GRAVE TO GOSPEL

Will Hunsaker
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Biweekly

GRAVE TO GOSPEL narrates the continuous story of Christ from Genesis to Revelation. Every action we take is driven by this life-giving message, reminding us that faith in Christ goes beyond mere knowledge, rituals, numbers, or programs. Expanding upon this foundational principle involves sharing and deepening our experience of Christ’s love through the Gospel, making each new endeavor a powerful echo of the Good News. Without the gospel, ministry loses its pulse; with it, every heartbeat carries the life of Christ into the world. Let's move His gospel forward with every beat, because Christianity is not about Christians, it’s about Christ.

  1. 4d ago

    Open Your Bibles to Jonah 4:1-11

    But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, “Do you do well to be angry?” Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed a plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort. So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. 7 But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, “It is better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, “Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” And the Lord said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?”   Jonah 4:1-11   In this episode, we press into a single core question: Who deserves God's Mercy?   After the unprecedented repentance of Nineveh, we expect to find a prophet rejoicing in the triumphs of sovereign grace. Instead, we encounter Jonah’s bitter indignation—a striking contrast between the infinite, unmerited compassion of God and the self-centered pride of man.   As we close out our study of Jonah, we unpack: Sovereign Compassion and Divine Patience: Jonah’s anger stems from knowing God’s foundational covenantal character—that He is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. God sovereignly dispenses His mercy according to His eternal counsel, revealing that His patience toward sinners is rooted entirely in His holy character rather than human merit.Exposing Self-Righteousness: Jonah’s discontent reveals the deep corruption of a heart that demands grace for itself while resenting grace shown to others. Through the object lesson of the withered plant, God exposes the folly of our self-righteousness, demonstrating how easily we prioritize our own comfort and nationalist pride over the eternal destiny of image-bearers.God’s Glory Above Personal Comfort: God appoints the plant, the worm, and the scorching east wind to direct Jonah’s gaze away from temporal comfort toward divine glory. Man is not the center of the cosmos; God’s overarching purpose is the manifestation of His glory through both justice and mercy across all nations.The Greater Prophet and the True Vine: Where Jonah preferred death over seeing his enemies saved, Jesus Christ willingly went to the cross, laying down His life for His enemies. Jonah sat outside Nineveh in bitter judgment, but Christ endured the full fury of divine wrath outside the gates of Jerusalem so that unworthy sinners might be brought into a state of reconciliation and peace.  Listen here to the latest episode!   Grace and Peace.

  2. Aug 3

    Open Your Bibles to Jonah 3:1-10

    Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city,1 three days’ journey in breadth. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.   The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”   When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.   Jonah 3:1-10   In this episode, we press into a single core question: Can grace fail?   After being spewed onto dry land by God’s sovereign decree, Jonah stands right back where he started—confronted by the divine call to go to Nineveh. What unfolds next is one of the most stunning demonstrations of sovereign grace in all of Scripture.   In this episode, we unpack: Sovereign Recommissioning: God’s covenantal purpose cannot be thwarted by human stubbornness. We look at God’s faithfulness—not because Jonah earned a second chance, but because the Lord sovereignly preserves and uses His chosen instruments to fulfill His good plan.Calling and True Repentance: From the King of Nineveh down to the lowest citizen, an entire city falls prostrate. From a Reformed perspective, regeneration precedes faith: God sovereignly quickens dead hearts, granting both the gift of faith and genuine evangelical repentance—marked by godly sorrow, turning from wickedness, and pleading solely for undeserved mercy.God’s Unchanging Justice and "Relenting": God’s eternal decree does not change; rather, His covenantal response shifts as He sovereignly brings sinners from a state of wrath to a state of grace through Christ. The threat of judgment drives them to the very mercy God ordained to give them.The Greater Preacher and the Greater Sign: Jesus explicitly points back to this moment in Luke 11, declaring that "the men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here." Jonah preached reluctantly under compulsion, but Christ came willingly, enduring the full storm of divine wrath to secure the redemption of His people.

