Is faith about becoming something you're not or about believing in someone else? Jesus didn't score very high on the good Rabbi assessments, so although imitating him is already out of reach, it wouldn't have gotten us very far anyway. There must be something else going on when Jesus said, "follow me." Explore the scandalous news about Jesus with us and reimagine faith in a whole new light. Check us out or reach out at larksite.com
Mar 20, 2024•7 min•Ep. 37
This episode is an ode to the late Robert Capon on his birthday. Simply put, we'll never be the same after reading Capon's work. He's so astonished at the person of Jesus - his scandalous grace and closeness to us - that his preaching and writing have only begun to shape the life and faith of the church. If you want to be encouraged, and to get 200 proof grace and an unsanitized Jesus, look no further. Raise a glass with us to this modern prophet!
Oct 26, 2023•16 min•Ep. 36
This blog is all about the absurdities of what we call religion and how everything changes on a dime when you take Jesus at his word. In short, grace is not a result of faith . When you discover sin can't actually separate you from God, a sort of freedom appears that you've never imagined. Dive into this episode to explore The Throes Of Grace!
Sep 15, 2023•11 min•Ep. 35
This episode consists of a poem - a new element for this blogcast. It is pure revelry in the reality of our union in Christ. But it is also encouragement for the weary and the wounded. Which is all of us, if we admit it. The poem is followed by some interaction between Russ Johnson and Jameson. Enjoy the change up and let us know how you respond to this piece. We'd love to hear from you - and don't forget to leave us a review so others can find our show. Cheers!
Jun 08, 2023•14 min•Ep. 34
In this final part of the 4 part series called What Must I Do, we take a look at perhaps the most significant reason the answer to the question “What Must I do to inherit eternal life” isn’t what we often think. That reason is, in short, that the incarnation means that in Jesus, we are in the One who is in the Father. Explore more by reading along! www.larksite.com/blog
May 25, 2023•12 min•Ep. 33
This is part 3 of a 4 part series dealing with the biblical question, What must I do to inherit eternal life?" This is arguably one of the biggest questions of all time. Jameson triple's down on his insistence that this question isn't answered in the Bible with a list of to dos or disciplines to practice, but with scandalous grace, which is opposed to effort and earning. Give it a listen and let us know how it hits you. Cheers!
May 18, 2023•12 min•Ep. 32
"What Must I Do" is a series of blog articles observing how scripture answers the question, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Apparent common knowledge assumes the obvious answer is improvement, but the answers biblical authors provide throws a heavy duty wrench into the spokes of that idea. What better way to work it out than observe how the conversation plays out on the pages of our bibles? Join in!
May 04, 2023•12 min•Ep. 31
"What Must I Do" is a series of blog articles observing how scripture answers the question, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Although many think eternal life is in some way contingent upon us, the answers our biblical authors provide puts a heavy duty wrench into that idea. What better way to work it out than observe how the conversation plays out on the pages of our bibles? Join in!
Apr 27, 2023•12 min•Ep. 30
Just about anything but the undiluted Gospel gets the press in religious communities. Without the Goodness that makes the Good News Good, you not only miss out on the Truth, but you miss out on the Life. A misunderstanding of the cross lies at the heart of the matter. Always has. Always will. With a hope to unveil why a non-religious understanding of this act changes everything, we dropped this new article.
Apr 07, 2023•15 min•Ep. 29
There's always more than meets the eye in Scripture. Reimagine the story of Jesus turning water to wine with us. What if this wasn't a miracle to prove Jesus could do miracles? What it John included this story to proclaim something much more scandalous than just that Jesus can do miracles? What if the empty jars for purification that Jesus filled with wine are a sign of the impotence of religion? READ: www.larksite.com/blog/only-the-lowly-know CONNECT: www.larksite.com/get-connected...
Jun 23, 2022•10 min•Ep. 28
How do you practice union with God? How can we be united to God? What role does religion play in our oneness with God in Christ? Is Christianity a way to achieve union with God? Are we or can we be united with God? How will we be reconciled? Abiding, worship, faith, and discipleship are all radically reoriented when you come to grips with the truth that Jesus is - and has always been - unconditionally our union with God. Explore how biblical union works right here and pass it on if you found it ...
