Podcast & Resources

We want to help you bring the land and the lessons of the Bible to life!

That is the goal of our podcast, our partners, and the other resources on this page—to help you continue to grow in your understanding of the Bible and appreciation for how its context transforms the text into full color in 3D!

Have any questions, comments or suggestions? Let us know using the contact form below!

Episode Date
Tue, 24 Nov 2020

Episode Guest

Rob Kranz

Episode Images

Rob Kranz, a Bible teacher from Texas, is our podcast guest today. Rob discusses the biblical site of Gibeah in Judges 19 and how it connects to King Saul. We also highlight the Satellite Bible Atlas as a resource for further study as well as ways that our listeners can give back this holiday season and support some of our overseas partners by purchasing Christmas gifts from their stores.

Rob has been teaching the Bible for more than 30 years. In 2018 he decided to leave a successful career as a software executive to pursue it full time. His first stop was Israel, where he received a Graduate Certificate in Biblical History and Geography from Jerusalem University College in May 2019. Rob is currently completing an MA in Old Testament at Abilene Christian University. Rob has been married to his wife, Amy, for 32 years. They have two adult sons, Adam and Nathan and live in Austin, TX. Rob blogs about his faith journey at: https://www.steppingintothejordan.com

Learn more about Gibeah at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibeah

Satellite Bible Atlas www.gtitours.org/resources

Giving Back www.gtitours.org/giving-back

Featured Site
Gibeah

Gibeah (/ˈɡɪbiə/; Hebrew: גִּבְעָה‎ Giv'a; Hebrew: גִּבְעַת‎ Giveath) is the name of three places mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, in the tribes of Benjamin, Judah, and Ephraim respectively. The location in Benjamin is best-known, and generally identified with Tell el-Fūl in northern Jerusalem. Gibeah of Benjamin Gibeah in the tribe of Benjamin was the location of the turning out of the Levite's concubine, and the resulting Battle of Gibeah (Judges 19–21). Israel’s first king, King Saul, reigned here for 22 years (1 Samuel 8–31).

Learn More at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibeah

Episode Date
Wed, 18 Nov 2020

Episode Guest

Chris Simning

Episode Images

Our very special guest today is Chris Simning. Born with a nearly imperceptible case of cerebral palsy, Chris Simning was stricken with an extremely rare muscle and nerve disease just before high school. Today, Chris is living a miraculous life story as a speaker, storyteller, and writer. Chris shares with us about his love for Israel, specifically the Pool of Bethesda, and his application of the miracle in John 5.  

www.chrissimning.com

Chris Simning has recently authored a book entitled, "Scribbles". Find it here on Amazon.com:  https://www.amzn.com/B08FF3P1NT

Giving Back  https://gtitours.org/giving-back

Featured Site
Pool of Bethesda

The name of the pool is said to be derived from the Hebrew language and/or Aramaic language. Beth hesda (בית חסד/חסדא), meaning either house of mercy[3] or house of grace. In both Hebrew and Aramaic the word could also mean "shame, disgrace". This dual meaning may have been thought appropriate, since the location was seen as a place of disgrace due to the presence of invalids, and as a place of grace due to the granting of healing

Learn More at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pool_of_Bethesda

Episode Date
Wed, 11 Nov 2020

Episode Guest

Randy Alonso

Episode Images

Our podcast guest today is Florida Pastor Randy Alonso. He shares about his love for Israel, his approach to leading tours, and his involvement with Bridges for Peace. A short teaching of I Kings 17-18 reminds us of Elijah's exemplary courage and boldness in the midst of a confusing time.

Randy has been a pastor for over 30 years and has been married to his wife D’anae for 37 years. Randy first traveled to Israel in 2001 and became an advocate of the land of Israel and the Jewish people. He works with Bridges for Peace, a Jerusalem-based Christian ministry that builds relationships with Jews in Israel and around the globe by serving them unconditionally. He currently is the Executive Pastor of Central Life Church, Melbourne Florida. He holds a Doctorate of Divinity from Masters International University of Divinity and is a graduate of Bridges for Peace Institute of Israel. Randy is also a Certified teacher, coach and speaker for the John Maxwell Team.

https://www.Bridgesforpeace.com  

Upcoming trips mentioned in this episode:

Pastors Fam — New Dates for May 17-28, 2021 https://gtitours.org/trip/pastors-and-educators-israel-2021

Jordan / Israel Signature https://gtitours.org/trip/signature-israel

Featured Site
Mt. Carmel

Biblically, Mt. Carmel is referenced most often as a symbol of beauty and fertility. To be given the “splendor of Carmel” was to be blessed indeed (Isa 35:2). Solomon praised his beloved: “your head crowns you like Mount Carmel” (Song 7:5). But for Carmel to wither was a sign of devastating judgment (Nahum 1:4).

