Episodes

  • "Maker of Heaven and Earth" and the Grace of Creation

    "Maker of Heaven and Earth" and the Grace of Creation
    Oct 28 2024
    Genesis 1:1-2:3 - The creed declares God to be "maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible," and thus declares the natural outflow of who God is as life-giving Father almighty. In considering God as creator, we are pushed to consider Him as loving provider of free gifts of grace. A sermon by Cameron Heger. [Part 4 of our series "The Nicene Creed: The Ancient Theology of the Triune God"] Questions for reflection: 1) Cameron mentioned that God has always been trinity, Father (and Son and Spirit), and almighty, but that He was not always "creator." What does this tell us about Him? 2) Theologian T.F. Torrance once wrote, “Far from grudging the creation’s existence and reality beyond himself, God freely brought it into being out of his sheer liberality, in order to lavish his love upon it.” Is this how you think of God as creator? Why or why not? 3) How does Genesis 1 speak of the overflowing love of God in its depiction of creation? 4) How does this creator God relate to His now fallen, sin-stained creation? 5) How does the Christian doctrine of creation help us avoid worshipping creation OR abusing/denigrating creation?
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    40 mins
  • "The Father, the Almighty" and an Invitation into the Family of God

    "The Father, the Almighty" and an Invitation into the Family of God
    Oct 21 2024
    John 17:1-3 - The Nicene Creed rightly emphasizes the identity of God as "the Father, the Almighty." These two qualities together--the loving, compassionate, self-giving, life-generating fatherliness of God AND the endlessly powerful, capable might of God--distinguish this God from all others and are a powerful cornerstone of the Christian gospel. May we cherish the privilege of being made His sons and daughters through Jesus! A sermon by Josh Wilder. [Part 3 of our series "The Nicene Creed: The Ancient Theology of the Triune God"] Questions for reflection: 1) What comes to mind when you think of the word "father," "mother," or "parent?" 2) In what ways does human fatherhood illuminate the fatherhood of God? In what ways does it obscure the fatherhood of God? 3) What qualities of God are emphasized when the Bible talks about God as Father? 4) How does Jesus invite us into aspects of His Father-Son relationship to God the Father? 5) Why is it important for God to be both "the Father" and "the Almighty?" What would He be like if He were only one or the other?
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    41 mins
  • "One God," Three Persons, and the Eternal Love

    "One God," Three Persons, and the Eternal Love
    Oct 14 2024
    Exodus 3:13-15; John 14:8-11; Acts 2:1-4 - The Nicene Creed begins with an affirmation that there is "one God," though it makes clear as it goes on that it is not only the Father, but also the Son and the Spirit who are also to be worshipped as God. With this statement, we are plunged into the heart of the mysterious, beautiful doctrine of who the Christian God is: the doctrine of the Trinity and the love of God. A sermon by Cameron Heger. [Part 2 of our series "The Nicene Creed: The Ancient Theology of the Triune God"] Questions for reflection: 1) Why is it important that we spend the effort necessary to think rightly about God? Do you find it naturally exciting or difficult? 2) How is the Trinity different from polytheism (multiple gods), modalism (God shows up in different modes), and subordinationism (Jesus is a lesser god/entity)? 3) Why do you think the Trinity became such an important concept for Christians despite the word not appearing in the Bible? 4) Cameron (following Fred Sanders) argued that we might get our best glimpse at the Trinity in the major moments of salvation history--through the missions of the Father (at the Exodus), the Son (at the incarnation/crucifixion), and the Spirit (at Pentecost). As God acted to save His people, we learned more about who He is. What do you think of this? 5) In John 17:24, Jesus shared about the love He experienced from the Father before creation. What light does this shed on the idea that "God is love"?
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    43 mins
  • "We Believe" and the Need for an Ancient Faith

    "We Believe" and the Need for an Ancient Faith
    Oct 7 2024
    Jude 3 - In an age where ideas and information come and go at the speed of light, there is a deep need for timeless truths that transcend our present moment. In the Nicene Creed we find a summary of “the faith once for all delivered to the saints” and step into a tradition that unites us with Christians across time, geography and the various branches of Christianity. As we anchor ourselves in this ancient statement of faith this year, may God help us see who He is clearly in more of His mystery, beauty, and love. A sermon by Cameron Heger. [Part 1 of our series "The Nicene Creed: The Ancient Theology of the Triune God"] Questions for reflection: 1) Are you experiencing the ephemeral, quickly evaporating nature of ideas and information today? How does an ancient religious faith provide an antidote? 2) What has your relationship to the Apostles' Creed or the Nicene Creed been like? How have you viewed them? 3) Why are summaries of the basics of the Christian faith important for us? What is uniquely important about the Nicene Creed as one of these? 4) Discuss the authority of the creed relative to the authority of Jesus and the Bible. 5) Do you see evidence of people experimenting with "remixed religion" in your friendships? 6) Why is it important that we build our theology in community with others? How does the creed play a part in this?
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    36 mins
  • Embodied Community Among the Image Bearers of God

    Embodied Community Among the Image Bearers of God
    Sep 23 2024
    Genesis 1:26-28; Matthew 22:36-40; Mark 10:28-31 - We are living amidst a loneliness epidemic. There are many reasons for it, but at least one is our retreat from embodied, flesh-and-blood, local communities into digital spaces. In the age of "the machine," it could be that one of the most valuable counter-cultural things we can do is fight for community among the people of God. And perhaps our most powerful witness to the good news of Jesus will come through our living as a Spirit-enabled picture of the love of God between us. A sermon by Cameron Heger. [Part 3 of our 2024 vision series "Human Amidst the Machine"]
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    47 mins
  • Our Enchanted World Through Ancient Eyes

    Our Enchanted World Through Ancient Eyes
    Sep 16 2024
    Psalm 104 - We continue our 2024 vision series considering more ways in which our digital culture leaves us feeling dehumanized and disembodied. In Psalm 104, we find a model for how to reclaim the lens of our ancient faith by moving from distraction to focused attention, from disenchantment to divine recognition, and from disposability to cherishing. A sermon by Cameron Heger. [Part 2 of our 2024 vision series "Human Amidst the Machine"]
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    41 mins
  • The Machine and the One Who Offers Rest

    The Machine and the One Who Offers Rest
    Sep 9 2024
    Matthew 11:28-30 - We begin our 2024 vision series with an examination of the dehumanizing, technological, inhumane age we find ourselves in: what we might call the age of the machine. Amidst all the other stressors of life, it seems our culture is uniquely suited to leaving us feeling distracted, disembodied, and disenchanted. We are anxious, lonely, and tired. Amidst all of this, Jesus's words are like rain in the desert. He promises rest for our souls, if we'll trade out the yokes of this age for His. This year, may we reclaim our genuine humanity in Jesus for one another and for our neighbors. A sermon by Cameron Heger. [Part 1 of our 2024 vision series "Human Admist the Machine"]
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    44 mins
  • The Public Reading of Colossians

    The Public Reading of Colossians
    Sep 2 2024
    Colossians 1:1-4:18 - The public reading of Scripture has been a significant practice for the people of God throughout history. As a church, we join the global and historic church in declaring that the Bible is the divinely inspired, wholly infallible, and completely authoritative Word of God that points us to Jesus, the Word of God made flesh. If this is true, then it is the case that every time people listen to the word of God together there is a fresh opportunity for encounter, obedience and transformation. In this message, a short teaching on the importance of publicly reading scripture is followed by a reading of the entire letter to the Colossians. [Part 8 of our series "Paul's Letter to the Church in Colossae"]
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    34 mins