As Christians, we have been saved unto eternal life. We have been moved from darkness to light, from death to life. We have, by God's grace, been raised with Jesus Christ and are seated with with him in the heavenly places. We are forgiven of all sins—past, present, and future—and are free from our deserved condemnation. Honestly, this list could get very long if we simply continued to list all the beautiful, wonderful blessings the believer has through faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the...
Apr 23, 2021•38 min•Season 6Ep. 16
Current news headlines suggest that we have a lot to be afraid of. A spreading virus, a falling economy, government overreach, climate change, creeping totalitarianism, the disintegration of the family, attacks on freedom of speech, and accusations of hate speech. It's like we’re in a house of mirrors that, instead of seeing our own reflection everywhere we turn, we see the reflection of something that could kill us, hurt us, or take something from us. We’re surrounded! Yet, at the same time, fe...
Apr 13, 2021•39 min•Season 6Ep. 15
They say "seeing is believing". While human beings have always sought to understand and explain things that are confusing to them, now, more than ever perhaps, the world is very skeptical of things that don't make sense. And while there are parts of Christianity that are agreeable to most, the reality is that Christians worship a supernatural God whose actions can't always be explained or understood in a natural way. Key Passage: 1 Corinthians 15:1-19 Speaker: Andrew Longmire...
Apr 08, 2021•36 min•Season 6Ep. 14
In Hebrews 11:1 we see that hope is another aspect of faith in the unseen or the future. Hope is faith directed to the future . Hope in the secular sense is the expectation of good. Christian hope goes beyond that to the expectation of God and Christ. I believe that God not only worked in the past and is working in the present, but will work in the future for his glory and my blessing. He has made promises to that effect. Believing in those promises and having a sureness that they will unfold, a...
Mar 31, 2021•43 min•Season 6Ep. 13
Suppose today Jesus was to ask you, “What are you seeking?” What would you say? What would you tell him? Could you tell him that you were seeking God with all of your heart, all of your soul, all of your strength and all of your mind? Could you even tell him that mostly you were trying to seek him but you slip just a little now and then? Could you say that? While world leaders today are busy talking about the Great Reset, a new start, a new beginning for humanity, (really, the humanistic new cre...
Mar 25, 2021•44 min•Season 6Ep. 12
It’s wise to, once-in-a-while, be reminded of what we already know so as to make sure we’re still moving in the right direction. It’s why a student will return to their course syllabus, why a traveller will recheck their compass, why a chef reviews their recipe, and why a contractor revisits their blueprints. These actions are rarely taken with the intention of learning something new but, rather, to be reminded of what’s expected, what lays ahead, and what they’re supposed to be doing. Matthew 8...
Mar 16, 2021•36 min•Season 6Ep. 11
Key Passage: Hebrews 11:1–6 Speaker: Dr. Jim Rennie
Mar 10, 2021•46 min•Season 6Ep. 10
In the early days of his earthly ministry, Jesus made many bold claims. He said he was going to make fishers of men (4:19). He declared himself humanity’s final Judge (7:22–23) and the ultimate fulfiller of the law (5:17), a law he asserted had been mishandled and mis-taught by Israel’s religious leaders (5:20–48). Yet, perhaps Jesus’s boldest claim was that he was the God-promised King they’d been waiting centuries for and that, if they repented as a nation, he would establish the anticipated e...
Mar 01, 2021•34 min•Season 6Ep. 9
Storms in this life are as inescapable as they can be vicious. The rains of depression, fearfulness, and loneliness fall. The floods of personal sin, family tension, and relational brokenness come. The winds of cultural tension, social pressure, and godless societies blow. And all of it, at times, slams against the walls of our lives. In fact, so common is this experience that it can safely be assumed that each and every one of us is, right now, recovering from , going through , or preparing for...
Feb 27, 2021•36 min•Season 6Ep. 8
We worship a relational God. Being mysteriously Trinity—one God eternally existing in three distinct-but-equal Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—God has always been in perfect relationship with himself. And it’s this relational God who created humanity in his image and likeness (Gen 1:26–27). As such, each of us has been created longing for , surrounded by , and in need of relationships. The problem is, Genesis 1 is followed by Genesis 3 and, when sin entered the world and the curse fell upo...
