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The Blue Collar Scholar

Will Reitz

This podcast will cover the topics covered by the history lectures, sermons, and Bible/theology studies of Will Reitz.

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Avg 46 min
English

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#385
Yesterday · 1 hr 53 min
New Testament, episode 2 - Context of the New Testament: The Old Testament
In the introductory episode of this series, we discussed the context of the New Testament within the history of recorded history and written language. In this episode we keep building upon our understanding of the context of the New Testament by taking a long look at the Old Testament. The Old Testament is the primary and most important context for the New Testament. By looking at the Old Testament, we see the Jewish character of the New Testament, as Jesus and His Apostles were, in fact, Jewish
#384
Yesterday · 1 hr 47 min
New Testament, episode 1: Introduction
What is the New Testament? It is a deeply Jewish book that serves as a sequel -- of sorts -- to the Old Testament. It is a small library of 27 books. It is a biography (or, rather, 4 biographies) of the greatest Man who ever lived, as well as a sequel (Acts) and 22 books that add to Jesus' legacy. It is a series of documents originally written in Koine Greek, and the beautiful collision of Jewish and Greek (and Roman) culture permeate the New Testament. It is also, at its heart, sacred writing.
#383
Saturday · 30 min
Sermon: How to Love God (1 John 5:1-5)
The First John series enters the final chapter of the epistle. In this passage, we learn how to love God: (1) love believers, (2) obey God's commands, & (3) have faith in Christ.
#382
Saturday · 56 min
History in My Lifetime, episode 2: Major Milestones of the Civil Rights Movement
This episode gives a brief overview of the Civil Rights Movement in the US since Brown v. Board of Education. We also take a look at the women's rights movement, as well as movements for the rights of immigrants, disabled persons, and the LGBTQ+ community. This episode ends with over 2 weeks of Daily Journal Prompts to tell one's own story.
#381
August 22 · 40 min
Sermon: Perfect Love (1 John 4:16-21)
"Perfect love casts out fear." - 1st John 4:18 ... In this sermon I break down the idea of such perfect love. In 1st John 4:16-21, see see that if God abides in you, then He will perfect (verb) love within you. We also see the following benefits of such perfect love: (1) perfect love will give you confidence on the Day of Judgment, (2) perfect love will make us "like" Christ, (3) perfect love frees us from fear, & (4) we can love because He loved us first.
#380
August 22 · 51 min
History in My Lifetime, episode 1: Assassinations & Attempted Assassinations
In this, the Fall 2026 semester, we will be trying something new: a class called "History in My Lifetime: Documenting My Place in History to Tell My Grandchildren." Each week we will discuss a different category of major historical events in the last 80 years or so, with emphasis being on the lived experience of the average person who lived through these historical events. The class will also involve daily journal prompts which will focus more on a person's personal history: marriage, parenthood
#379
August 15 · 37 min
Sermon: If God Abides in You ... (1 John 4:7-16)
If you have been reading along with us through the book of First John, you have probably noticed that the Apostle John has told us about a dozen times to love each other. It is an important theme for this epistle. In 1st John 4:7-16, we are told once again to love each other and to love God, for God Himself is love. In this passage we also learn that if God abides in you, then (1) you will live by the love of God, who is Christ, (2) you will love each other & you will know God, (3) you will have
#378
August 9 · 45 min
Sermon: Spiritual Warfare (1 John 4:1-6)
Spiritual warfare is an interesting biblical topic. We see glimpses of spiritual warfare in books like Daniel & Revelation, and it is obvious that there is some kind of conflict between angels and demons, between the spiritual forces of God vs. the spiritual forces of darkness. But the Bible does not actually give us many details about what spiritual warfare is, exactly. But there are glimpses. The Apostle John tells us in 1 John 4 to "test the spirits," particularly in regard to testing the spi
#377
August 2 · 36 min
Sermon: Relationship with God (1 John 3:19-24)
"It's not about 'religion,' it's a relationship" is an overused Christian trope. In all honesty, I remember this phrase mostly from my youth in the 1990s, when it seemed like this was everyone's Christian mantra. But Christianity is a religion. It addresses religion themes and the truth taught by Christianity has religious implications. But our faith is also a relationship with God. That is best understood when the Christian realizes that the specific relationship is as Lord and follower. God is
#376
July 26 · 39 min
Sermon: Love One Another (1 John 3:10-18)
