Christ Community Church Podcast

"Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many." (1 Cor. 12:12)

Worship pastor Jae Lesley shares his testimony of hearing and obeying God's call to leave Columbus and plant a church in Angel Fire, New Mexico.

God is still calling us to awakening – to a new surrender to His Spirit, to a deeper yearning for His fullness, to a fresh vision for His kingdom to “come” among us and through us. We have had several expressions and images of this awakening: wind, fire, a river, the unclogging of a spring, the filling of the “middle room” (i.e., soul). Today we focus on a new image – the contrast between fallow ground and plowed ground.

Many Christians stop at salvation, only allowing Holy Spirit into “the back room" of their lives. They are basically choosing to manage their soul themselves, but this is not the abundant life God intends for us. We were created to be in full surrender to the love and lordship of our Maker.

Guest speaker Mark Nyeswander connected CCC’s foundational text – Ezekiel 47, that powerful representation of the transforming life of God as a river – to Jesus’ statement that “Whoever believes in me … out of his inmost being will flow rivers of living water.” The life of God, through the Holy Spirit, is meant not simply to be in us, but to fill us and flow from us.

Now that we have finished our Growing in Wholeness series, we look to the One who is central to our wholeness, the One Jesus told us he would send to “be with us forever – the Spirit of truth.” We will spend the next month or so exploring and celebrating the nature and work of the Holy Spirit.

"For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory? Where, O death, is your victory Where, O death, is your sting?’” (1 Corinthians 15:53-55)

Our Growing in Wholeness series concludes with the message that wholeness is an ongoing journey – revelations, insights, releases and healings bring joyous breakthroughs, but these are not the end; we must continue to walk out our faith.

Prior to this week's message, worship pastor Jae Lesley and his wife, Kaci, shared about God’s call on them to plant a church in New Mexico. Pastor Keith's sermon focuses on the need to be aware and alert, for the devil “roams about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

This message is closely related to last week’s message about lies and deceptions. If we come to accept the lies and distortions of our enemy or the world, we often take the next enslaving step of making agreements or even vows that align our minds and hearts with the voice of our enemy, thus giving him a stronghold in our lives.

Deception is at the very heart of Satan’s strategy to “steal, kill, and destroy.” So much of our brokenness is rooted in deception, but God wants to free us from these lies – this is an essential part of our growing in wholeness.

Nobody likes suffering (and rightly so), but it is an inescapable part of life. So how do we deal with it? Here Pastor Keith discusses how God can strengthen us to walk through suffering, and how we can bear with it in a way that does not lead to brokenness.

We have examined our own sin, and the need to forgive the sins of others against us. Now we shift to “generational sins” – the brokenness in our family tree that produces patterns of dysfunction and unhealthy behavior.

Forgiveness is one of the essential aspects of wholeness. Last week we explored why we need to forgive. This week we will examine what forgiveness really is and how to forgive.

This week we begin with the changed-life testimony of one of our missionaries, Chance Galloway, then continue our Growing in Wholeness series with a look at the brokenness that results from the sins of others against us.

Growing in wholeness begins with understanding the nature of sin, for all brokenness is rooted in sin. We began last week with an honest look at our own sin; the focus today is on habitual sin in our lives.

We can be quick to blame other people or other circumstances for our condition. While it's true that people or circumstances may have played a role, it is essential to understand that our own sin is our most fundamental problem. We are 100 percent responsible for our sinful choices.

Salvation is much more than a ticket for getting into heaven after we die. The fullness of salvation is captured in the Greek word sozo – “to save, deliver and make whole.” In other words, salvation and wholeness are inextricably connected.

Paul wrote that we have the treasure of God’s redeeming grace in “jars of clay.” We are earthen, fragile, broken vessels, but many of us ignore or hide this truth. God wants wholeness for us, and that begins with acknowledging our brokenness and bringing it to Him.

In the wake of our January 8-11 “Call the Awaken” gatherings, Pastor Keith challenges us to keep pursuing God and trust Him for “more than we can ask or imagine.”