  3. Jul 27

    Open Your Bibles to Jonah 2 1-10

    Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, saying, “I called out to the Lord, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice. For you cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood surrounded me; all your breakers and your waves passed over me. Then I said, ‘I am driven away from your sight; yet I shall again look upon your holy temple.’ The waters closed in over me to take my life; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped about my head. To the roots of the mountains I went down, to the land whose bars closed upon me forever. Yet you brought up my life from the pit,  O Lord my God. When my life was fainting away, I remembered the Lord, and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!” And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land. Jonah 2:1-10   In this episode, we ask the question: Is trial divine repentance?   Too often, we view our darkest providences as mere consequences or signs of God’s departure. But through a Reformed, covenantal lens, Jonah’s prayer in the belly of the fish reveals a profound reality: God sovereignly uses our deepest, most claustrophobic trials not to destroy us, but as the irresistible instrument to grant us gospel repentance—drawing us out of self-reliance and back into His grace.   In this episode, we talk about: The Sovereign Design of Affliction: We unpack how God’s secret will works through hard providences. God did not send the deep to abandon Jonah, but to strip away his self-righteousness. We discuss how God sovereignly ordains trials to break human stubbornness and awaken us to our desperate need for Him.The Anatomy of God-Wrought Repentance: We examine Jonah’s cry from the belly of Sheol (Jonah 2:2). True gospel repentance is not manufactured by human willpower; it is a gift of sovereign grace worked in the heart through affliction, causing us to turn our eyes back toward God’s holy temple.Salvation Belongs to Yahweh: A deep look at Jonah 2:9—the foundational truth of Reformed theology (Soli Deo Gloria). In the darkest place imaginable, Jonah realizes that man contributes nothing to his own deliverance. We reflect on how the God who sovereignly appoints the trial is the same God who guarantees our restoration.Our Hope Belongs in Christ Alone: We look at how Jonah’s story points us straight to the Gospel. Jonah was thrown into the stormy sea because of his own rebellion. But Jesus—the true and greater Jonah—willingly entered the deepest ocean of God's wrath on the cross for us, taking the punishment we deserved. Because Jesus already endured the ultimate storm on our behalf, the trials we face today are never God punishing us; they are His loving, gracious way of drawing us closer to Christ. Our God is absolute Master over every depth. When His sovereign hand brings us into the storm, we can rest knowing that His covenant purpose is always to restore, refine, and draw us back to Himself. Grace and Peace.

  4. Jul 20

    Open Your Bibles to Jonah 1: 7-17

    And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea grew more and more tempestuous. He said to them, “Pick me up and hurl me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.” Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. Therefore they called out to the Lord, “O Lord, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.” So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows. And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1:7-17   In this episode, we ask the question: Who appoints mercy?   Too often, we look at the "great fish" as a strange instrument of punishment. But through a Reformed, covenantal lens, we see something far more profound. The fish was not sent to destroy Jonah; it was sovereignly appointed to save him. What looked like a watery grave was actually a womb of grace.   In this episode, we talk about: The Doctrine of Sovereign Appointment: This is a massive theme throughout Jonah. God does not leave His redemptive plans to chance; He actively commands His creation—appointing a storm, a fish, a plant, and a worm—to serve His covenant purposes.The Merciful Intercession and Worship of the Sailors: We look closely at the stunning contrast between Jonah's cold indifference toward the Gentiles and the pagan sailors' desperate, merciful reluctance to cast Jonah into the sea. They row hard to save him, and when they must finally throw him over, they cry out to Yahweh on Jonah's behalf—pleading for his life and committing his destiny directly to God’s sovereign pleasure. But it doesn't end there. When the storm immediately ceases, their hearts are gripped by the power of the true God. They move from crying out in fear to fearing Yahweh exceedingly, offering sacrifices, and making vows. In their mercy and their worship, these unlikely converts expose Jonah's own self-righteousness.The Grave of Grace: A deep reflection on Jonah's descent. We discuss how God often wraps His most life-giving mercies in our darkest providences. Jonah had to go down to the very gates of death to realize that salvation belongs entirely to the Lord.The Climax of the Sign: We return to the ultimate parallel. Just as Jonah was swallowed by the fish to be preserved from the sea, Jesus Christ—our Greater Jonah—willingly allowed Himself to be swallowed by the grave of death to preserve us from the infinite ocean of divine wrath. But where Jonah's descent was the consequence of his own rebellion, Christ's descent was the triumph of His active obedience. Our God is the Lord of the depths. When we find ourselves in the darkest, most claustrophobic trials, we can rest knowing that our Savior has already walked through the ultimate grave to secure our eternal peace.   Listen here to the latest epsiode!   Grace and Peace.

