In this solo episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Pastor Sam Edwards unpacks the biblical meaning of “return,” explaining it as coming back not to a place or religion but to the identity God created us to live in, accessed through Jesus. Drawing from Malachi 3:7, he describes how Israel drifted from God by withholding their best because they shifted trust to other sources, mirroring how people today replace faith in God with other provisions.

In Isaiah 30, he recounts Judah’s choice to seek safety in Egypt instead of God and God’s warning that this misplaced trust would lead to defeat, highlighting Isaiah 30:15: “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and trust shall be your strength.”

He connects this to the prodigal son and emphasizes that we cannot earn our way back—return is a gift made possible by the cross alone.

In this episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Anthony Serino and Pastor Sam Edwards discuss how taking Christianity seriously can bring friction, ostracism, and persecution in family, friendships, and workplaces.

They explore why faith provokes opposition, tracing it to conviction and fear, and connecting persecution in Colossae to modern “little-g” idols people defend as identity. They describe cultural flashpoints and “flags,” tell a story about leaving a coffee shop in Asheville over political and pride signage, and emphasize that Christians should not treat people as the enemy but recognize spiritual forces at work.

They talk about boldness, discernment, boundaries, and hard cases like divided marriages, urging believers to show up in Christlike love while rooting out compromise. They address fear’s roots, practical ways to seek Jesus’ truth, and promote monthly Encounter Nights focused on encountering God, ending with prayer.

In this episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Pastor Sam Edwards explores what it truly means to guard your heart through Jesus and why our internal thoughts eventually shape our words, relationships, decisions, and actions.

Using a personal story from his teenage years, Pastor Sam unpacks Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 12:34: “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” What we dwell on internally doesn’t stay hidden forever. Under pressure, what we've allowed to grow inside of us eventually comes out.

The question becomes: Are you focusing on the truth of what Jesus says—or the “truth” your past has taught you to believe?

He explains how past failures, broken relationships, fear, shame, and insecurity can become lenses through which we see ourselves and our future.

Guard your heart. Examine your thoughts. Take them captive to Christ. And don't allow the lies of your past to speak louder than the truth of Jesus.

In this episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Anthony Serino sits down with Pastor Sam Edwards for a candid conversation about the biblical foundations of marriage, the responsibilities of husbands and wives, and why a healthy Christian marriage has to begin with your relationship with Jesus.

They explore that marriage is more than two people simply choosing to spend their lives together. From Genesis through the New Testament, they discuss marriage as a covenant in which two become one and as a picture of the relationship between Christ and His Church.

For husbands, that creates a serious standard. Drawing from Ephesians 5, Anthony and Sam unpack the command for husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the Church—a sacrificial love that requires a man to lay down his own desires rather than making his love dependent upon his wife's behavior.

They also get practical about the issues that can slowly break down a marriage: unspoken expectations, unresolved wounds, lack of transparency, finances, communication, intimacy, resentment, love and respect, accountability, and expecting your spouse to fix something only God can heal. Pastor Sam explains that when people enter marriage expecting another person to make them whole, those expectations can eventually produce disappointment and resentment.

Anthony and Sam discuss why marriage isn't always 50/50, why husbands and wives must take responsibility for their own actions instead of withholding love or respect until their spouse "earns" it, and why becoming a better spouse starts with examining yourself first.

In this episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Anthony Serino sits down with Debora Manfre for a deeply personal conversation about marriage, spiritual warfare, healing, and restoration through Jesus Christ.

Debora opens up about a season when her marriage reached the point of separation and her husband walked away. Instead of focusing solely on changing him, she describes how prayer, fasting, repentance, and surrender became catalysts for examining her own heart. She shares that the process revealed patterns of anger, pride, control, and emotional wounds she needed to confront—and how her faith reshaped the way she approached her husband and marriage.

Subscribe to The 5th Gospel Podcast for more conversations about Jesus Christ, faith, healing, deliverance, relationships, and walking with the Holy Spirit.

On today's episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Pastor Sam Cabra joins Anthony & Pastor Sam Edwards to discuss practical spirituality, hearing God’s voice, and how to minister healing. One pastor shares his testimony of lifelong faith, 17 years pastoring in Hawaii, and sensing God’s “seasonal” leading to move to Columbus, Ohio through an inner knowing and multiple confirmations.

They explore discerning God’s guidance versus emotions, the need for maturity, prayer, time, and wise counsel, and addressing anxiety by turning to Scripture, especially Psalms. The conversation critiques “safe” church culture and emphasizes unity, responsibility, waiting on God, and making healing part of church practice.

00:00 Healing How To Setup

00:47 Sam’s Transition Story

03:31 Hearing God’s Voice

06:57 When To Move Or Stay

12:12 Testing Grace Vs Fear

19:12 Anxiety And The Psalms

22:15 Church And Supernatural Gifts

32:03 Healing Training Breakthrough

40:13 Stepping Out Of Safety

43:04 Pride and Risk

43:40 Deliver Healing Not Prayers

45:29 Short Specific Commands

46:19 ICU Healing Testimony

49:32 When Healing Doesnt Happen

52:01 Youth Camp Breakthrough

01:01:07 Gifts and Responsibility

01:04:15 Commanding vs Asking

01:10:03 Healing vs Miracle Timing

01:11:41 In Jesus Name Explained

01:17:05 Event Invite and Closing Prayer

In this episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Anthony and Pastor Sam discuss the growing overlap of politics and religion and ask why Christianity—rather than other faiths—should ground belief and public life, arguing the U.S. was founded on godly principles and that people often repeat viewpoints without studying truth for themselves.

They emphasize reading the Bible as God’s Word, a unified compilation of 66 books written across 1,600 years, and warn that misusing scripture distorts people’s view of God, citing historical and modern examples.

00:00 Church and State Tension

00:21 Why Christianity Matters

01:35 America and the Creator

02:27 Stop Repeating Talking Points

03:49 Why Read the Bible

05:39 Misusing Scripture Hurts

07:04 Jesus at the Center

07:55 Explaining the Trinity

11:12 Trinity in Isaiah

14:00 Truth Like Gravity

15:05 Creation and Design

17:36 Why Other Religions Fall Short

19:13 Why People Choose New Age

22:01 Finding Faith Personally

22:43 When God Feels Distant

25:43 Power of Gathering

28:50 Impartation and Preparation

32:01 Join a Local Church

32:22 Event Invite and Wrap Up

In this episode of The 5th Gospel Podcast, Anthony and Pastor Sam explore how many Christians fear money and slip into consumption, and uses Jesus’ Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25) to highlight stewardship, faithfulness, and action with whatever God entrusts—time, relationships, resources, and especially the gospel.

They discuss how seeing God wrongly fuels inadequacy, self-reliance, and improper money decisions, and argue that worship and obedience move believers from fear into faithful action.