Peter exhorted them to trust God and to continue living godly lives. He reminds them of their hope in Christ and their high calling. When you want to learn joyful obedience, no matter what your circumstances, look to 1 Peter. This is wretched Radio with Todd Friel.

You guys were over there not too long ago Am I correct? Talking to a girl named. It began with an ri. What was her name? Priya. Priya? Yeah. Was that the first time you'd met her? No. You met her before.

[Chris]

I wasn't over there with him.

[Todd Friel]

But you were a different guy. I was with another friend. You were with an. Oh, okay. I'm sorry. So you're a different guy. You can walk at the same time. Okay. I might be wrong about this, so you correct me if I'm wrong. Looks like you were kind of interested in Priya. No, we're just friends. I mean, dude, I've known her for like two, three years now. Yeah. So you're not interested in girlfriend, boyfriend type of thing?

[Chris]

I mean.

[Todd Friel]

No, not. Not with her, relationship wise? No, no, just friends. Okay. Cuz I kind of got that impression from you two guys, the way you're talking, like maybe there was a chance. No, not right now. Cool. Dude, where are you from? From Originally from Pakistan. Pakistan. Tell me, it seems to the. Are there two big religions in Pakistan?

[Chris]

Mostly Islam.

[Todd Friel]

Then there's Hinduism there, but it's mostly Islam. Mostly. So you must be a Muslim. Yeah. Okay. I don't know why, but you don't look like a Muslim to me. You're dressing kind of hip and cool. You're a hip Muslim?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Yeah.

[Chris]

You can be hip and be more.

[Todd Friel]

All right. I just asked this, this Christian guy back here that I was talking to how to get. How to get to heaven. All right, you're a Muslim quickly. How do I get to heaven? I want to go real bad. I'm scared to die. Go. Just basically to believe in God and confess your like, belief for him. So let's say that I believe that. That big thing there, whatever that statue is, that's my God. I believe in him. Am I good to go? No. Has to be the right, like, has to be the right God. Yeah, but who's the right God?

[Chris]

You don't know until, like, until you're dead.

[Todd Friel]

So you don't know that Allah is the true God? Well, I do, but I can't really,

[Chris]

you know, in one second convince anyone else of that.

[Todd Friel]

All right. So is he the true God? For me too? My belief? Yeah. All right, thanks very much, dude. Appreciate it. Wish more Christians would talk like that. There are four young men. Oh, this is. This is gonna be tricky. But we're gonna give it a go anyway. Hey guys, I gotta talk to you on the radio just for a minute. Are you going to class right now?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

You're doing what? We're a Jerking crew. I don't know what that means.

[Christian Friend]

We dance. I wouldn't.

[Christian Catholic Student]

All the time.

[Todd Friel]

You guys are like. Are you. Are you, like, on drugs? What? Are you on crack?

[Christian Catholic Student]

What?

[Todd Friel]

You're just all, like. You're all just wound up like you've had too much caffeine.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I'm a man who worries about my life, and I don't infest myself with those drugs.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, but why do you all have such a good smile on you? Honestly, why? You're all like. All right, wait a second. What's this on your front? Who's that on your front there?

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

It's a picture of Jesus.

[Todd Friel]

Oh, and it says, what? Rebel since birth. What does that mean? You don't know?

[Christian Catholic Student]

He don't know.

[Young Christian Male]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Oh, no, I don't know. You're just wearing the shirt.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I just like the colors.

[Christian Friend]

You got to be different.

[Todd Friel]

You know what I'm saying?

[Christian Friend]

Jesus was different on a different status.

[Todd Friel]

You hear me?

[Young Christian Male]

Wait a second.

[Todd Friel]

Are you a. Are you a Christian? Yeah. Okay, so is that, as a Christian, Is that what it mean to be a Christian? You're just supposed to be different?

[Christian Friend]

No. As you supposed to stand out? You supposed to, you know, be different. You supposed to, you know, lead. Lead people. To lead people in the. The Word.

[Todd Friel]

Okay. Lead. Lead me in the Word Go.

[Christian Friend]

You know what I'm saying?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Well, I don't know.

[Todd Friel]

I wanna. I wanna become a Christian. Help me.

[Christian Friend]

All right, so to become a Christian, it's like. I mean, there's no really any distinctive way you get. You could just. You just got to learn your difference and you got to be. You got to really show your. Show your strengths. You got to be a leader. You know what I'm saying? You got to step out, you know? You got to show somebody.