  5. Jul 12

    Open Your Bibles to the Book of Jonah

    We hope you had a restful and blessed Fourth of July holiday! After a short break, we are thrilled to welcome you back to for the premiere of Season 10 of Open Your Bibles.   We are officially turning the page from the deep theological heights of Romans to launch a verse-by-verse journey through the Minor Prophets—traditionally known in the Hebrew canon as a single, unified work called "The Book of the Twelve." These books discuss why they are not "minor" in message, but rather a singular prophetic voice acting as God's covenant prosecutors—indicting God's people for their spiritual adultery, yet always pointing forward to the ultimate fulfillment of the Covenant of Grace in Jesus Christ. And, we are kicking things off with one of the most famous, yet most misunderstood, books in the entire Bible: Jonah.     Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah... 'Arise, go to Nineveh... and call out against it...' But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord... But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest... But Jonah had gone down into the inner parts of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. So the captain came and said to him, 'What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god!''  Jonah 1:1–6   In this season premiere, we ask the sovereign-focused question: Can we run?   Too often, Sunday school lessons reduce the Book of the Twelve to moralistic fables, and Jonah to a simple story about a big fish. But through a Reformed, covenantal lens, we see something infinitely grander. Jonah is a cosmic clash between the foolish, rebellious illusions of human autonomy and the relentless, pursuing, sovereign grace of a Covenant-Keeping God.   In this episode, we talk about: The Illusion of Flight: We examine Jonah’s attempt to flee "from the presence of the Lord." We explore the foolishness of trying to escape the omnipresent King and how our own hearts, even as believers, still struggle with secret corners of rebellion against God's clear commands.Sovereign Providence in the Storm: How God deploys creation—the wind, the waves, and a great fish—as His willing servants to execute His divine decrees. We highlight how God's absolute sovereignty is never passive; He actively pursues His runaway prophet because His electing purposes cannot fail.The Tragedy of the Sleeping Prophet: We look at the chilling picture of Jonah asleep in the hold while pagan sailors scream in terror. We discuss the tragic irony of a covenant prophet being rebuked by a pagan captain, exposing how spiritual rebellion always breeds a blinding, dangerous apathy.The Sign of a Greater Jonah: We connect Jonah's descent into the deep to the ultimate climax of redemptive history. Just as Jonah was cast into the raging sea and spent three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, Jesus—the Greater Jonah—willingly allowed Himself to be plunged into the infinite storm of divine wrath on the cross. He stayed in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights, rising victorious to secure our eternal peace and prove that salvation belongs entirely to the Lord. When we begin to study the Prophets, we aren't studying dry history. We are looking at the relentless faithfulness of God to a faithless people. We cannot run from His presence, but in Christ, we no longer want to—because we have been overtaken by His sovereign love.

  6. Jun 22

    Open Your Bibles to Romans 16 17-27

    I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you; so do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen.   Romans 16: 17-21   In this week's episode, we ask the ultimate covenantal question: Who crushes evil? As we close the book of Romans, Paul shows us that true, God-honoring unity is fiercely defensive of the truth. As Reformed believers, we recognize that the church is always under threat of false doctrine, but our ultimate confidence rests in the sovereign victory of our covenant-keeping God. In this episode, we talk about: The Warning Against Divisions: Why Paul commands us to "watch out" and "avoid" those who twist doctrine. We discuss how true Christian charity does not tolerate error, but guards the flock through the standard of Sola Scriptura.The Depravity of Deceivers: A look at verse 18. Paul exposes the true masters of false teachers—not Christ, but "their own appetites" (literally, their bellies). We discuss how "smooth talk and flattery" exploit the naive when we neglect theological depth.Wise and Innocent Sanctification: What it means to be "wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil." We talk about how the Holy Spirit renews our minds so that we can discern the counterfeit from the true Gospel of grace.The Promise: A deep dive into the glorious promise of verse 20. We connect Paul's words back to Genesis 3:15, exploring how the "God of peace" is the one who sovereignly and decisively crushes Satan under the feet of His elect church.We don't guard the truth out of fear, but out of a secure faith in the Sovereign King who has already won the war. We will be taking a short break for the Fourth of July holidays, but will return as we open our Bibles into the Old Testament.   Grace and Peace.

