United Church Podcast

We continue with part two of our seven-week series, Among Kings: How to be a Whole Christian in a Politically Divided World. Pastor Leonce uses the story of Daniel 1:8-21 to highlight the importance of choosing allegiance to God over earthly leaders, even in challenging times. Listen in to explore how Daniel's integrity in Babylon serves as a guide for us today, urging us to resist cultural pressures, trust in God's control, and take practical steps toward deeper faith. Click here for our weekly 5-day devotionals: https://renovationchurch.com/sermon-deep-dive  _________________ Prefer to watch our sermons? Head to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@RenovationChurch For more information on Renovation Church, visit renovationchurch.com

We kick off our seven-week sermon series, Among Kings, exploring how to live as a faithful Christian in a politically divided world. Using the biblical story of Daniel (Daniel 1:1-8), who served under four different kings he didn't choose, we examine the tension between faith and politics. Daniel’s life provides a powerful example of maintaining integrity, faithfulness, and trust in God, even under leaders he disagreed with. Listen in to discover how we can navigate life when political leaders are not of our choosing, and how our ultimate loyalty is to God's kingdom.

On Foster Care Sunday, we welcomed WinShape Homes to share about the importance of foster care. We also heard moving testimonies from foster and adoption parents, showing the impact of opening their homes to children in need. James 1:27 reminds us to "look after orphans and widows in their distress," encouraging us to live out this call to care for the vulnerable. Interested in learning more? Join WinShape's informational session on October 13th to explore how you can get involved in foster care or adoption. Sign up today: https://tinyurl.com/d35jwp6h

Hebrews 10:23-25 emphasizes the importance of holding onto hope and encouraging one another in love and good deeds, especially during times of societal upheaval. Unfortunately, the growing trend of isolation among Americans can lead to a loss of community and faith. During challenging times, the solution is to gather more frequently rather than retreat into solitude. Tune in as Pastor Doug reminds us that meeting together fosters hope and resilience in navigating life's difficulties. 2024 Fall Semester Small Group season is now open! Sign up on the Church Center app or click here: https://tinyurl.com/bwams65t For more information on Renovation Church, visit renovationchurch.com

Churches want to grow, to meet people far from God and introduce them to Jesus; to help them take first steps and next steps in practicing Jesus’ way of life; to invite them to participate in our common work of helping each other grow healthy and mature so we can do the work that God has given us to do as his people and his partners. This church wants to grow. You want to grow, healthy and whole. You want to be the person God lovingly made you to be. But when churches want to grow, there's often something that's missing: churches struggle with the strength of their relational connections. Tune in as we explore the fact that growing together is not automatic and provide practical steps on how you can grow through life-giving relationships.

Duplicity is defined as deceptive, double-dealing, funny business, or fraud. At its core, duplicity is failing to be who we say we are. We need to be keenly aware of the dangers of duplicity. Though this may seem aimed more at those of you who follow Jesus, if you are not a Christian, there is something helpful for you, too. You want to be known as a person who is trustworthy and deals honestly with people. I know you do. So whether you are a Christian or not, there is resonance here. We need to be keenly aware of the danger of being duplicitous in our work. We must be keenly aware of the dangers of duplicity in our marriage. We must be keenly aware of the dangers of duplicity in our friendships, parenting and politics. But more than any other area, we need to be keenly aware of the dangers of dealing falsely with God. Listen in as we continue in The Jesus Revolution sermon series and dive into how to live a life of integrity. For more information on Renovation Church, visit renovationchurch.com.

Your heart desires to share your person and possessions and love people freely. After all, Jesus said, “​It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). If Jesus has changed your life, I believe you aspire to be like Him and live by His words. But here is our reality: Our culture has groomed us to keep instead of release. We intuitively know that there is little satisfaction beyond a certain point of financial comfortability, but my goodness, this hurdle of keeping and collecting keeps getting in the way. I know that can sound nebulous, but it is the best way I can say it. Proximity to Jesus and encounters with the Holy Spirit freed me to move from keeping to sharing, sharing my person and possessions. We see the same in Luke’s record of the early church. The encounters with God’s Spirit motivated the first followers of Jesus to be bold in telling people about Jesus and incredibly open-handed with their person and possessions. The same can happen for all of us. Tune in for the continuation of "The Jesus Revolution" sermon series as Pastor Leonce uncovers three observations about the moment Luke records in Acts 4. If you embrace these observations, you will find the same freedom they did.

Luke tells us that Peter and John showed extraordinary courage under fire during the interrogation in Acts 4:29-31. Boldly, they told the religious leaders that there was no salvation apart from Jesus. Peter sharing Jesus’ resurrection caused issues for the Sadducees. They did not believe in a resurrection of any kind and certainly could not ascribe to a resurrected Messiah, especially that Messiah being Jesus, whom they had just crucified. Here is a question for us to ponder together. What happened the last time you felt that talking about Jesus would cost you? Did you go quiet? Did you retreat? Did you pray for God to get you out of the situation? Tune in as we explore the question of why we should pray for boldness.

We're continuing our sermon series on The Jesus Revolution! The last time we were in Acts, we saw that the tone of Luke’s record shifts. Until this point in Acts four, there had been no resistance to Jesus’ people. Indeed, the picture is of the general acceptance and favor given to them by the people.  Yet, in chapter four, the picture changes. The political leaders, posing as religious figures, turn against Jesus’ people, acting oppositional and breathing threats.  What do we do when our faith in Jesus meets opposition to Jesus? Is there any threat that should cause us to stop telling people what we have experienced and seen in our relationship with Jesus? 

How can we, in our own contexts, prioritise the well-being of others?  The question is born of what I believe is your deep desire: to put others before yourself. I believe that beneath many layers of cultural sediment, our deepest desire is to regard others' interests over our own, particularly if we practice the way of Jesus. Our issue in activating that desire is that our host culture taught us to prioritise ourselves. We have been socialised into self-focus. Family, I have been socialised the same way, into the same behaviour. I know that the struggle is real, and very often, I want to put my preferences, interests, and myself above everyone else, even my own family. But when we received Jesus and, by the Holy Spirit, adopted His will and way, we were re-socialised out of our host culture and into Jesus’ culture. In Jesus’ culture, we put others first because others matter.