Word of Life Church Podcast

The gospel isn’t a plan or a theory. The gospel isn’t good advice or moral instructions. The gospel is not a collection of God-facts. The gospel is a story. It is the story of Jesus, his life, death, and resurrection.Salvation occurs at the intersection of your story and the Gospel story.

Through the storms in life, Christians since the beginning have held on to an anchor of the hope in Christ. Storms are not something we can avoid in life. So how can we make it through the storm? Looking at the gospel story of Jesus as he calms the storm, we find that we are not alone and we can ask for help in the midst of the storm.

Every life is a story unfolding. We live in a world where bad stories are told and in need of good stories. How might our life tell a good story? This sermon explores how life hinges on the details and how the God of the grand sweeping narrative of the universe is also the God of the details of every human life.

The Book of Ephesians is a densely packed letter busting at the seams with so much: the gospel, the love of God, the mystery of God revealed in the life of the church, family life, and spiritual warfare. The opening of the book, verses 3-14 of chapter 1, is a prayer of thanks and praise to God, written not to isolated individuals, but to the church. We learn that it is not so much that I am blessed, loved, and chosen. Rather it is that I belong to the people of God who are blessed, loved, and chosen.

Your life is a story and we are the stories we tell. It’s in our neurons. God has hard-wired our brains for story, which is why we all like a good story. We love to hear a story of trial and triumph, or a long satisfying journey, or the hero defeating the monster. We all love these, but storytelling is not just a way of entertainment. Telling our stories is a way to practice self-awareness. It is how we form our identity and understand ourselves and make sense of the world around us. And the God of story is forming your story into our story.

What if you only had one last sentence to speak to those closest to you? You might find the words you speak may be the most important words you've ever spoken. This sermon takes a look at the last sentence Jesus ever speaks, "I am with you Always." In doing so we see in Jesus what God is like and has always been like. Click here to Reply or Forward

If we love Jesus then it seems like we should love what Jesus loves. And what does Jesus love? The church. While the New Testament uses many metaphors to describe the church, the most helpful may be the image of church as the body of Christ, the hands and feet of Jesus in the world. Paul in 1 Corinthians 12 uses this metaphor as a way to describe our need for one another in the body of Christ. The foot cannot say to the hand, I have no need of you. We are all needed and the church herself is necessary if we want the faith to continue.

Happy are the people whose strength is in God! whose hearts are set on the pilgrims’ way. –Psalm 84:5Put plain and simple, the Christian life is a pilgrim’s journey. It’s not static, it’s not sedentary, it’s not the mere maintenance of the status quo.It's the difficult and demanding pilgrimage of following Jesus through life. Nothing of this world (by which I mean American culture) prepares us to be Christian. If we think being Christian basically means being a good citizen and going to church on Sunday, we've profoundly misunderstood what it really means to follow Jesus!

How Much a Dollar Cost Kendrick LamarHow much a dollar really cost? The question is detrimental, paralyzin' my thoughts Parasites in my stomach keep me with a gut feeling, y'all Gotta see how I’m chillin' once I park this luxury car Hopping out feeling big as Mutombo "20 on pump 6" - dirty Marcellus called me Dumbo 20 years ago - can't forget Now I can lend all my ear or two how to stack these residuals Tenfold; the liberal concept of what men'll do "20 on 6" - he didn't hear me Indigenous African only spoke Zulu My American tongue was slurry Walked out the gas station A homeless man with a semi-tan complexion Asked me for ten rand, stressin' about dry land Deep water, powder blue skies that crack open A piece of crack that he wanted, I knew he was smokin' He begged and pleaded Asked me to feed him twice, I didn't believe it Told him, "Beat it" Contributin' money just for his pipe, I couldn't see it He said, "My son, temptation is one thing that I've defeated Listen to me, I want a single bill from you Nothin' less, nothin' more" I told him I ain't have it and closed my door Tell me how much a dollar costIt's more to feed your mind Water, sun and love, the one you love All you need, the air you breatheHe's starin' at me in disbelief My temper is buildin', he's starin' at me, I grab my key He's starin' at me, I started the car, then I tried to leave And somethin' told me to keep it in park until I could see The reason why he was mad at a stranger Like I was supposed to save him Like I'm the reason he's homeless and askin' me for a favor He's starin' at me, his eyes followed me with no laser He's starin' at me, I notice that his stare is contagious Cause now I'm starin' back at him, feelin' some type of disrespect If I could throw a bat at him, it'd be aimin' at his neck I never understood someone beggin' for goods Askin' for handouts, takin' it if they could And this particular person just had it down pat Starin' at me for the longest until he finally asked Have you ever opened up Exodus 14? A humble man is all that we ever need Tell me how much a dollar costIt's more to feed your mind Water, sun and love, the one you love All you need, the air you breatheGuilt trippin' and feelin' resentment I never met a transient that demanded attention They got me frustrated, indecisive and power trippin' Sour emotions got me lookin' at the universe different I should distance myself, I should keep it relentless My selfishness is what got me here, who am I kiddin'? So I'mma tell you like I told the last bum Crumbs and pennies, I need all of mines And I recognize this type of panhandlin' all the time I got better judgement, I know when it's hustlin', keep in mind When I was strugglin', I did compromise, now I comprehend I smell grandpa's old medicine, reekin' from your skin Moonshine and gin, now you're babblin', your words ain't flatterin' I'm imaginin' Denzel but lookin' at O'Neal Kazaam is sad thrills, your gimmick is mediocre The jig is up, I seen you from a mile away losin' focus And I'm insensitive, and I lack empathy He looked at me and said, "Your potential is bittersweet" I looked at him and said, "Every nickel is mines to keep" He looked at me and said, "Know the truth, it'll set you free You're lookin' at the Messiah, the son of Jehovah, the higher power The choir that spoke the word, the Holy Spirit The nerve of Nazareth, and I'll tell you just how much a dollar cost The price of having a spot in Heaven, embrace your loss, I am God"I wash my hands, I said my grace What more do you want from me? Tears of a clown, guess I'm not all what is meant to be Shades of grey will never change if I condone Turn this page, help me change, so right my wrongs