  7. Jun 15

    Open Your Bibles to Romans 16 1-16

    I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, that you may welcome her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself as well. Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia. Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. Greet my kinsman Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother, who has been a mother to me as well. Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers who are with them. Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you. Romans 16: 1-16 In this week's episode, we ask the warm, covenantal question: Who is family? In our highly individualistic culture, we often treat our faith as a private contract between ourselves and God. But Romans 16 shatters this isolation. Here, we see the visible manifestation of the communion of saints. For the Reformed believer, the church is not an abstract concept or a weekly event; it is a real, historic, covenant family knit together by the sovereign, regenerating power of the Holy Spirit. These names are a monument to the ordinary, flesh-and-blood means God uses to sustain His gospel ministers and expand His Kingdom. In this episode, we talk about: The Worthy Welcome of Phoebe: Unpacking verses 1 and 2. We discuss what it means to welcome a sister "in a way worthy of the saints." We explore our covenantal obligation to support, protect, and honor those whom Christ has redeemed, highlighting the vital role of women in the early church's diaconal service.Ordinary Means and Risk-Taking Faith: Looking at Prisca and Aquila (vv. 3–4), who "risked their necks" for Paul. We discuss how the Sovereign King doesn't just ordain gospel victories; He ordains the ordinary, courageous friendships and vocational partnerships that sustain them."In Christ Before Me": Examining Andronicus and Junia in verse 7. We dive into the profound theological phrase "in Christ." While our election is eternal in the mind of God, our union with Christ is realized in time. We talk about the humility of recognizing those who paved the way for our own faith.The Kiss of Peace: Breaking down verse 16. What does this ancient greeting mean for us today? We discuss how genuine, holy affection within the local church is a visible sign of our invisible union with Christ, proving that we are bound by blood thicker than biology.  When we look at this list of names, we aren't looking at a dry directory; we are looking at our family tree. We see a sovereignly gathered assembly of tentmakers, servants, former prisoners, and household saints—all chosen by grace, all playing their part to reflect the ultimate goal of redemptive history   Grace and Peace.

  8. Jun 8

    Open Your Bibles to Romans 15 14-33

    I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another. But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to bring the Gentiles to obedience—by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation, but as it is written, “Those who have never been told of him will see,     and those who have never heard will understand.”   This is the reason why I have so often been hindered from coming to you. But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and since I have longed for many years to come to you, I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be helped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a while. At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem bringing aid to the saints. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. For they were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material blessings. When therefore I have completed this and have delivered to them what has been collected, I will leave for Spain by way of you. I know that when I come to you I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ. I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by God's will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. May the God of peace be with you all. Amen.   Romans 15: 14-33   In this week's episode, we ask: Who plans tomorrow?   In our natural pride, we like to think we are the absolute masters of our own destiny, charting our lives with self-reliance. But Paul's closing words in Romans 15 show us a beautifully submissive posture. For the Reformed believer, our ambitions, our ministries, and our future plans are never self-determined, but are entirely subject to the sovereign decree of God. We make our plans, but we rest in the King who directs our steps, knowing that even our unexpected detours are perfectly ordered for His glory.   In this episode, we talk about: The Priestly Service of the Word: Unpacking verse 16. We discuss how Paul views his ministry to the Gentiles not as a human achievement, but as a sacred offering made acceptable solely by the sovereign, regenerating work of the Holy Spirit.Sovereign Ambition: Looking at Paul's drive to preach where Christ has not been named (v. 20). We discuss how this is not about human ego or empire-building, but about Christ actively working through us to bring His elect to the obedience of faith.Covenantal Solidarity: Examining the financial collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem (vv. 25–27). We explore how this contribution is not mere charity, but a deep, covenantal obligation that reflects the organic unity of the olive tree we were grafted into.The Providence of Prayer and Plans: Breaking down verses 30–32. Paul plans to visit Rome on his way to Spain, and asks for prayer to be delivered from danger. We discuss how God uses the prayers of His saints as the ordained means to accomplish His sovereign ends—and how God answered this prayer by bringing Paul to Rome not as a free traveler, but as a protected prisoner in chains!  When we realize that our future is held in the perfect, unyielding grip of God's providence, we find true rest. We plan with humility, serve with zeal, and submit every hope to the ultimate goal of history: that His perfect will be done, in His way and in His time.   Grace and Peace.

See All (154)

About

GRAVE TO GOSPEL narrates the continuous story of Christ from Genesis to Revelation. Every action we take is driven by this life-giving message, reminding us that faith in Christ goes beyond mere knowledge, rituals, numbers, or programs. Expanding upon this foundational principle involves sharing and deepening our experience of Christ’s love through the Gospel, making each new endeavor a powerful echo of the Good News. Without the gospel, ministry loses its pulse; with it, every heartbeat carries the life of Christ into the world. Let's move His gospel forward with every beat, because Christianity is not about Christians, it’s about Christ.

Information

  • Creator
    Will Hunsaker
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    154
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 GRAVE TO GOSPEL
  • Show Website
    GRAVE TO GOSPEL