Watch/Listen
Topic: Nationalism
God’s Shadow Activity
When people read the Old Testament, it can be a bit confusing to those that know Jesus and his ministry. In this sermon, Greg talks about how the Law in the Old Testament was simply a shadow of the cross, and that the ugliness in the Old Testament simply shows how far humanity was separated from God. Read More
The Lutheran Thread
There are many values of Lutheranism that flow through the life of Woodland Hills Church. In this sermon, Greg talks about these threads and how they impact our way of doing church. Whether it’s sola scriptura or the faith/grace interaction, we are not alone in our use of Luther’s teachings. Read More
Out of the Darkness
It’s impossible to live in this world and not see the evil that happens. This evil happens because of the free will of evil forces in creation. But there is hope in this darkness. In this sermon, Greg explains how we lived in the kingdom of darkness and have been brought into the Kingdom of God. Read More
In Christ Our Permanent Residence
As we start our new sermon series in Colossians, it is important to remember the foundations on which the early Church stood. Living in Christ, for the early Church, was the same as living at an address, and it had large implications for how they viewed themselves. In this sermon, Greg points out some of these implications and also gives a little history behind Paul’s letter to Colossae. Read More
Turning Jesus Over to Caesar
Jesus was being set up by some schemers who were trying to trap Jesus. They asked him whether or not Jews should pay taxes to Caesar or not. His answer undermined the game the schemers were playing and will challenge the way we relate to our own government.
Kingdom Holiness
Greg gives us a timely reminder that the Kingdom of God is not the same as the kingdom of this world. Truly Christian public expressions of this Kingdom will resemble Jesus’ life: washing others feet, trusting God to meet our needs, sacrificing of ourselves for others, loving our enemies, turning the other cheek. This is what holiness does, and it is radically different from everything else in the world! And we must always be on guard, as there is a constant pull to desecrate the holiness of God by confusing God and the world. Read More
In But Not of the World
In this sermon, Greg responded to the top five questions he received while preaching “The Cross and the Sword” series. Maybe you’ve been asking some of these questions: “What’s the difference between turning the other cheek and letting yourself be abused?” and “Are you saying that the church is politically irrelevant?” Read More
Be Thou My Vision
Human beings have deep and fallen passions that propel us into continual conflict with one another, the theme behind “Troy,” the movie based on Homer’s “Iliad.” We are stuck in a pattern from which we can be freed ONLY by embracing the paradoxical kingdom of God. Christians are to imitate Christ, period; we are not called to create another version of the kingdom of the world. Read More
Is the Church the Guardian of Social Morality?
The Cross and the Sword series continued with this sermon, which covered the final effect of failing to distinguish between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world: we Christians begin to see ourselves as the “protectors” and “fixers” of social morality, as the moral standard bearers. But our only job as the body of Christ is to look like Jesus, the one sinless human, who stood in unity with others and met their needs. Greg also addressed the idea that America is a theocracy. Read More