[Todd Friel]

I have no idea what you're talking about. I want to be. I want to become a Christian right now. Okay, You've got the Jesus shirt. I want to. You're a Catholic.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I feel that women are just as important as guys are in this world,

[Todd Friel]

except I want to become a Christian. Help me.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I think you should be a Catholic.

[Todd Friel]

Honestly, what's the difference?

[Christian Catholic Student]

There is no difference. Catholics believe in Mary more than Christians do.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Mary?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

How do I get to heaven? Catholic.

[Christian Catholic Student]

You just do kind deeds. All I can say is be the best person. Best person you can be.

[Todd Friel]

You have to pay money.

[Christian Friend]

You have to give the money in church.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Don't listen to that. That was a bad. You gotta be the best person you can be physically.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, wait a second. Wait. What Are you?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I am Christian.

[Todd Friel]

All right? And what. And you're a Christian, right? And you are a Christian and you're a Catholic.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Catholic.

[Todd Friel]

Are you really Catholic? Okay, so make.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I was raised by women, and that's how I was taught.

[Christian Friend]

I was raised by women, too. But we're not Catholic.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, wait a second. Okay, we're all Christians over here, and you're a Catholic. Okay, convert us to Catholicism. You got 30 seconds. Go.

[Christian Catholic Student]

You guys should like women just as much as I do.

[Todd Friel]

I'm guessing that's not a problem, but I don't know that that's the issue here, okay?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Like, women are just important. Just as big of a role as guys are, except we all have different jobs, but the jobs they do are just as important as ours.

[Todd Friel]

I want to. Okay. I want to ask each of you a question, all right? Would you consider yourself to be a good person?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I would.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah. What about you? Rebels and Birth? Are you a good person?

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

Yes, I am.

[Todd Friel]

All right, Christian, are you a good person? Yeah. Now, what are you listening to in your ears?

[Christian Friend]

I'm listening to Unstoppable.

[Todd Friel]

I don't know what is. Is that bad music?

[Christian Friend]

No, it's. It's good.

[Todd Friel]

Dirty music?

[Young Christian Male]

No.

[Todd Friel]

Sexual? Any. Any swearing in there? Yeah.

[Christian Friend]

Yeah. I wouldn't consider. I don't consider cursing like a bad thing.

[Todd Friel]

All right?

[Christian Friend]

It's just.

[Todd Friel]

It's just such a good thing.

[Christian Friend]

It's the public view of cussing, just like it's the public view on gays. Like, that's. That's. That's. You just find it acceptable?

[Todd Friel]

All right? Are you. Are you. Are you a good person?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I honestly think I'm a good person.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah, you do. Are you a good person, young man? I think I'm a good person. All right. Okay, you guys, I want to. Hey, especially you. Come here. I want to test you. I'm gonna give you a test now. You ready? Are you all going to school here?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah. All right. I'm give you a test. Sorry. This. But you don't have to turn it in. You're not going to be graded, but it's free. Okay, how many lies do you think you've told in your life time?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Over 5,000.

[Todd Friel]

Over five. A lot. You're not gonna lie this time. Okay, everybody? Have you lied? Huh? Have you told lies? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Yes, yes, yes. Okay, now, if I told lies, what would you call me? What name would I get if I tell lies? I am a human. A human who lies. That's right. So would it be fair for Me to say you're a liar, You're a liar, you're a liar, you're a liar. You're all liars. Is that right?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Everybody? Because everybody lies.

[Todd Friel]

So I agree.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Because nobody could say that.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, but everybody who gets pulled before the judge, who's guilty. Just because everybody else breaks the law doesn't mean they're innocent. Okay. How many things have you stolen in your lifetime? Doesn't have to be from a store. It can be from your parents at a house, from a friend.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I'd say five things.

[Todd Friel]

All right. Yeah, probably five. Five things.

[Christian Friend]

I mean, I take gum.

[Todd Friel]

Doesn't matter the size of the object. You just take. Took it.

[Christian Friend]

I mean, a couple of things. I don't know, like.

[Todd Friel]

All right, but you only have to steal one thing and that would make you a.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Stealing.

[Todd Friel]

A thief. That's right. Okay, hold on. This is going to get a little trickier. And don't get all goofy on me. Jesus said if you look at a woman with lust. You know what I'm talking about. You've committed adultery in your heart. All right.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I think everybody's doing that in their lifetime. I do it a lot. I did today, for example.