Jun 10, 2022•7 min•Ep. 27
Let's combine the Fatherhood of God and Jesus' idea of childlike faith. What might it mean that Jesus held up playful, vulnerable little people as exemplars of faith? What does the life of faith look like if we've thought all along that we're supposed to progressively get more mature, independent, responsible, and effective? What if being a child of God is something we accept instead of do? www.larksite.com/get-connected www.larksite.com/blog/the-fathers-children...
May 09, 2022•14 min•Ep. 26
In a nation where workaholism is arguably the most prevalent religion, figuring out how to live and work in peace as one who has assurance of God's love is a real trick. But, letting go of some of the urgency and ultimacy of our work opens up the opportunity to see the people we're working with and for. Perspective is everything. Unfortunately, Americans are prone to turn their work into a self-justifying story and we hope to bring some freedom into the conversation. Check out these stories to e...
Apr 06, 2022•13 min•Ep. 25
If you've ever wondered what it means to do Christian community or to follow Jesus with other people, you're not alone. Confusion and opinions abound, but what I've found in a decade of ministry in Chicago is you can learn a lot by observing what's missing. There's a big difference between treating community as a duty and a means to an end versus a gift and a celebration. Press into the difference in this episode! In an effort to explore the scandalous grace of God in every day life, these artic...
Mar 22, 2022•8 min•Ep. 24
Jameson is the newest member of the Lark team. As the Director of Community Development, he moved his family into a camper to do life on the road tending to the connection and encouragement of folks who are following or exploring Jesus with Lark. Check out his story about why he lives in a camper and why he works on the road with people who are rethinking various spiritualities. There are lot of themes and trends he was suspicious about before hitting the road that now are becoming even clearer ...
Mar 09, 2022•9 min•Ep. 23
What it is about guilt that keeps us from managing it well, or better yet, from letting Christ have the final word on managing it? The danger of what we do with our guilt may just be one of the most important conversations you haven't had in a while. The freedom we have in Christ has more to say about what we do with guilt than we dare imagine or believe. Tune into this episode to dive into the conversation about why and how we are killing ourselves by self-managing our guilt and what to do abou...
Feb 11, 2022•10 min•Ep. 22
It takes some form of bravery to admit that everything you have to offer God is viewed by him as dirty rags in comparison to what Jesus has done. The Christmas story declares that none of your efforts mattered in the first place. Life flows out of Jesus and who he made us to be, not who we think we can make ourselves to be. The Incarnation of God undoes every intuition we have to set us free. The God who came to do what was unfair to reconcile us to him is the God who longed for us to be free fr...
Dec 24, 2021•12 min•Ep. 21
One of the most difficult things to believe is that God's posture towards us is one of embrace. We typically believe anything but. We especially believe that 'God With Us' is possible only upon our ability to meet some criteria. But the incarnation, the arrival of God as a man in Jesus Christ, is the Father's embrace of all of us. It is the way we finally learn to see what God is really like. If Emmanuel, 'God With Us,' is the solution, what exactly is the problem? What is Advent and Christmas r...
Dec 18, 2021•10 min•Ep. 20
It's easy to think the Christian story about Jesus is full of sermons, commands, theological teaching and Scripture. But, a simple reading of the Gospels reveals that so much of Jesus' recorded speech is cryptic stories we refer to as parables. God With Us, the Incarnate Son and Word of God, lived a remarkable, unexpected story, and told so many stories so we could see what God is really like. When we assume the New Testament provides us with information about Jesus instead of a story about God ...
Dec 11, 2021•11 min•Ep. 19
What really are the implications of God With Us, Immanuel, the God who has come to be with his creation? What is the Incarnation and does it actually have any impact on me, my life, how I live, and what I hope for? In short, the incarnation is the supreme mystery of the faith for those who follow Jesus. Be encouraged by this brief excursus on the theme of Advent and Christmas - Christ has come! Our familiarity and obsession with the secular season of Christmas leaves many with an anemic understa...