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/mtcarmel.htm

Episode Date
Wed, 04 Nov 2020

Episode Guest

Nadav Hillebrand

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Israeli guide Nadav Hillebrand joins today's podcast from his temporary home in Portugal. Nadav has been a teacher and a guide for years and has partnered with GTI for over ten of those years.

With his formative years being spent in Israel and his adolescence in New Jersey, Nadav brings a unique perspective when he talks about Israel. He and his wife have founded a company called "Promises of Glory", handmade quilts that depict scenes from Israel such as the Sea of Galilee, the Garden of Gethsemane, Ein Gedi, and the Promised Land to display in your home. These quilts not only commemorate your visit to the Land, but also support some of its people! Learn more at https://promisesofglory.com/

Use promo code GTI at checkout as 10 percent of the proceeds will go toward our guide and driver fund.

• Giving Back https://gtitours.org/giving-back#tcs

• Johnny's Souvenir Shop https://johnnysouvenir.com

• Tree of Life Handicraft shop https://ownmosaic.com

Featured Site
Promises of Glory

The physical setting of so many biblical events. Where God placed his people. Where he chose to communicate to this world through his prophets. Where our Patriarchs and Matriarchs traveled with their Flocks. Events that changed history and mankind captured in these quilts. The biblical reference joining that image and elevating art into meaning for you, your family and anyone who enters your home. Opening your door to the biblical story and welcoming it into your every day lives. Bringing the Holy Land into your house and your house into the Holy Land’s narrative.

Learn More at https://promisesofglory.com/

Episode Date
Wed, 28 Oct 2020

Episode Guest

Brady Nemmers

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Brady Nemmers joins our podcast today from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Brady shares about leading groups to Israel and experiencing the text together in its original context. He teaches about the "living water" as referred to in Psalms 42 and 63 and how precious it is in the Land. Visit https://gtitours.org/podcast for photos, links, and more from this episode. 

Brady joined Keystone Community Church in Ada, Michigan as co-leader in 2013 and serves as lead teaching pastor. He is passionate about communicating the story of God in a way that is relevant, engaging and applicable. He also spent the better part of a decade and a half as a disc jockey, a fact that has been generally hidden until now. He lives in Ada with his amazing wife Sarah Anne, four boys (Carter, Parker, Colton and Wilson), and their Boxer, Hazel.

Turkey / Greece Signature Tour info & promo video https://gtitours.org/trip/signature-turkey

Featured Site
Ein Gedi

En Gedi is the largest oasis along the western shore of the Dead Sea. The springs here have allowed nearly continuous inhabitation of the site since the Chalcolithic period. The area was allotted to the tribe of Judah, and was famous in the time of Solomon (Josh 15:62). Today the Israeli kibbutz of En Gedi sits along the southern bank of the Nahal Arugot.

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/engedi.htm

Episode Date
Wed, 21 Oct 2020

Episode Guest

Todd Bolen

Episode Images

Watch the video above to see the photos being described in the podcast (photos start at minute 25:15).

Professor Todd Bolen joins our podcast today and shares the story behind the creation of BiblePlaces.com, a fantastic resource of photos and information to support Bible teachers and students alike. He uses Matthew 4 as an example of how photos can "unpack" a chapter which seems simple at face value but is in fact saturated with meaning.

Thanks to Todd's generosity, podcast listeners can get a discount at Bibleplaces.com! Just visit https://bibleplaces.com/gti

Todd Bolen is Professor of Biblical Studies at The Master’s University in Santa Clarita, California. For more than a decade, he lived and taught at the university’s Israel Bible Extension (IBEX) campus near Jerusalem, and he continues to instruct undergraduate and seminary groups in Israel. As the founder of BiblePlaces.com, Bolen created the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands (20 volumes) and the Historic Views of the Holy Land (20 volumes). He is currently leading a team of researchers in creating the Photo Companion to the Bible. He contributed a number of articles to the Archaeological Study Bible and the Lexham Geographical Commentary series, and he wrote the notes for 2 Kings in the Zondervan NIV Study Bible. He is currently co-writing a textbook on the history of ancient Israel. He met his wife Kelli in Jerusalem, and they have five children.

