Revolution Church

This talk is a bit of an emotional one. Emotional more in the sense of frustration being an emotion. Jay talks about the struggles we encounter when we live (or try our hardest to live) the practice of disagreeing and arguing well. It’s getting harder to stay the course as more shootings happen and politicians do nothing, division grows and it seems like no one is helping–or even cares. Politics seems to be more about theatrics than it is about leadership these days. But we have to try to keep focused, we have to speak truth to both sides. We need to realize when we’re being lied to, even by our ‘own side.’ Because so much of Jesus’ life and teaching is about how no one is ever ‘the other’ and Paul understood this. He had a very different way of seeing Jesus. Seeing him more for His accomplishment of the cross. Jay discusses this and looks at passages from Mark and John, because Jesus wasn’t killed by Rome because of his exclusivity, but because of his inclusion of everyone, with no ‘othering.’ Sharing meals, showing humanity. We can’t let politics and politicians to become idols. We need to get back to the basics with Jesus–we need to have less enemies. We need to be bigger than our identities. Be bigger than our politics. To have empathy. To show and see humanity. And above all, to love. We can do this!This talk was given on April 2, 2023 from Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Guest Peter Rollins, a philosopher and storyteller, brings to life Paul Tillich's profound sermon, exploring themes of sin and grace. He delves into how traditional concepts like sin have lost their power and need re-examination. Rollins highlights the painful human experience of estrangement and the transformative nature of grace, which fosters acceptance and reconciliation. He addresses how grace can heal relationships and overcome societal divisions, urging listeners to embrace the acceptance from a greater reality for inner peace.

Here we are, week 2 and the conclusion of Paul Tillich’s talk You Are Accepted. This week Jay finishes his study on this Tillich sermon. As Jay says a few times in this talk ‘let’s not take these words lightly.’ Last week we talked a bit about sin, but this week we’re onto all the good stuff about grace. Do we know what it means to be struck by grace? Does being struck by grace mean we suddenly believe God exists? Or that Jesus is the savior? Or even that the bible contains the truth? Or is getting struck by grace something different that that? Is it better to refuse God and Jesus in the bible, or to accept them without grace? These are heavy thoughts, tricky to wrap our heads around. Because grace is bigger than we understand. As Tillich teaches, moral progress may be a fruit of grace, but it is not grace itself. And sometimes it can actually prevent us from receiving grace. Both Paul Tillich’s original sermon, and Jay’s discussion of it can really help us navigate such a tricky and complex topic. Helping us learn what grace is and accept it. And ourselves. And others. To not create God in the image of other Christians or people from church. To not become all of the things we hate. And maybe, just maybe, these discussions can help us on our fall into grace and what it means to be struck by it.Here is a link to Paul Tillich’s “You Are Accepted”. Revolution is sticking around and there are some great things to come.https://wedgeblade.net/files/archives_assets/20810.pdfThis talk was given on March 19, 2023 from Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We made it through Galatians! And while we’re always a bit bummed to finish up that study, this year we’re immediately moving onto something just as great. Paul Tillich’s talk You Are Accepted. In this first week of the study, Jay dives into some backstory onto who Tillich is and walks us through some of his credentials. Then we go right on in! There isn’t much to say in this write-up because it’s all in the talk today. It’s all about learning what Tillich has to say on grace, and also try to sort out what ideas we might need to reject in order to better understand it. Because grace isn’t always the easiest thing to explain. In fact, Tillich argues that it is just as hard to describe as sin is. It’s a great talk that really pushes for a diversity of thought and the dangers of Christianity becoming more of a separator rather than a unifier. But, hey, nobody’s perfect, we’re all human and we’re all flawed–we’re working on it though! So, thank goodness for Paul TillichHere is a link to Paul Tillich’s “You Are Accepted”. Revolution is sticking around and there are some great things to come.https://wedgeblade.net/files/archives_assets/20810.pdfThis talk was given on March 12, 2023 from Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re at the end of Galatians, and now we’re sad. But next week the discussion of Grace continues with Paul Tillich’s talk “You Are Accepted.” But before we get to that, let’s finish up Galatians. A lot of this talk is about trying to find a safe space for unsafe conversations. Jay makes reference to two Jon Stewart interviews that he feels encompasses a cross-section of society today. And like many other interviews or news reports, these cross-sections fit right into what Paul is talking about in his letter to the Galatians. It’s interesting how timeless this letter is…but also very frustrating with how little things seemed to have changed since this was written. Galatians really deals with the fact that we’re all human–and all humans are nuanced beings. So why are we not acting that way? Why do we insist on legalism and binary thinking? Paul tells us to restore people with a spirit of gentleness. Why then do we tend to act more like an army that shoots it’s hurt and wounded? We need to find a place where we can share our burdens with each other but at the same time not give these burdens and struggles to others. We need to focus on our own burdens, and love everyone else. Otherwise nothing grows. Worse than that, nothing grows because the ground is so toxic. So how can we navigate this? What is this other way? A third way? A way of nuance and grace. That is what we’re discussing today. And how we need to do our best to never tire of taking the high ground, never tire of showing grace. It’s very very hard. But in walking this path we know we’re doing the right thing. We know we are loving others the best we can.Here is a link to Paul Tillich’s “You Are Accepted”. Revolution is sticking around and there are some great things to come.https://wedgeblade.net/files/archives_assets/20810.pdfThis talk was given on March 5, 2023 from Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Galatians series is back! This week we finish up chapter 5! Before the talk starts Jay shares some news about Revolution and where it is going, and some epiphanies he’s discovered. Then we dive right in–Two weeks ago, when we left Paul and his letter, he was discussing the current state of the people he was writing to–they were divided, clashing, and tearing