[Todd Friel]

Alrighty. And Young man. Yeah?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I just did it.

[Todd Friel]

And you just did. Is that the rumor?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I didn't just do.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, fine. And have you ever done that?

[Christian Friend]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah. And you've done that?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

You. And you have done. Okay, here's a summary. Here's the summary. You just told me that you're good people. But I just asked you a few questions and you confessed to me that you're liars, you're thieves and you're adulterers at heart. That does not sound like a good person to me. Here's the next question.

[Christian Friend]

Morally, I'm a good person.

[Todd Friel]

No, you're not a good person. You're a liar, you're a thief, and you're an adult. Right?

[Young Christian Male]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

It makes you immoral. Right. You only have to do something once and you're a criminal. Okay? So now here's the big question. Let's say you died. I know you're young, and that's a really far off thought, but let's say you died and God opened up the books on your life. He even sees your thought life. Would you be found innocent or guilty? Innocent or guilty, young man?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Innocent. Because.

[Todd Friel]

Because you just confessed to me you broke the laws.

[Christian Catholic Student]

No, because everybody in America. So it doesn't matter, does it?

[Todd Friel]

Yeah, I agree. But that's irrelevant.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Nobody's gonna be in heaven so that's a different thought.

[Todd Friel]

But that could be. But what about you? You'd be guilty.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I'd be guilty. But everybody innocent. I'd probably be guilty.

[Todd Friel]

Not probably. Definitely. Yeah, I'd be guilty. Right. Young man. Unless I repent.

[Christian Friend]

Young man, I'd be guilty.

[Todd Friel]

You'd be guilty.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I'll probably be guilty. But if everybody be guilty, I'd be guilty too.

[Todd Friel]

All right. And young man, you be innocent or guilty.

[Christian Catholic Student]

All right.

[Todd Friel]

All right. No. Fifth pleading. It doesn't make any difference because God knows everything anyway. So it doesn't matter what you say in your defense.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Glitch. That's what we do.

[Todd Friel]

I don't know what that means. But you're young. If you're guilty before God, should he send you to heaven or should he send you to hell? I don't believe in hell. It doesn't matter what you believe. It's like a criminal says, I don't believe in jail. It's irrelevant. Irrelevant. The judge pounds the gavel and says, you're guilty. Off to jail with you. All right. Would you go to heaven or hell?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I think, you know, like, if I'm really, honestly, truly sorry for what I did.

[Todd Friel]

That's not the question. Should you go to heaven or hell?

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

I don't want to answer that question.

[Todd Friel]

Fair enough.

[Christian Friend]

Because I feel like we haven't had food all of the time to, you know, really finish our lives.

[Todd Friel]

Oh, you guys are killing me here. You're killing me with this. All right, You're. You're a Christian, right? You guys are all Christian.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I probably should go to hell.

[Todd Friel]

You definitely should go.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I mean, if you just want to say it like that. I really don't want to go.

[Todd Friel]

I don't either. I don't want you to go either.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I guess I'll see everybody else down there with me, so.

[Todd Friel]

But it's not going to be a kegger. You're not just going to be having a party.

[Christian Catholic Student]

I know, but we going to be punished together, so that makes it better.

[Todd Friel]

It doesn't help at all. You ever go to the dentist? You got nice teeth. You've been to the dentist? Yeah. You ever had your teeth drilled on?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Does it make you feel better that somebody else is getting their teeth drilled on too? No. And hell's not going to become better just because other people are suffering. Alright, you guys, this is so important. One of you guys, especially you with Jesus on your chest, should say, wait a second, you're right, skinny guy. I should go to hell. But Jesus, who is God came to this earth to die in a cross cross to take the punishment that I deserve so that if I repent and put my trust in Jesus,

[Christian Catholic Student]

God has mercy on everybody.

[Todd Friel]

That's right.

[Christian Catholic Student]

And like you said, he came here and died for our sins.

