Christ 2r Culture Podcast

This week, Hurricane Ida pounded the East coast resulting in a staggering loss of life. As America leaves Afghanistan, the Taliban began moving house to house assassinating American sympathizers. Our hearts break to hear of these tragic and needless deaths. This weekend, as we continue our study in the book of Jude, we come face to face with a tragedy greater than any seen on the news: rebellion against Jesus — which is the greatest tragedy in the universe. Join us as we learn how fighting for the faith once for all delivered to the saints to make this is a tragedy we can avoid.

When America pulled out of Afghanistan, many were shocked at how quickly the Taliban regained the country and infiltrated the cities. It turns out the terrorists weren’t beaten. They were hiding waiting for the right time to seize control. In a similar way, spiritual terrorists stand ready to infiltrate the church. They are looking for opportunities to seize control and steer the church away from the only gospel that can save. Join us as we learn how to recognize spiritual terrorists.

This special message was given at the One Church - One Day joint worship service at the Arnold's Park green space. Due to the outdoor event, there is wind noise in the recording we were not able to remove. If God knows everything, why pray? If God has already planned the future, why pray and ask God to change the future? Does prayer make a difference? In our final study on prayer, we look at what Jesus taught his disciples in the Gospel of Luke immediately following the Lord’s Prayer about how God answers prayer.

We live in a YouTube world. People are constantly consuming videos on their phones. While a modest number of churches had an online presence before the pandemic, COVID pushed most churches into the virtual church world. Thankfully, the Internet is helping churches reach more people with Jesus. Megachurches, like Saddleback in California, have as many as 20,000 people joining them online each weekend. While God is using the virtual church to grow his kingdom, there are unintended consequences when the physical gathering of God’s people is replaced with a virtual one. What are the dangers of digital church? Join us as we learn why together is better.

Disrespect of authority is rampant in our country. The media mocks our government leaders. In our cities, police are defunded and attacked. How can Christians stem the rising tide of disrespect for authority in our nation? What can we do to create a more God-honoring country? In this study, we discover the answer.

Business books tell us networking is the secret to success. It is not what you know but who you know that makes the difference. In the final verses of Paul’s letter to Timothy, Paul introduces us to his network. We see the different roles they played on his team and how they helped him reach the world with Jesus. God is not just concerned with our faithfulness to Him. He is also concerned with our faithfulness to one another.

One of the toughest races in the world is the Yukon Arctic Ultra. This competition involves running the Yukon Quest Trail in northern Canada in the dead of winter. The athletes run 100 miles around the clock entirely unsupported for days in the extreme Canadian winter. They run on remote unmaintained trails while towing their survival gear on a sled. It is one of the most life-threatening races on the planet. This week we continue our study in 2 Timothy and learn Christian life is not easy. It is like the Yukon Arctic Ultra. Our Christian lives requires a lifetime of sustained and agonizing effort to finish well. Join us as we learn more about what it takes for us to finish well.

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the United States men’s 4x100m relay team was favored to win. The athletes on the American team were outstanding. They included Tyson Gay, the man who ran the fasted ever 100m time in the world. The Americans hopes for a gold came crashing down during a qualifying race when the baton pass from Darvis Patton to Tyson Gay went bad. Tyson dropped the baton. The drop was so costly the United States did not even finish the race. It doesn’t matter if you are the fasted 100m runner in the world, if you can’t pass the baton to the next athlete, you can’t win. This week we learn the church is like a relay race. Just as important as running our race for Christ is passing the baton of leadership to the next generation that will take our place. Join us as we learn how to pass the baton of faith to the next generation and finish well.

This week we finish our study on what it means to be a faithful pastor. We will look at the way Paul tells Timothy—and all faithful pastors—to handle difficult seasons when people leave the church to follow false teachers that deliver only people-pleasing messages to tickles the ears.

In 2015, Josh Canfield—a lead choir director at Hill Song church, competed as a contestant on the Survivor television show. What came as a surprise was on the show he openly identified as being gay, a Christian, and on staff at Hill Song church. Shortly after the airing of that Survivor season, the church removed him from leadership. He didn’t understand why. He had told everyone in leadership on his campus that he was gay and in a relationship, yet they continued to let him lead because of his vocal talent and stage presence. Why had church leadership turned a blind eye to his lifestyle until it came out on national television? What should the church have done differently? Join us this weekend as we continue in our study of 2 Timothy 4 and learn what it means to be a faithful pastor when the church has become a place of entertainment.

