The cost of discipleship is one we are exhorted to take into account when considering following Christ in all of life. Yet as we devote ourselves to learn to obey all that Jesus has commanded, the cost of rejection and even death may seem to great to bear. In this sermon from Pastor Dan on Mark 6:14-29, we consider the example of John the Baptist who lost his head in faithfulness to God's Word and kingdom.
Nov 01, 2020•46 min
In the onslaught of political campaigning over the last year or so, we can be tempted to vote Tuesday and retreat from the public square of political engagement. However, Pastor Haakon exhorts us to see government as something instituted by God and to press into politics while steering clear of Politics.
Nov 01, 2020•9 min
Rejection stings. We've internalized the mantra, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," but we know it isn't true. In the kingdom of God, rejection is part of the plan. Listen to Pastor Brett's sermon, "Rejected for the Kingdom," on Mark 6:1-13 to hear more of how rejection serves God's purposes.
Oct 25, 2020•29 min
As Protestants the world over mark this week the beginning of the Reformation, it is fitting for us to reflect on the heart beat of the five driving focuses of that recapturing of the gospel: we are saved (1) by Christ alone (2) through faith alone (3) by grace alone (4) under the authority of Scripture alone (5) all for the glory of God alone. That heart beat is that God looms large in our view and people's opinions shrink. Listen to Pastor Dan's exhortation on this theme.
Oct 25, 2020•8 min
The authority and lordship of Jesus is plain. He commands a storm to be still. He commands demons away. He commands disease to be gone. He commands death to release its hold. Listen to Westview member Joshua Whetstine's sermon on Mark 4:35-5:43.
Oct 18, 2020•24 min
"You hurt my feelings." "Do what feels right." "Follow your heart." The very air we breathe in our society exalts our feelings and emotions as the supreme arbiter of truth for the individual. Christians must be perpetually guided by what is true, by God's Word. Listen to Pastor Zach Krych's exhortation to consider this more.
Oct 11, 2020•9 min
So much biblical anticipation builds the expectation of a spectacular kingdom to come with a remarkable king. And yet as Jesus teaches and demonstrates he is the fulfillment of that anticipation, his kingdom doesn't match the expectation. In Mark 4:21-34, four parables are recorded to help us better understand the kingdom of God. Listen now to Pastor Brett's sermon "The Coming Kingdom."
Oct 11, 2020•33 min
It is said that Jesus spoke more about Hell than anyone else recorded in the Bible, yet it is a subject we do not give much attention to. That is understandable—the doctrine of Hell is unsettling and unnerving. It truly is the hardest of teachings found in Scripture. But we fail to understand sin if we don't consider the eternal result of giving ourselves to it. "Sin: Its Effect" is the final sermon in the series on sin where Pastor Brett preaches on Matthew 18:7-9.
Oct 04, 2020•34 min
Consider how many people there are in these Twin Cities. Each has a story; each has a past. And each of us have influences that give rise to sin. Yet will we view sin merely as externals or will we grapple with it at the core? Listen to this exhortation from Joshua Jacobs, pointing us to faith and repentance.
Oct 04, 2020•10 min
It actually is possible to have civil, meaningful conversations about politics and social issues despite what is displayed online or in the media. And it is something Christians ought to give ourselves to as the issues are truly about a clash of worldviews. In this roundtable, Pastor Zach and his wife Sara share about one such conversation and things we can glean from it as we seek to engage our neighbors in meaningful ways.
Oct 02, 2020•1 hr 2 min
Sin isn't merely sinful because a rule says it's bad. Sin is sinful because God is holy, because God is wonderfully unique and values himself above all else. Our sin is sinful because it is an affront to God's holiness. Listen to Pastor Brett's sermon, "Sin: Its Sinfulness," on Isaiah 6:1-7 as we continue our series on sin.
