church of Christ Christian Ekklesia Podcast

God’s Higher Calling

February 7, 2008 – 10:15 pm
It would be fascinating to listen to people in the different stages of successful marriage discuss the higher calling of marriage. Don't you think that would be fascinating? What would a person deeply in love, engaged to be married soon, and genuinely prepared to marry, say about the higher calling of marriage? The higher calling of marriage is to love. Marriage should make the person feel loved as he or she had never felt loved before. Making the person feel loved is the higher calling of marriage. What would newlyweds who had been married a month and love being married say about the higher calling of marriage? The higher calling of marriage is to feel truly a part of someone else's life. Sharing life in marriage is an incredible experience! Achieving shared life is the higher calling of marriage." What would a couple who had begun their family, who have two small children ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

The Only Thing We Will Take To Heaven

February 4, 2008 – 9:12 pm
Husbands, I want to ask you some questions about your wives. What is the most difficult request your wife has ever made of you? What is your wife's most difficult expectation in your life? What is the greatest challenge your wife has ever given you? Wives, l want to ask you some questions about your husbands. What is the most difficult request your husband has ever made of you? What is your husband's most difficult expectation in your life? What is the greatest challenge your husband has ever given you? To the unmarried, may I ask you the same questions about your parents or your closest friend? What is the most difficult request ever made of you? What is the most difficult expectation placed on you? What is the greatest challenge someone else has given you? Likely, for most of us, each of those questions has a different answer. The most difficult request ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Black and White

February 3, 2008 – 12:13 pm
Separate and Apart from our normal Podcasts that devote all of our time to God and personal instruction in righteousness I offer this Podcast during Black History Month.  This Podcast actually contains a song that is rather unusual for one of our Podcasts.  I belong to the church of Christ and normally any music would be in a Acappella Worship style without Music.  Let all of us please put all of our many differences to the side while thinking about this beautiful song and the words in it written specifically for Black History Month. Black History Month has a new meaning for me as a Christian than ever before.  Truly one of God's greatest plans is and was diversity. However it is one of those things that man keeps messing up for each other all through History.  I will be honest with each and every one of you.  I do not know what it is like to be a Black Person or ...

Posted in church of Christ Special | No Comments »

What Difference Does It Make

January 31, 2008 – 7:32 pm
Greg, I have a question. This is the fourth Podcast that you have talked about the old and the new. In examining the old and the new, you have shown us how the Old Testament law was specifically given in God's attempt to gain control of and redirect those Israelite slaves who had just been released from Egypt. I understand that. You have shown us that God did not send Jesus to fix the law and make it work through Jesus because it did not work the first time. I understand that. You have shown us that Old Testament Judaism and New Testament Christianity have some general similarities, but they are actually distinctly different. I understand that. You have shown us that Jesus' thought patterns were distinctly different from the thought patterns of the legalistic Jewish leaders. I understand that. But here is my question: what difference does it make? If you look at ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Does Knowledge Help You Or Hurt You

January 24, 2008 – 11:37 pm
Since the end of World War II, America has increasingly grown into an education oriented society. The basic objective of education was dedicated to acquiring knowlege. For many decades, as a society, we have been convinced that proper, accurate knowledge is the most important factor in resolving problems. We are told that the key to stopping our national epidemic of sexually transmitted diseases is knowledge. We are told that the key to reducing our national epidemic of teen pregancy is knowledge. We are told that the key to reducing our crime rate is knowledge. We are told that the key to healing the alienation between ethnic groups who dispise each other is knowledge.   It is probable that today's living generations in America collectively have more education than in any previous time period in this nation's history. As a society, in this age of technology, today's living generations have been exposed to more ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Jesus Emphasized The New

January 22, 2008 – 11:09 pm
One of the eternal struggles in human existence is created by the ever present reality of established thinking clashing with new thinking. In every age, established thought patterns exist and new thought patterns emerge. In every age, people struggle because when established thinking tries to grasp new thinking. Why the struggle? New thought patterns require you to learn how to think in new ways. It is not just a matter of learning new knowledge. It is a matter of learning how to think as you have never thought before. Experienced adults think easily, naturally, and comfortable in old, established ways of thinking. Experienced adults do not grasp new ways of thinking easily. When you are young, you are establishing your thought patterns. New ways of thinking do not disturb you because all thought patterns are new to you. After your thought patterns are firmly established, new ways of thinking drive you nuts. ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Looking Past The Old to See The New

January 21, 2008 – 11:15 pm
As Christians, many in Churches of Christ have an unusual way of determining and interpreting the basic nature of Christianity. We declare that we are not under the law of Moses (the law that was the foundation of Judaism in both the Old and New Testaments). Yet, we use the format and approach of Old Testament law to dictate the function of Christianity and to declare what Christians are required to do. Our reasoning commonly following this line of thinking: God is the God who gave and relied on law in Old Testament Judaism. Since He is the same God, we should interpret Christianity on the basis of law. An objective, unprejudiced person who is not familiar with Churches of Christ could conclude that Christianity is just a reformed, improved version of Judaism. God did not accomplish what He first intended to do through the Law of Moses, so He perfected ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