Feb 17, 2021•39 min•Season 6Ep. 7
The Bible claims (and we believe!) that “ all Scripture is inspired by God and useful ” (2 Timothy 3:16). However, the usefulness of all Scripture is not uniformly self-evident with some passages seem more obviously applicable and more immediately practical than others! Arriving at the second half of Matthew 6, we find a text that requires very little explanation as to its modern-day relevance as, in it, Jesus addresses two temptations that each and every Christian has , is , or will battle in t...
Feb 07, 2021•40 min•Season 6Ep. 6
Today we’re going to fight a disease together, one that often goes undetected and has eternal side-effects. The disease is that of exhibitionism —the desire to be seen and validated for doing or saying something. This is a sickness that controls lives, binds consciences, distorts motives, and spreads quickly. While exhibitionism is always ugly, it may be at its worst when it gets into the church. You see, Christians are not immune. We’re all vulnerable to the desire of wanting to be seen doing c...
Feb 01, 2021•40 min•Season 6Ep. 5
Lew walks us through the first fourteen verses of Colossians and into the context of Colossae, where a new form of heresy was sneaking into the church. Paul's message was simple: “there is no other name under heaven, given among men, whereby you must be saved…” In short, everything you need is in Jesus. In the first verses of this powerful letter, Paul gives a full-bodied picture of Christ, and then encourages the believers, prays for them, and reminds them of what God has done for them already,...
Jan 24, 2021•42 min•Season 6Ep. 4
In these days characterized by repeated lockdown, constant inconvenience, forced isolation, and a seemingly never-ending stream of bad news, do you find yourself increasingly tired, frustrated, and burdened? Or, if you don’t , do you know anyone who does? What, as Christians, are we supposed to do in response? This morning, from Psalm 61, we’re going to find some divine guidance on what to do when we we feel weary and inadequate, helpless and fearful. As we study this passage, we’re going to fin...
Jan 17, 2021•36 min•Season 6Ep. 3
COVID-19 has forced us apart as a church and paused or changed many of the functions of our church, but we recognize the virus doesn’t exempt us from being the church. The reality and mission of the body of Christ transcends continents, eras, and even pandemics. God has given us assignments to which we must dedicate ourselves regardless of circumstance. These are God-given lighthouses at which we must stare and move toward, especially when the winds are strong, the waves are high, and the fog is...
Jan 11, 2021•46 min•Season 6Ep. 2
The arrival and spread of the coronavirus has largely rendered churches oxymoronic unassembled assemblies tantamount to an uncrowded crowds or ungrouped groups. At Oakridge, our prayer and mission is to be a church that's like family. But how do we become family from afar? How can we operate as a body when our members are disconnected from one another? Today we’re going to be reminded that the separation-causing hardship we’re currently facing as a church family is not unprecedented. It’s happen...
Jan 07, 2021•36 min•Season 6Ep. 1
The author of Hebrews gave believers a task: "Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds ... , not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another ; and all the more as you see the day drawing near" (10:24–25). One of the ways we, as the people of God, can stimulate and encourage one another is by sharing stories of God's faithfulness . Sarah Sutherland, a member of Oakridge Bible Chapel, shares some of what God has been teachi...
Dec 27, 2020•10 min•Season 5Ep. 54
The author of Hebrews gave believers a task: "Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds ... , not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another ; and all the more as you see the day drawing near" (10:24–25). One of the ways we, as the people of God, can stimulate and encourage one another is by sharing stories of God's faithfulness . Bertha Maoka, a member of Oakridge Bible Chapel, shares an abridged version of what God has ...
Dec 27, 2020•8 min•Season 5Ep. 53
The author of Hebrews gave believers a task: "Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds ... , not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another ; and all the more as you see the day drawing near" (10:24–25). One of the ways we, as the people of God, can stimulate and encourage one another is by sharing stories of God's faithfulness . Bruce Pellowe, a member of Oakridge Bible Chapel, shares an abridged version of how he came ...
