Watch/Listen
Topic: Sin
Taking Out the Trash
What does it mean to “get saved?” Many people (especially people in the United States) see salvation as a one time event and the result of “believing” certain things about God. While belief is important, salvation encompasses much more than that. The salvation that God offers is a continual personal transformation where the trash of our old lives is replaced by the beauty of God’s Kingdom. Read More
When God Doesn’t Make Sense
As a person with muscular dystrophy, Scott has countless personal experiences that illustrate the principles that Greg taught about in the previous two sermons. Scott has personally wrestled with questions about why some prayers are answered and others are not – most fundamentally related to why he himself hasn’t been healed. Read More
The Growing Giant Jesus
An important reality about being a follower of Jesus is that you are always a part of something that is larger than yourself. This is because followers of Jesus are in the Body of Christ, a collection of people who have completely dedicated themselves to the Kingdom of God. Not only is there interdependence between the people who make up the body, but there is also our link to the Head of the body, Jesus himself. What this means is that the way that we see Jesus and his ministry will affect how we see ourselves as well as our mission in the world. Read More
The Birth of a New Humanity
When we think of the biblical characters, Adam and Jesus, we often think of them simply as individuals. We do this because we are accustomed to thinking according to Western individualistic categories. However, as we dive into the genealogy described in Luke, we are faced with the concept of holistic solidarity, where individuals cannot be separated from the “organic reality” of a larger whole. It is through this solidarity that Jesus becomes the “New Adam” and provides the way for the creation of a New Humanity in Christ. Read More
A Pigeon, a Lion and Deep Magic
God’s love and mercy for us is fully revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. Christ did not come to hold back the wrath of God; rather He came to deliver us from the bondage of Satan. Through sin, we are made slaves to Satan’s dominion. However, through Christ’s death on the cross, we are bought back from the power of sin and death. The sacrifices of the Old Testament remind us of the consequences of sin and point to a time when Christ would pay the price of sin for all who choose to believe in Him. Read More
Escaping the Matrix Conference
The Escaping The Matrix Conference took place on December 9-10, 2005, at Woodland Hills Church. The conference was based on the book Escaping the Matrix, by Greg Boyd and Al Larson, and was led by Greg, Mike Davis, from Ontario, CA and Bobby Bodenhamer, from Gastonia, NC. Like the characters in The Matrix movie trilogy, our minds can get hardwired … Read More
Already, But Not Yet
“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end” (Luke 1:32-33). Such were the words of Gabriel to Mary regarding the coming of Jesus. These were words promising that Jesus would be the Messiah, the one who would reign over the earth, bringing peace and victory.So what does it mean for Jesus to reign today or “for everything to placed under his feet” as Paul writes in Eph 1:22? Where is the victory? Read More
The Good News Revolution
Continuing our study of Luke, we managed to get as far as Luke 1:18-25! Zechariah is in the temple and is visited by the angel Gabriel. Zechariah questions Gabriel about the promises of a son. He has asked for a sign of this. Gabriel grants Zechariah the sign: silence until the birth of John the Baptist! God had sent Gabriel to deliver “good news” to Zechariah. This idea of “good news” was the centerpiece of Greg’s message today. Read More
Sibling Rivalries
Efrem spoke about familes and how they can be a great place to pass down a blessing or they can be a place that can pass down curses. Using Genesis 4:1-11 he tried to help us understand why the events that happened in the story of Cain and Abel could occur. Read More
Neil Anderson, 11:00 a.m. Service
**Please note, this study guide is only applicable to the 11:00 a.m. service. Unfortunately, we did not anticipate that Neil would give three different sermons for each service! Though very generous on his part, it was a surprise to us!** This message challenged us to be content as children of God, walking freely in the Spirit, and it warned us of the two things that might prevent us from experiencing the freedom we have: legalism and license. Read More