[Todd Friel]

10 seconds. Wait 10 seconds. We'll continue on Witness Wednesday on Wretched Radio.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

No Retreat. That's the name of Fortis Institute's Spring Match campaign, and here's why. The culture we live in right now has made it pretty clear it has very little interest in the true gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We're being told to keep our faith quiet in public or to soften what we believe so it goes down easier. Fortis Institute has no intention of doing either one. We exist to advance the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, and this spring, we're doing it as loudly and as boldly as we know how. Your gift will help launch two new podcasts. It puts Todd Frill's new book, Go Serve youe King, into print through HarperCollins, and it puts the gospel back onto college campuses, where it's least welcome and most needed. Our goal is $250,000, and we're asking if you would prayerfully consider helping us get there. You can find out more right [e-mail] Don't. Hey, thanks for listening to Wretched Radio today. You know, a lot of ministries talk to individuals, and that's fine. But somewhere along the way, the local church gets forgotten. And we believe that to be a big problem because the local church is the institution that Jesus promised to build. It's not an afterthought. It's the plan. And that's why we exist at Fortis Institute. We exist to strengthen local churches, not replace them. Everything we create, our podcasts, our videos, all of our resources and teaching, it's all designed to be useful to pastors and small group leaders and church members who want to grow.

[Chris]

Grow.

[Fortis Institute Announcer]

We're not trying to be your church. As a matter of fact, we're always pointing to your local church. And if that mission is something that resonates with you, would you consider joining us as an ongoing monthly gospel partner? Your support helps us create content that equips the saints and strengthens the body of Christ. And we know you have questions about what that would look like in your life. And we've got [e-mail] Help us be a part of something that serves the local church. Wretched Amazing Grace. Amazing Gospel Remember when the craziest cultural ideas stayed in dystopian novels. Yeah, those days are over. We're living in the brave new world now, and it showed up faster than anyone expected it to. Social media didn't just change how we communicate, it changed how everyone thinks. And if you're not ready as a Christian to defend what you believe about gender and sexuality and race and entertainment and a dozen other hot button issues, you're gonna get steamrolled. Worldview 2 picks up where the first one left off. Todd Friel and Dr. Nathan Buznitz tackled 22 more issues through a biblical lens. Critical race theory, modesty, persecution, environmentalism, secular entertainment and more. The stuff you're actually seeing in the headlines and hearing at your dinner table. Because the Christian worldview is under assault and, I don't know, isn't gonna cut it anymore. Worldview 2 is available in streaming right now for for free on Fortis Plus. You can download the app on your smartphone, on your smart TV or simply visit fortisplus.org.

[Todd Friel]

Know your Church Fathers Jerome was a 4th century Christian theologian and one of the original four Doctors of the church. His most important work was the Latin Vulgate, a translation of the Scriptures from Hebrew and Greek into Latin, the vernacular of his day. The Vulgate remained the preeminent translation of the Bible for a millennium. This is Wretched Radio with Todd Friel.

Jesus, where's your shirt? This right here. This is God right there in human form. Died for you because you deserve God's wrath. Jesus took the wrath for you so that you can go to heaven. But you've got to repent. Which means say you're sorry, turn from your sins, put your trust in Jesus, and then you'll go to heaven based on what he did and not what you did. Because what you've earned for yourself is hell. He earned heaven for you. Everybody else, but you've got to repent and put your trust in Him. And so all the talk about being good or being a leader, whatever, it's all irrelevant. You've got to humble yourself like a little child and say you're sorry and put your trust in him as if your life depended on it. Because it does. And then you'll go to heaven based on what he's done. It's the good news of the God Gospel. Right now you're condemned sinners. The good news is he's your savior and he wants to rescue you. But you've got to come clean, say you're sorry and put your trust in Jesus and then you'll go to heaven. Based on what he did, not on what you did. That's the good news of the Gospel. Repentance and faith. Here's the question. Have you repented and put your trust in Jesus completely?

[Chris]

No.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

All right.

[Todd Friel]

Have you?

[Christian Friend]

Yeah.

[Todd Friel]

You're sure? Why didn't you tell me that before?

[Christian Catholic Student]

Because he didn't.

[Chris]

I.

[Todd Friel]

All right, you've got to become like a little child. You got to be born again, which means you die to yourself, and he'll make you alive. Have you repented and put your trust in Jesus?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I just did right now.

[Todd Friel]

All right. I hope you'll think about it. Gentlemen, thank you very much. You have a good day. The kids these days. There's a fellow walking by me. Let's see if we can chat with him. Excuse me, young man, while you're walking, could I talk to you on the radio? You up for that today?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I don't know.