Direct link to photo series with GTI discount www.bibleplaces.com/gti/

Download Matthew 4 PowerPoint http://www.bibleplaces.com/pcb/downloads/Matthew-4,-Photo-Companion-BiblePlaces.pptx

Featured Site
Wilderness of Zin

The Nahal Zin was the southern border of the land of Canaan that was promised to the Israelites. Numbers 34:3-4 (KJV) “Then your south quarter shall be from the wilderness of Zin along by the coast of Edom, and your south border shall be the outmost coast of the salt sea eastward: And your border shall turn from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim, and pass on to Zin: and the going forth thereof shall be from the south to Kadeshbarnea, and shall go on to Hazaraddar, and pass on to Azmon.”

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/nahalzin.htm

Episode Date
Thu, 15 Oct 2020

Episode Guest

Chris Brown

Episode Images

Charismatic Chris Brown from California joins Rich on our podcast today. He shares how impactful visiting Israel has been to his teaching personally, and how he's passed on a passion for the Land to those he leads. Being a storyteller himself, Chris believes the Story of God is one in which his listeners should participate, not just hear. Learning in the Land has allowed him to see the Bible go from a black and white sketch to a full color 3D model! He even shares a few funny stories from his trip with youth pastors (photos included).

Chris Brown is one of the Senior Pastors at North Coast Church in Vista, California and one of the three Teaching Pastors. Along with being on the vision casting team and providing directional leadership for the church, he also co-teaches a preaching course at Bethel Seminary. Chris loves bringing the Bible to life with his gifts as a communicator and storyteller, but most evident in his teaching is his passion for sharing a real and authentic journey with Jesus. Chris and his wife Amy have three children: two beautiful daughters, Sayla and Karis, and a crazy son named Barak. They plan as a family to stay involved in teaching, ministries, and fishing for as long as humanly possible.

Featured Site
Galilee

The Sea of Galilee is fed by the Jordan River, rainfall and springs on the northern side. More properly designated a lake, the Kinneret (the OT and modern name) is 13 miles long and 7 miles wide. At its deepest point the lake is only 150 feet deep. The rabbis said of it, “Although God has created seven seas, yet He has chosen this one as His special delight.”

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/seagalilee/

Episode Date
Thu, 08 Oct 2020

Episode Guest

Gary Burge

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Dr. Gary Burge is our special guest on this podcast. His extensive study of the New Testament, specifically the Gospel of John, lends insight today in his comparison teaching of John 5 and John 9. He reminds us that the scriptures are a timeless message but not a timeless story. In order to understand the message, we must understand the context; the best way to understand the context is to experience it in the Land where the events took place.

Originally from Southern California, Gary was an undergraduate at the University of California, Riverside, and The American University of Beirut, Lebanon. He attended Fuller Theological Seminary and King's College, The University of Aberdeen, Scotland. In Scotland he studied with I. Howard Marshall earning a Ph.D. in New Testament. He served on the faculties of King College (Tennessee), North Park University (Illinois) and after 25 years at Wheaton College (Illinois) he joined the faculty of Calvin Theological Seminary (Michigan) in 2017.

Gary speaks widely in churches and conferences both in the United States and in various countries. He has traveled extensively, particularly in the Middle East. He is ordained in the Presbyterian Church, USA, and served as a military chaplain (USNR). For over 15 years he was a regular teacher at Willow Creek Community Church in S. Barrington, IL. 

Links to books

• Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes
• Jesus the Middle Eastern Storyteller
• The Bible and the Land
• A week in the life of a Roman Centurion

Featured Site
Pool of Siloam

he Pool of Siloam (Hebrew: בריכת השילוח‎‎, Breikhat Hashiloah) is a rock-cut pool on the southern slope of the City of David, the original site of Jerusalem, located outside the walls of the Old City to the southeast. The pool was fed by the waters of the Gihon Spring, carried there by two aqueducts.

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/poolofsiloam.htm

Episode Date
Thu, 01 Oct 2020

Episode Guest

Brad Gray

Episode Images

Today we hear from Walking the Text founder Brad Gray. Brad shares how his first trip to the Land impacted him personally and led to his ministry today. His teaching on Jesus' baptism in Matthew 3 unpacks Christ's mission - and ours - to bring Shalom to a chaotic, broken world.