each other apart. They were being consumed by each other. There was no love and there was no peace. Why does this sound familiar? Why does this sound like Paul is writing to us today? Has anything even changed? In this chapter Paul summarizes the whole of the Law, and what it amounts to: Love. Loving each other. Are we so divided now that it’s impossible to have peace and community? People are full of nuance and there really is no blanket way to deal with everyone. We need to accept each other and ourselves radically. We need to learn to live with the lack. We need to radically accept the lack. We need kindness and gentleness. We can’t allow ourselves to fall victim to this hierarchy of suffering where we base our grace on who we like more, and take them more seriously. Seeing them as more human than we do others. Paul addresses all of this and more in these last few verses of chapter 5, and has us asking the question: What is the kingdom of Heaven?This talk was given on February 26, 2023 from Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donate Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Whoa nelly, we’ve got a long one today! The talk wasn’t supposed to be that long, but sometimes things just get away from you. And when Josh starts talking about the Bible and God…and Star Wars…and wrestling…and cats…and music, well these things just happen. Today’s talk is about trying to find the magic in the Bible. Especially after years of deconstructing, does that kill the magic of it all? The wonder of it all? Is there a difference between deconstruction and destruction? Today’s talk is also about choosing friends and loved ones even if you have different beliefs. To focus on the importance of each other, rather than then throwing it all away because you start to disagree with each other. The talk also dives into the question of if something can be true even if it’s not literal. Does truth equal literal? Can something be a metaphor but still be completely true? Can something have inconsistencies and contradictions and still be true? If we learn to loosen our grip and allow for humanity, are those contradictions as strong as they once were? What changes? If something happened that proved the Bible to just be a book, a run of the mill book, do the insides of it change? Does the wisdom, poetry, insight…does that just fade away into nothing like it never existed? Is the Bible bigger than just three stories from the first book? As you can see there is a lot to talk about and dive into and wrestle with, so why are you still reading this? Let’s fire this episode up and see what conclusions we can come up with and what magic we can find.This talk was given on February 19, 2023 from Long Island, New York.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’ve made it to Galatians 5!...well sort of. We’ve made it to Galatians 5.1. There are a few very important things in this chapter so we don’t want to rush it. In this chapter, very much the thread of the letter as a whole, Paul is discussing the dangers of legalism and makes a point for the fact that the Law that was set up with Moses was only temporary and that Jesus fulfilled that Law. But even though the Law is fulfilled, legalism always finds a way. It found a way back then, and it still does today. Does being so tied to the Law make Jesus’s death in vain? There is something to be said about this letter, being the earliest Christian writing, to be a rebuke letter about turning back to the Law. About this transgression of thinking that certain people shouldn’t be allowed to call themselves Christians simply because they don’t do what we want them to do. They don’t live how we want them to live. And still today that is the biggest issue we have with Christianity today is people creating rules and regulations based on their own biases. Don’t get me wrong when we say this, we are also talking about ourselves. We too, sad as it is, fall victim to this. Why are we so hesitant to love people we disagree with? Is it because of our own insecurities, or something else? Are our traditions only hurting us because we’re holding them so tightly? Do we hold people to too high of an expectation? Are we being consumed by one another? Has biting and devouring done us all in? Hopefully Paul can continue to help us figure all of this out! This talk was given on February 12, 2023 in Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After taking a week off from Galatians to take time and reflect on how the world seems to be going to hell in a handbasket, we’re back! Galatians 4! This chapter is Jay’s least favorite part of this study–but he’s going to do his best to make it make sense for us. Paul expresses some concern in this chapter. Concern that maybe all of his efforts are wasted because everyone is going back to their old ways. The people are split, and split to the extent that they throw everything out…including Jesus. Phew, good thing that sort of stuff isn’t happening these days, right? Paul asks where the goodwill people once felt towards him has gone. He notices that he has become an enemy because of the truth he is sharing. And here we are, like 2000 years later, still having the same issues it seems. So, like Paul, Jay encourages us to look into ourselves and try to find our idols. What have we become slaves to? What dictates our lives? What do we exclude people over? What happened to love? What happened to grace? Why aren’t we compassionate or patient with each other? Hopefully Galatians can keep helping us find our way a bit. This talk was given on February 05, 2023 in Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re taking the week off from our 2023 Galatians study. Why? Because the world is in a bad place. A very bad place. We need to be aware of the suffering going on and we need to be aware of people losing hope. Some people may only get the crumbs from the table, but what about those people that don’t even get any crumbs. This is also a good point for us to take this small break from Galatians and do some self-reflecting. To think on what we’ve learned so far. Revolution is made up of many people, a lot of those who have been hurt by the church, hurt to the extent that we left the church altogether, and sometimes even lost faith altogether. But why do we tune into Revolution on Sundays? It’s because maybe we can identify with the outcasts. With the least of these. But in doing so we have to go further. Put movement to all of it. To go that second mile. Just imagine what we could do if Christianity stopped acting like an exclusive club. What if it didn’t turn into what it hated. If we could all be open to nuance and to just be human beings and to see others as human beings. Just think of what change that could bring!  This talk was given on January 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington.www.facebook.com/revolutionchurchmnwww.revolutionchurch.com/donatewww.youtube.com/revolutionbroadcasting@jaybakker@revolution1994@revolution94 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.