[Todd Friel]

I'll walk with you. I won't even keep you late for. Make you late for anything.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

All right, what do you need?

[Todd Friel]

Cool. What do you study being here?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Mechanical engineering.

[Todd Friel]

And so when you grow up, you want to be a automotive engineer? Design cars, right? Very cool, dude. I want to. I want to ask you. That's. That's what you want to do for a living. I want to ask you about your spiritual beliefs. What religion? Spirituality, if anything, are you.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I don't classify under anything specifically. I believe myself to be spiritual, but not necessarily specific to a religion.

[Todd Friel]

Okay. What does it mean to be spiritual?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Basically, you have an understanding that there's something else going on other than just. Other than just you and the world and this.

[Todd Friel]

What do you think it is?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I can't really put it into words. It's just something that. It's just how I organize my beliefs.

[Todd Friel]

Okay. What are your beliefs? You're slowing down on me now. You're flat on stopped. Okay, so what do you believe? Do you believe that there's a God?

[Christian Catholic Student]

I do.

[Todd Friel]

Who do you think it is?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Well, I believe you can put it in any description you want, any word you want. What's there is there. And you can describe it as God. You can describe it as whatever. I was raised within a Christian family. I believe most of that. A lot of what makes a religion religion organized. I don't believe in or don't believe that there's that nest.

[Todd Friel]

That.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

That is a necessity of the religion. But that's okay.

[Todd Friel]

I'm gonna. I'm gonna try out your. Your thinking. We're looking at a big dumpster. Right?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

All right.

[Todd Friel]

A Big BFI dumpster. Now, let's say that I called it turkey. Turkey. All right.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Okay.

[Todd Friel]

I put. I assigned a different word to it.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Sure.

[Todd Friel]

All right. But the question still remains, what is that thing? It's a thing that holds garbage. So I maybe use different words to describe it. But that is either a dumpster or it's not a dumpster, to use nomenclature. Okay, so doesn't that also apply to beliefs?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Sure, absolutely.

[Todd Friel]

So really what matters really is what's true, not what I assign or ascribe to it.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Okay.

[Todd Friel]

Is that fair?

[Chris]

I agree.

[Todd Friel]

So what do you think truth is?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I don't think you get. Describe that in a sense.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so who do you. You don't think that God is the God of the Bible? Am I getting that correct?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

No, I agree with that, but I also trying to put it into words.

[Todd Friel]

So do you believe that Jesus is God?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Yes. Yes, I do.

[Todd Friel]

So he's got then, right? Or either is or he isn't correct.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Most of my beliefs stem from Christianity because that's how I was raised. What I add on to that is I don't believe that. I don't necessarily believe that being at church every Sunday makes you any better of a Christian or makes you any better of a person.

[Todd Friel]

I'm guessing you're a postmodern. Would that be fair?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I'm not sure.

[Todd Friel]

I'm not sure a postmodern would be somebody. How old are you?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I'm 20.

[Todd Friel]

Okay. About your age. Who would believe that? Especially when it comes to religion. But really, everything to be consistent. All truth is valid truth. Nobody's right, nobody's wrong. You can be a Christian, I can be a Buddhist. You can think that's a dumpster, I can think it's turkey jerky. Neither one of us is wrong. We're all right. It just works for you. So therefore it's right for you. But my path is right for me. Even though they're completely different, I can agree with that. Yeah. So you're a postmodern is what you are.

[Christian Friend]

Sure.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Okay.

[Todd Friel]

Let me try to challenge you on that. Okay, I'm gonna go back to the dumpster. All right. Now, if I think that that dumpster. You know those little bunny rabbits that you get at Easter time that are soft and squishy and they got the sugar on the outside and they're better when they're stale.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

You know what I'm talking about, right?

[Todd Friel]

If I believe that that is one of those stale Easter bunnies, well, I'd be flat out wrong. Wouldn't I.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Okay, yeah.

[Todd Friel]

Right. Now, as a Buddhist, I believe in Buddha, and you believe in Jesus. If Jesus is the true God, then I'd be wrong about Buddha, wouldn't I?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Sometimes. And I don't understand all the religions, but a lot of times what is thought to be as the divine power is split up into multiple gods or said to be one God or a thing. And I believe that divine power is there. And no matter how you define it, I believe you're talking about the same thing.