Dec 27, 2020•6 min•Season 5Ep. 52
On this, our final Sunday together before Christmas 2020, we look together at the opening two chapters of Luke's gospel account. In these opening scenes we're remind of the oft-told but never over-told true story about God becoming flesh and dwelling among us. This is the account of how the Infinite took on finitude and the Transcendent condescended to come near. Speaker: Lew Worrad
Dec 22, 2020•40 min•Season 5Ep. 51
Key Passage: Luke 2:1–20 Speaker: Dr. Jim Rennie
Dec 17, 2020•39 min•Season 5Ep. 50
God's people waited hundreds of years for the Messiah. So, too, we wait for the return of Jesus as our coming King. While there are times when we wait with eager anticipation, there are other days when it seems much more like getting weary of waiting. Before Jesus was crucified, he spent some time with disciples, informing them that he was leaving, and giving them some important tasks for his time away. Today we spend time in John 14 looking at this conversation to better understand what to do w...
Dec 07, 2020•32 min•Season 5Ep. 49
One of the unpardonable sins in our culture today is telling someone they’re unqualified—that they don’t meet the standard necessary for participation in a given activity, employment in a specific field, or identification with an individual group. To tell someone that they can’t be or do whatever they want is actually considered by some to be an act of aggression and evidence of hatred. The problem is that we know intuitively (and certainly biblically) that carte blanche affirmation is unsustain...
Dec 06, 2020•37 min•Season 5Ep. 48
After his announcement by John the Baptist (3:1–12), his authentication at baptism (3:13–17), and his proven acceptability through temptation (4:1–11), Jesus finally appears proclaiming the imminent arrival of the kingdom that God had promised to the nation of Israel, that which they had been anticipating for centuries. And while his ministry attracted crowds as large as they were diverse, the long-awaited King takes a moment to instruct his disciples specifically. And, in the opening paragraphs...
Nov 26, 2020•43 min•Season 5Ep. 47
First impressions are important and powerful. It’s why we dress-up for a job interview, act politely on a first date, prepare well for a public presentation, and wear a favourite outfit on the first day of school. First impressions can determine how someone is perceived, thought of, and remembered years after that initial introduction, no matter the meetings’ brevity or seeming insignificance. No doubt, when Jesus first appeared on the scene after his announcement by John (3:1–12), his authentic...
Nov 16, 2020•44 min•Season 5Ep. 46
For centuries the Jewish people had anticipated for the arrival of the promised Messiah, one who would fulfill prophecy by sitting on David’s throne in Jerusalem and establishing a peace-filled, prosperity-bringing, Israel-exalting, liberty-ensuring kingdom without end. In their minds, King and kingdom went hand-in-hand. But now that Jesus—the one who himself claimed, and they believed, to be that King—had come and gone, they were left wondering: Where’s the kingdom? How could Jesus be the King ...
Nov 09, 2020•43 min•Season 5Ep. 45
Key Passage: Selected Passages from John Speaker: Lew Worrad
Nov 03, 2020•45 min•Season 5Ep. 44
Although we now experience the pain of uncertain times, we have a certain hope for the future. Key Passage: Romans 8:18-27 Speaker: Andrew Longmire
Oct 26, 2020•31 min•Season 5Ep. 43
Many Christians are well versed in the teaching of God forgiving our sins. We also know about the teaching of forgiving one another, but there is also confusion in the way that is done. Dr. Jim Rennie teaches on this topic using selected passages in Matthew. Key Passage: Matthew 18:21–35 Speaker: Dr. Jim Rennie
Oct 20, 2020•43 min•Season 5Ep. 42
In Luke 17 we find the account of Jesus healing ten lepers but then finding only one returning to thank and worship him. They had been given a new lease on life and yet 90-percent, for whatever reason, never thought to show gratitude. Likewise (but to a greater extent), believers have been given new life in Christ—by his grace we’ve passed from death to life, darkness to life. Today, on this thanksgiving weekend, we want to make sure that we’re “turning back” together, running to the Giver of li...
Oct 11, 2020•27 min•Season 5Ep. 41