Dec 04, 2021•10 min•Ep. 18
With all the swirling thanksgiving emails, tweets, reels, Hallmark cards, and sermons, you'd think if we don't give thanks rightly, we will be putting ourselves in the crosshairs of God's judgment. But what if giving thanks isn't about giving thanks, but about reveling in and enjoying the gift we've received? We love holding things over our heads. But, that's something we can be freed from. Check out my thoughts on how we get thanksgiving wrong and end up nullifying the very thing we're thankful...
Nov 24, 2021•8 min•Ep. 17
Lark stories help illustrate why we are so adamant about spreading the message of the cross. Check out this one to hear about how one friend never saw a pastor cry until he told me about his story and experience in Churches. There's something so beautiful and powerful about sharing and listening to the long version of someone's story, even more so when you tell them about the love of God. It is worth noting that this isn't the only person who's never had the experience of crying with a pastor. S...
Nov 18, 2021•8 min•Ep. 16
The story of how the Church dealt with Galileo is an important point of conversation for today's Church. Have we learned at all from how that story played out? Have we given up on getting it right or have we just changed the furniture around? What exactly does it mean to be the Church, and who get's to decide who's doing it right? Dive into this and more on this episode of the Lark Blogcast. The fact that we - the Church - still have practices and policies in place to help us exclude certain peo...
Nov 12, 2021•9 min•Ep. 15
The question of how do we live now that we believe God has redeemed us is a troubling one. Many of us live and die in anxiety about whether or not we did it right. But what if the life of faith is expressly opposed to the life of getting God to love us? What if the call is to trust God, not to live as if we owe him? What if we were to give up the conquest of sin to be an heir with Christ? Explore how we can so easily slip back into the way of beating sin instead of resting in the cross. Reconsid...
Nov 03, 2021•8 min•Ep. 14
Words of encouragement are far more scarce than we usually recognize. Learning about how the human being's brain responds to both the absence and the presence of encouragement opens up another level of understanding about the power of speaking the Gospel about Jesus and words of encouragement and affirmation to someone's face. We need it. But, first we must recognize our inclination to avoid it. There's a wild connection between neuroscience, emotions and the speaking and hearing of the Good New...
Oct 21, 2021•11 min•Ep. 13
What it means to actually believe the gospel is actually one of the greatest confusions within the church. But, according to Jesus, it's a lot more like trust than trying. The interaction between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well shows us so much about what Jesus thinks people need. Instead of religion repairs, Jesus moves in for a few days and says he himself is all they need. If believing the gospel looks more like helping Jesus do what he already did, it's not faith we're living in. W...
Oct 13, 2021•9 min•Ep. 12
What exactly does it mean to be like Christ? To grow in Christlikeness? Who causes it and how does it happen? What exactly is it we turn into if we are transformed? Jesus didn't set up an impossible life we have to live. He invited us into his life so we could share in his righteousness, holiness, and his trust in the Father - the one thing we resemble the least about Christ. It's God's work! It's helpful to take a closer look at what we mean when we say Christlikeness these days. So many of the...
Sep 30, 2021•8 min•Ep. 11
Transformation can be a tricky subject for the Church. It often shows up not as the blessed aftermath of getting wrecked by grace, but as the strategy instead. If you've ever felt like you're supposed to prove that you've received grace by demonstrating transformation, this short piece is for you. Consider how striving for transformation actually derails the one thing Christians are called to: proclamation. When proclamation of good news is eclipsed by demands for transformation, people lose sig...
Sep 23, 2021•8 min•Ep. 10
The doubts and questions we all come by honestly are all too often dismissed or demonized by other people. Unfortunately, belonging is also often intimately connected with whether or not you agree with everyone else's answers to your questions. Looking deeper, we see that insecurity, or the frenetic search for security, is closer to the root of division and strife wherever you go. What if doubts and questions aren't keeping you out of God's favor, but are actually the pathway to peace? Jump into...
Sep 16, 2021•8 min•Ep. 9
More than any other moment in history, today independence is hailed as the ultimate goal of humanity. Independence is seen as the epitome of freedom. But in light of what Jesus said and did, we learn freedom is actually in dependence. We can't not be dependent. To live as if we can ever actually be independent is to choose frustration, bondage, and separation (independence) from life itself. While being dependent on anyone or anything outside yourself is seen as weakness by many people, the actu...
Sep 10, 2021•8 min•Ep. 8