[Todd Friel]

I understand that reasoning, but let's see if we're talking about the same thing. Okay. Jesus, as best I understand it, says he is the way, the truth, the life. Nobody comes to the Father but through him. And any other God is an idol. That's pretty straightforward. Buddha would teach that if you try to get rid of all of your desires, all of your longings, and if you die, perhaps if you've been good, you will be reincarnated into something higher and ultimately become a part of the great big nothingness. Jesus says you get judged when you die, and you either go to heaven or hell. Buddha wouldn't believe that, that Jesus died on a cross 2000 years ago for your sins. Now, those are so completely, radically different. I can't put those together and say it's just a different perspective because they're so completely contradictory.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Right. And my answer to that would be, really, what happened 2,000 years ago and what's going to happen after my death? There's no way to say 100%, but I would look at it as, you will be in a certain state of mind. And that's what I see that as a representation of. And I believe all religions either believe you'll be in a positive state or a negative state.

[Todd Friel]

All right, I'm gonna. I'm gonna try to use your religion to go after that hundred percent idea and positive state, negative state concept. Fair enough.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Sure.

[Todd Friel]

So I'm gonna. I'm gonna use your background. All right. If you have died and you were judged, let's see if we can figure out 100%, 80%, 50%, what might happen to you if God judges you for your thought life, for instance, not the stuff you do, but just your thought life. Anger, lusting fantasies, those. Would you be innocent or guilty? Would he find you guilty of being an angry person and a lusting person?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I would hope not. I feel like. Like I usually have positive intentions.

[Todd Friel]

Okay. But even walking around today, if you've seen women that you found attractive, did your brain ever start working in a way that Was lustful.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I can't say I'm perfect.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so he would know that your thought life isn't perfect.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Correct.

[Todd Friel]

So you'd be guilty of being a luster.

[Christian Catholic Student]

Yes.

[Todd Friel]

And Jesus said that that's like adultery of the heart, not being married and being unfaithful. But if you just look at a woman with lust, you've committed adultery in your heart. And the same thing is true about anger. If you've ever flipped somebody off, you've been really torqued at somebody. God sees the intentions of the heart. It's not as bad as the physical act, but he sees you as a murderer at heart. Okay, now that was just the thought. Life. Let's talk about deeds for a minute. Okay. Have you ever told lies?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Of course.

[Todd Friel]

Okay, so you're guilty on that count. Ever stolen anything?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

It's been a while, but I'm sure I have.

[Todd Friel]

Okay. Time doesn't make things go away. So that would make you a.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Make me a sinner.

[Todd Friel]

Specifically, a thief.

[Chris]

Yes.

[Todd Friel]

Who steals things. All right. Did you ever dishonor your parents as a child?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

I'm sure.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah, like the rest of us coveted things that didn't belong to you. All right, and maybe I'll leave your sexual life out of it. But if you've ever been a fornicator, or you. If you've ever slept around, God sees that act. And because I presume you're not married, you could be guilty of those crimes, too. All right? So there you are. The books are open. Pretty simple.

[Chris]

Sorry.

[Todd Friel]

Would you be innocent or guilty?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Dude, if there's no tolerance, I would be guilty, absolutely.

[Todd Friel]

Well, tolerance is a bit of a loaded word. The standard is justice, what's right, what's wrong. So you'd be guilty. I think pretty reasonably, we can conclude 100% where you're going.

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Okay. If that's the fate of all people, then I would be there as well.

[Todd Friel]

Yeah, and that's a terrible thought. I hate that thought. Now, here's the problem with Buddhism. It doesn't solve your problem. Islam doesn't solve your problem. Mormonism doesn't solve your problem. Catholicism doesn't solve your problem. Who solved your problem? So that you don't have to go to hell according to the beliefs of you grew up in. Jesus died on a cross for you, right? Right. For the forgiveness of sins. The punishment you deserve was placed on him so that you could be set free because Jesus has fulfilled the standard of the law and taken the wrath of the Father on your behalf. That's the good news. Of the gospel, right?

[Spiritual/Philosophical Student]

Right.

[Todd Friel]

Now, that's either true or false. And if it's true, unless you've repented and put your trust in him and him alone, own and said all the other gods and systems are idols, you'd be judged and go to hell. That's the best news you could possibly have.

[Chris]

Absolutely.

[Todd Friel]

Fair enough. Something to think about today. All right. Hey, you're a gentleman. Thanks very much. See you, dude. Goodbye. And until next time, go serve your king.