God Makes Everything New

January 19, 2008 – 5:31 am
Tonight I will begin some studies with you that can actually change your life. I will share with you insights and understandings that have changed my life. I am not talking about changing your faith. I am not talking about increasing your knowledge. I am talking about advancing your insights and understandings. These insights and understandings helped me see God differently (with greater accuracy), they helped me see salvation differently (with greater accuracy), and they helped me see Christ differently (with greater accuracy). Tonight I want you to focus on one basic understanding: when God sent Jesus to be our Savior, He was not "fixing" the Old Testament law or Judaism. The Old Testament system, which came from God, did not need "fixing," or "adjusting," or "improving," or "restructuring," or "amending." If we have developed the idea that God did not do it right the first time with Israel so He ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Worship Do You Know It When You Do It

January 17, 2008 – 10:44 pm
Let's suppose that this morning you and I worship with a group of Christians in the area where Jesus lived. We are actually stepping back in time to worship with a group of Christians just twenty years after Jesus was executed. In fact, there are a few men and women in this congregation who actually saw and heard Jesus when he lived. For us, three circumstances make this Sunday morning worship strange and unusual. The first strange thing: Sunday is the day that begins their work week. Saturday is that country's religious day. For them, Sunday is the same thing Monday is to us. It's not a weekend day; it's the day to go back to work. Normal everyday life and normal work are occurring just like it would on Tuesday or Thursday. In fact, only Christians worship today; everyone else worshiped yesterday. The second strange thing: there is no church building. ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

For What Food Do You Hunger

January 17, 2008 – 12:08 am
What is the kindest thing you ever did for your family? What is the kindness thing you ever did for a fellow Christian? What is the kindest thing you ever did for someone you did not know? What is the kindest thing you ever did for someone who did not even know you helped them? One of the greatest joys we can experience is the joy of helping someone else. There is a sense of fulfillment discovered in helping others that is found in few other experiences. It is ironic but true that helpfulness arising from kindness adds meaning to life. However, one of the most discouraging experiences in life is discovered when a person attempts to exploit our kindness. Consider this depressing sequence of events. In compassion, you help someone. At first, the person truly appreciates your kindness. Soon after you help the person, the person decides to exploit your kindness. ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Gods Dedication To Healing

January 15, 2008 – 11:52 pm
My Webster's Dictionary defines healing by using the following concepts. To heal means to make sound or whole, to restore, to patch up, to remedy, to return to a sound state. These concepts commonly refer to health where physical health has been lost. However, these concepts can and do have a broader application. Today, I want all of us to think in terms of broader applications. I have spent most of my life and most of my ministry helping and encouraging those who are broken seek soundness. Spiritually, that often includes the need for repentance and the need to trust God's forgiveness. Physically, that commonly includes making sick or ruptured human relationships sound again. It always includes the need to find and support a sense of peace. I have spent decades in numerous contexts urging people to find soundness rather than to live in brokenness, to live in peace instead of promoting conflict. ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

The Challenge Of Disappointment

January 13, 2008 – 11:30 pm
How do Christians deal with disappointment created by other Christians? We live in a society filled with cynicism, ready to criticize anything or anyone. Our society tells us to think the worst and expect it to happen in every situation. A common response: "That is what I expected!" In our democracy, we do not fear finding fault with anyone. This trait causes people in other governmental systems to shake their heads in disbelief as they marvel. While on the mission field, we informed one of our workers that our Vice President had to resign because he failed to pay his taxes. The worker replied, "Excuse me, but who tells a Vice President to pay taxes?" In his world, telling a Vice President to pay taxes was TROUBLE with unthinkable consequences. A man or woman assembles with the congregation "every time the door is open." However, he or she lives a double life--one ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Understanding Each Other

January 7, 2008 – 10:32 pm
I am not seeking an agreement with my perspective. All I want is to move you to think. I am convinced that when people think, they move closer to understanding each other and God. The result is that faith in God and Christ grows. All I ask you to do is think with an inquiring mind. Most of us have little insight into how much controversy and reaction Jesus caused among his own people. His work and teachings caused people to think as they had never thought before. People (including us) are not good at thinking brand new (to us) thoughts. Controversy and reaction is not what Jesus wanted or sought (consider his grief in Matthew 23:37-39). He wanted to redirect people toward God's core concerns. He wanted people to value God's concept of compassion. He wanted people to see God's character and concerns as He is, not as they had ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

Jesus Proactive Or Reactive

January 6, 2008 – 12:34 am
I want to be a Christian. What does that mean? It depends on who makes that statement. If the person making the statement has not entered Christ, has not made the commitment to follow Christ, the statement means that he or she has decided to enter Christ and commit his or her life to Christ. His or her faith in the crucified, resurrected Jesus has reached the point that he or she is ready to be born into God's family by baptism. To the person who, because of faith in the crucified, resurrected Jesus, has been baptized into Christ, that statement means something else. When he or she says, "I want to be a Christian," that statement means, "I want to be what God through Jesus made me. By God's forgiveness, mercy, and grace, He made me His son or daughter when I was baptized into Christ. By His power, through ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »

The Many Forms of Faith

January 4, 2008 – 11:41 pm
If I asked you to list some Christian concepts that are simple to study and easy to understand, what concepts would you list? Let me give you a list to choose from. Which of these concepts would you say were simple to study and easy to understand? The word of God Accepting the word of God Faith Repentance Confession Baptism Obedience God's Authority Jesus' Lordship I wonder how many of us would say that all those concepts are simple to study and easy to understand? As you made your selections from that list, I wonder how many of you put faith on your list of concepts simple to study and easy to understand? We have simple explanations for everything on that list, and we understand our simple explanations. However, if we did some in depth study, we would discover that all of them are harder to study than we anticipated and far more challenging to understand than we imagined. Let me illustrate ...

Posted in church of Christ Podcasts | No Comments »