Faith & Family Bible Podcast with Steve Wood

Episode 582 - Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit: The Pivot of Human Life and History

What does it mean to be poor in spirit—and why is it the pivot of human life and history? In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood explains how the Beatitudes describe the inner life of Christ formed in the believer, not a checklist of steps. Focusing on the first Beatitude, Steve traces the root of human suffering to pride in Genesis, connects it to modern moral relativism, marriage struggles, and end-times warnings, and shows why humility before God is essential today. A timely call to dethrone the self and live fully united to Christ.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 581 - What Are the Beatitudes?

What are the Beatitudes, and why do they seem so paradoxical and counter-cultural? In this episode, we explore Jesus’ opening words of the Sermon on the Mount and how they reveal what a renewed world truly looks like. Drawing from Matthew 5 and the teaching of Pope Benedict XVI, this study explains the Beatitudes as the Kingdom of Heaven breaking into the present—end-time realities already at work in daily Christian life. Learn how Jesus speaks to both the crowds and committed disciples, calling believers into a new relationship with God shaped by the values of the coming Kingdom.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 580 - Stay off Ladders! Cautions about Sermon on the Mount

In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood offers a crucial caution about teaching the Beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mount. Using the familiar “ladder to heaven” metaphor, he explains why framing salvation as moral ladder-climbing leads to fear, burnout, and failure—especially for modern Catholics. Drawing on Scripture, the Catechism, and Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, this episode clarifies the primacy of grace, showing that the Sermon on the Mount is not about self-salvation but about Christ living His life in us through a living union with Him.

Visit us at www.BibleforCatholics.com for more resources. 

Episode 579 - Youth Discipleship, Part II

In Part II of this youth discipleship series, Steve Wood explains why parish-based large-group programs alone cannot form lifelong Christian disciples. Drawing on Scripture, real-world experience, and the teaching of Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, this episode lays out a clear, four-part framework for authentic youth discipleship—beginning with parents as the primary disciplers. Learn why family catechesis is irreplaceable, how camps and small groups can support real spiritual growth, and what’s fueling today’s widespread youth disengagement from the faith.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 578 - Youth Discipleship, Part I

In this episode, Steve Wood explores youth discipleship through the lens of Jesus’ own method—being with His disciples from Matthew 4 to the Great Commission in Matthew 28. Drawing from Scripture, the Catechism, and lived experience, this talk explains why classroom-only religious education often leads to dropout Catholicism, while intentional family-based disciple-making forms lifelong faith.

You’ll hear why parents—especially fathers—are the primary youth discipleship leaders, why 60 minutes a week can’t form a disciple, and how the contrast between a “family motel” and a true disciple-making Catholic home shapes the faith of future generations. Featuring wisdom from Scripture and the powerful witness of St. John Paul II, this episode challenges Catholic families to recover a way of life that passes on faith in a hostile culture.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 577 - The Way to Change the World: Discipleship

In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood explores discipleship as the central strategy Jesus used to change the world. Beginning with Jesus’ call to the first disciples in Matthew 4:17–22 and ending with the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18–20, this study shows how the Gospel of Matthew is framed by one clear command: make disciples. Steve explains why Jesus prioritized close, relational training over formal education, why the first disciples were likely much younger than we often assume, and what this means for parents, families, and youth formation today. This episode lays the biblical foundation for building authentic, long-term discipleship that truly transforms lives.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 576 - How to Face Serious Temptation

In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood walks through Gospel of Matthew chapter 4 and shows how Jesus models the way Christians are called to face serious temptation.

Examining the three temptations of Christ in the wilderness, Steve explains how Jesus resists the devil not with arguments or miracles, but with Scripture properly understood and internalized. From resisting the misuse of sonship, to refusing to test God, to rejecting Satan’s offer of worldly power, Jesus reveals the pattern every disciple must follow.

Drawing from both the Old and New Testaments—including the Psalms, Deuteronomy, and Revelation—this episode highlights why Scripture memorization is essential spiritual armor, especially in a world growing darker and more deceptive.

Visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com for more resources.

Episode 575 - Christian Children: Jr. Pharisees or Children of God?

In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood challenges parents and teachers to examine how Christian children are being formed. Drawing from Gospel of Matthew 3, he contrasts outward religiosity without repentance—exemplified by the Pharisees—with authentic, Spirit-filled faith.

Steve explains why much modern catechesis emphasizes religious facts and behavior while failing to touch the heart, contributing to the widespread falling away of youth. The key to true spiritual formation, he argues, is a lived experience of adoption as sons and daughters of God through baptism, as taught in Epistle to the Galatians.

The episode calls parents to pray for a full awakening of their children’s baptismal inheritance and to surround them with believers alive in the Holy Spirit.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 574 - How Prodigal Sons and Daughters Can Have a Relationship with Jesus

In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood explores how prodigal sons and daughters can return to a living relationship with Jesus through true repentance. Focusing on Gospel of Matthew Chapter 3, Steve explains John the Baptist’s call to repentance as an inner change of heart that leads us back to God the Father.

Drawing on Psalm 32 and the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Gospel of Luke Chapter 15, this episode shows that repentance is not despair, but hope—a movement from sinful self to the Father who welcomes His children home with mercy and joy.

A powerful encouragement for anyone who feels far from God or longs for a fresh start in their faith. For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.

Episode 573 - The Most Important Word In the Gospel of Matthew

In this episode of Faith & Family Bible Study, Steve Wood highlights the most important word in the Gospel of Matthew: Jesus. Drawing from Matthew 1:21, Steve explains that the name Jesus—meaning “YHWH saves”—summarizes the heart of the Gospel and the New Covenant.

This episode emphasizes two essential truths: forgiveness of sins is central, and Jesus does the saving—we do not save ourselves. Steve warns against reducing Christianity to moral effort or self-salvation and shows how forgetting the primacy of grace can lead to spiritual burnout, especially for families and children. Referencing the Catechism of the Catholic Church, he underscores that authentic Christian living flows from Christ working in us.

A powerful reminder to keep Christ—not performance—at the center of faith, catechesis, and daily life.

For more resources, visit us online at www.BibleforCatholics.com.