Israeli guide Ronen brings an archaeological update about the largest collection of royal seals ever found in Israel.

Brad has traveled extensively to the biblical lands of Israel, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, and Greece, and has been leading study trips to Israel and Turkey since 2010. He is a national speaker, published author (Make Your Mark: Getting Right What Samson Got Wrong), and former teaching pastor, with over 10 years of experience serving in multiple local churches. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management from Cornerstone University (Grand Rapids, Michigan), a Masters of Divinity from Western Theological Seminary (Holland, Michigan), and has done additional graduate work at Jerusalem University College (Jerusalem, Israel). Brad and his wife, Shallon, live with their four children in Nashville, Tennessee.

• https://walkingthetext.com/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan_River

Featured Site
Lower Jordan

Because large quantities of water are taken from the sources of the Jordan by the countries of Israel and Jordan, the river today is a small, winding, dirty stream that makes its way to the Dead Sea. The river winds so much on its journey from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea that the entire course runs about 130 miles instead of the 60 miles it would take if it ran straight.

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/bethanybeyondjordan/

Episode Date
Thu, 24 Sep 2020

Episode Guest

Aaron Couch

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Aaron Couch joins our podcast today from Colorado. He describes what is was like to lead the first GTI tour (to Turkey) since COVID restrictions began last March. He also shares about Lystra, the life of Timothy, and the message of God's purpose for each of us today.

Aaron has been in ministry over 25 years and his heart and passion are to see people made whole through the power and love of Jesus. He has led trips to Israel and Turkey (Biblical Asia Minor) and uses the text in its proper context to open up new worlds of freedom for those who experience the Bible in the places where it happened.

Aaron is married with 4 kids and has a BA in Christian Ministry from Boise Bible College and an MA in Church Leadership from Hope International University. He is a church planting and leadership coach and sought after speaker nationally and internationally.

It is Aaron’s hope that walking in the dust of Jesus and his first followers will inspire and set free those who come with him to the land of the Bible.

• https://www.bibleplaces.com/derbelystra/
• https://gtitours.org/resources

Featured Site
Lystra

Lystra (probably the hometown of Timothy) served as a market town of Lycaonia in south central modern-day Turkey. Paul preached here on his first missionary journey (Acts 14:6-22). After he healed a lame man, the superstitious citizens immediately assumed that he was Hermes (messenger of Zeus) and Barnabas was Zeus himself (same as the Roman god Jupiter). There was a temple to Zeus near the gates of the city, and a statue of Hermes dedicated to Zeus was found here as well.

Learn More at https://www.bibleplaces.com/derbelystra/

Episode Date
Sun, 13 Sep 2020

Episode Guest

Jim Showers

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Jim Showers, Executive Director of Friends of Israel joins our podcast today. He shares about the ministry, which was begun in 1938, ten years before Israel became a nation, and how going to the Land feels like "coming home." Jim's teaching takes us to Acts 10, the pivotal passage which reveals the beginning of God's plan to redeem both Jews and Gentiles.

Learn more about Friends of Israel at www.foi.org

Dr. Showers earned both his master of divinity (1995) and doctor of ministry (2007) degrees from Baptist Bible Seminary. His doctoral thesis was titled “May They Prosper Who Love You: A Case for Christian Zionism.” Dr. Showers speaks at conferences, churches, and schools nation wide; is a frequent participant in events supporting Israel; and is a strong advocate of the country’s growing Jewish-Christian alliance. He also has helped lead three joint Jewish-Christian trips to Israel and three FOI Up to Jerusalem tours.

• https://www.bibleplaces.com/caesarea/
• https://www.bibleplaces.com/acts10/

Featured Site
Caesarea Maritima

The city and harbor were built under Herod the Great during c. 22–10 BC near the site of a former Phoenician naval station known as Stratonos pyrgos (Στράτωνος πύργος).[2] It later became the provincial capital of Roman Judea, Roman Syria Palaestina and Byzantine Palaestina Prima provinces. The city was populated throughout the 1st to 6th centuries CE and became an important early center of Christianity during the Byzantine period, but was mostly abandoned following the Muslim conquest of 640. It was re-fortified by the Crusaders, and finally slighted by the Mamluks in 1265.

Learn More at http://www.bibleplaces.com/caesarea.htm