On September 11, 2001, American was attacked by terrorists that flew planes into the World Trade Center. Thankfully one of the highjacked planes did not reach its intended target. It crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. The famous last words from that flight were spoken by Todd Beamer as he and the other passengers tried to regain control of the plane. They were, “Let’s Roll.” Those famous last words were later used as the rallying cry of the President to inspire America to fight back against Al-Qaeda. Join us this weekend as we come to the final chapter of 2 Timothy and study Paul’s famous last words to Timothy… Preach the Word!

Adam Hamilton is a prolific author and the pastor of a large United Methodist Church in Leawood, Kansas. He was interviewed on the United Methodist web \site about the question, “Do you have to read the Bible literally?” His answer was that sometimes you read the Bible more literally, while other times you read the Bible less literally. For example, he doesn’t consider Adam and Eve to be literal historical figures. It also doesn’t matter to him if Jonah was literally in the belly of a great fish. He believes much of the Old Testament is just an archetypal story. That is a story where we see ourselves, not a record of historical truth. While he believes the New Testament is more historically reliable than the Old Testament, he doesn’t believe it is completely true and can always be trusted. Adam Hamilton’s view of the Bible as sacred story instead of factual history is sweeping across America. Should the Bible be read as nothing more than a story that doesn’t need to connect with historical events? If we were

Today it is hard to know what to believe. A recent Gallup pole revealed seven out of ten Americans do not trust the major news networks. The media is seen as a political manipulation machine instead a source of unvarnished truth. Even more prevalent than the deception of today’s media is the religious deception around us. Satan is working hard to draw people away from Jesus. How can we be a strong Christian that is faithful to the end of our life and avoid being deceived? Join me as Paul shows us three pillars for a strong Christian life.

Alwyn Cashe is an American hero from the Iraq War. After his Bradley Fighting Vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb, even though he escaped with minimal injuries, he went back to the burning vehicle seven times to pull his unconscious men to safety before they were consumed by the flames. As a result of his heroic efforts, he died from burns that covered most of his body. All of those burns he received because he risked his life to pull his men to safety. Alwyn is a true American hero. He cared more about saving the lives of others than his own. As Christians, we also need heroes we can admire. We need to know the stories of Christian heroes of the past so we can learn from the example of their lives. Join us as we learn how to follow Christian heroes of the past and how to be one in the present.

Each week our phone rings with a number we do not recognize. It is usually a robo-caller or a scammer claiming they want to sell us an obscure product, such as an extended warranty on our car. The growth of the Internet has led to exponential growth in the scam artist industry. Through the Internet people reach across the ocean and attempt to steal our money and identity. Learning how to protect ourselves from these scoundrels is an essential part of life in the modern world. Scam artists are not just after our wallet. Some are after our soul. Join us as we learn how to avoid getting spiritually scammed and led astray.

Easter comes every spring. It was placed on the calendar in the spring so the new life rising out of the earth after a cold and dead winter would be an annual reminder of Jesus rising to life after death for us. While Easter is a wonderful reminder of the empty tomb, how does the resurrection of Jesus change the way we live the rest of the year? In this study we learn how Jesus' resurrection changes the way we live every day.

We live in a politically divided time. Accusations of election fraud are still on the news. Executive orders and sweeping political changes are on the horizon. The evening news fixates on the political issues of our day telling us our problems would be solved if we could overthrow the people in power. Not much has changed since the days of Jesus. At that time the Jews were convinced their source of trouble was the Romans that were in political power over them. They desperately wanted Jesus to help them overthrow the Romans, and if he did, they were convinced their problems would go away. As we study the Triumphal Entry, we discover how easy it is to follow Jesus for the wrong reasons and to look to Jesus for the wrong solutions.

In popular conversation we frequently hear about the importance of loving ourselves. People are told to love themselves more. They are told they won’t be able to love another person until they learn to love themselves. We are told we need to learn to love ourselves to succeed in life. While psychologists have beat the self-love drum since the 1960’s, the Bible has a different way of looking at this subject. A focus on loving ourselves spells the death of a relationship with God and with other people. Join me as we learn the danger of self love and neglecting to love our neighbor as ourself.

The news is filled with conflict. It is one story after another of evil, corruption, and fighting. It is no surprise when bitterness and disputes creep into the church. How are we to handle distracting arguments? What should we do when Christians hurt us or say evil things about us behind our back? In this message, we see what the Bible teaches us about how we can be most useful to Christ and his kingdom when there is conflict in the church.

Every good sports team has a deep bench. The team needs players that can step into crucial positions in a moment’s notice. Sometimes bench athletes train just as hard as the starting lineup but see no playing time. What is important is that they are ready to go the moment the coach needs them. As Christians, our life is similar to a second-string athlete. We need to be prepared and ready to play for coach Jesus whenever he needs to call us off the bench. Join me as we learn how to be ready to play an important roles in changing lives.