Litmus tests tell you the pH level of a chemical, and that helps you identify the chemical. The term "litmus test" can be used metaphorically to describe something that is definitely not litmus paper but can similarly help you determine something. In last week's sermon, we learned that sin - particularly unrepentant, continual sin - is a litmus test that shows that a person is not really a Christian. In this week's sermon, we see that the Apostle John also gives us another litmus test: love. We
#375
July 18 · 41 min
Sermon: Do Not Choose Sin (1 John 3:4-10)
The freedom to choose is a key aspect of what it means to be an American. This is true of human beings in general, but the citizens of my nation especially value individual liberty to choose this-or-that. These choices are both simple (like what to eat or what to wear) to very complex (like how to conduct a brutal war). In this sermon, we see how the Apostle John taught us not to use our freedom of choice to choose sin.
#374
July 11 · 45 min
Sermon: Children of God (1 John 2:28-3:3)
When a person is redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the believer is adopted into the family as Children of God. This week's sermon covers the last few verses of First John chapter 2 and the first few verses of chapter 3. In this passage we learn that (1) Children of God look forward to Christ's return, (2) disobedient children & frauds do not look forward to Christ's return, (3) true righteousness is only available through redemption/adoption in Christ's family, (4) the world cannot trul
#373
July 8 · 42 min
Sermon: The Apostle John's Warning Against "Antichrists" (1 John 2:18-27)
Happy 4th of July! The premier liberal democracy to arise out of the Enlightenment is now a quarter a millennium old. But this sermon is not a patriotic holiday sermon. Instead, we continue in our sermon series through the epistle of First John. In 1 John 2:18-27, John warns us against those who oppose the Kingdom of God, seeming to coin the term "antichrist" in the process. End Times enthusiasts have used the term "the Antichrist" to refer to the figure that the Book of Revelation calls "the Be
#372
June 28 · 38 min
Sermon: Using Your Spiritual Gifts
Today I was honored to be invited to preach at the First Baptist Church of Parsons (KS). This is the audio of that sermon, where I lay out reasons why some Christians think that they don't have any spiritual gifts, and why they are wrong about that.
#371
June 28 · 37 min
Sermon: Do Not Love the World (1 John 2:15-17)
The Apostle John tells us to not love the world or the things of the world (see 1 John 2:15). But in John 3:16, we see that God so loved the world. Is this a contradiction? And if not, then we must ask: what does it mean for one to not love the world? In this episode, we see that (1) you either love God, or you love the world, (2) the world draws us into sin, & (3) the world's time is running out.
#370
June 21 · 47 min
Sermon - Father's Day: Righteousness, Love, & Maturity (1 John 2:1-14)
Happy Father's Day! As we continue in our expository series through the book of First John, we come to the beginning verses of chapter 2. In this passage we learn a few things: (1) Our goal should be sinlessness, (2) Jesus fixes it (because we will never achieve sinlessness) and He defends us when we fail, (3) we should love one another, (4) our love should be extraordinary, (5) hatred & lovelessness flow from (and result in) sin, and finally, we should mature in Christ, together. This passage c
#369
June 20 · 9 min
Juneteenth
Joyous Juneteenth to fans of liberty & justice for all! I opened worship this weekend with a brief history lesson on Juneteenth. As a history dude (with an actual Bachelor's degree in the subject), I am ashamed to say that I was unaware of Juneteenth until the late 2010s. But I've come to view it as an essential part of "Freedom Fortnight." In a brief 2 week window, Americans can celebrate Flag Day (June 14, 1777), Father's Day (3rd Sunday of June), Juneteenth (June 19th, 1865), The ratification
#368
June 13 · 36 min
Sermon: Walk in the Light, as He Is in the Light (1 John 1:5-10)
There is a tug-of-war between the extremes of hedonism & legalism, with neither side being the righteous choice. Instead, the Apostle John teaches us to "walk in the light, as He is in the light" (1 John 1:7), emulating Jesus rather than chasing an extreme. In today's sermon, we see that the Apostle John teaches us that (1) the Gospel starts with the glory & perfection of God, (2) our aim should be to emulate Him, (3) neither indulging in sin nor ignoring sin is acceptable, (4) only confession a
#367
June 7 · 39 min
Sermon: The Word Is Alive (1 John 1:1-4)
The Summer 2026 sermon series kicks off (well, besides the introductory sermon last week) where any expository series should start: chapter 1, verse 1. The book of 1st John opens with a poetic, slightly rambling soliloquy about the "Logos," the Greek word for "word" (which is also the key word at the beginning of John's Gospel). In this lesson, we see that (1) the Word is life, (2) the Word is Christ, (3) the Word is real, (4) the Word brings fellowship, (5) the Word brings joy, & that since (6)
#366
May 31 · 27 min
Sermon: Introduction to First John
This summer's sermon series is an expository preaching series through the Epistle of First John. This is the introduction, which lays out several overall themes of the book. Join us this summer as we dig into First John.

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