Sep 27, 2020•30 min
We can quickly focus on the "going" part of the Great Commission, but we breeze by the very thing that undergirds our mission: the preeminent authority of Jesus over Heaven and Earth. Listen to this exhortation from Pastor Dan as we repent of our cowardice and gain confidence in Christ's authority.
Sep 27, 2020•11 min
Our service for public worship is intentionally organized such that we pause to consider our sink, revel in God's grace, devote ourselves to his Word, and then come to his table. We land there as a weekly reminder that Jesus has done all that we need. We come to the table in faith-filled humility. Listen to this week's exhortation from Pastor Brett for more.
Sep 20, 2020•7 min
Our sinfulness is not just a theological category. Rather, like the Christmas carol, we find our sin as "far as the curse is found." In this sermon, "Sin: Its Pervasiveness," from Pastor Haakon on Romans 1:18-32, we see how sin has brought about the darkening of our heart, the dishonoring of the body, and the debasing of the mind.
Sep 20, 2020•24 min
Seeing his city ravaged by disease and set ablaze, one pastor was moved to write the book The Plague of Plagues, giving attention to the far worse pandemic of sin that plagues our world. As we face a similar situation, will we give thought to what truly is the greatest threat to our souls? Listen to this first sermon, "Sin: Its Origin," from Pastor Brett in a series on the doctrine of sin.
Sep 13, 2020•27 min
Hand in hand with singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs is letting the Word of Christ dwell richly in you. Will we consecrate ourselves to God's Word? Listen to this week's exhortation from Pastor Dan.
Sep 13, 2020•12 min
Why in the world would someone join a new church? In this round table, Pastors Brett & Zach sit down with Joshua Whetstine, Field Director for Church Planting with the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention, to pick his brain on the benefits and difficulties of being a part of a new church.
Sep 09, 2020•35 min
Jesus tells us that he taught in parables to have the same effect on his hearers as Isaiah's prophetic ministry: confirming the hard-heartedness of idolaters. He relayed this in the context of the familiar "parable of the sower." Listen to this sermon on Mark 4:1-20, "Soils & Sovereignty" from Pastor Brett to hear more.
Sep 06, 2020•27 min
We sing because we're commanded to. We sing to sink the truths in our head down into our hearts. We sing to serve the faith of our brothers and sisters with us. When we don't sing like this, we need to turn in repentance. Listen for more on this theme in Pastor Zach's exhortation.
Sep 06, 2020•7 min
We can be gripped by the fear, guilt, or shame of our sin such that we believe the lie that God could never give us peace, never forgive us, or never make us whole. This is why we need to reorient on the gospel each week and be assured of the pardon that is ours in Jesus. Listen to Pastor Zach's exhortation for more.
Aug 30, 2020•7 min
We all get a kick out of watching someone else be made a fool of—such voyeurism serves to conceal or overlook our own failings. As we read of the failings of the scribes and Jesus' family, will overlook our own shortcomings in rightly following Jesus? Listen to this sermon by Pastor Brett on Mark 3:20-35.
Aug 30, 2020•32 min
The Westview pastoral team returns from a round table hiatus to discuss how we pursue benefiting from God's manifest grace to us through his varied means. We won't follow Christ in all of life if we don't put ourselves in the stream of his grace.
Aug 26, 2020•52 min
Opposition to Jesus doesn't always look the same. Some times it is rooted in tradition, sometimes in want to just use Jesus, and some times founded in the deceit of sin. In this sermon on Mark 3:1-19, Pastor Brett points to the gathering storm of opposition that leads to the cross.
Aug 23, 2020•31 min
In this exhortation, Pastor Haakon addresses why we set aside time in our service each week to consider God and his Word that we may repent of sin.
Aug 23, 2020•6 min
Guest preacher Kenny Ortiz (Cities Church) draws our attention to Psalm 33 and the role of singing in the Christian life.
Aug 16, 2020•35 min
This recording is an "immersive experience" (read: poor quality with a lot of the ambient noise of worshiping together as families) of Pastor Dan exhorting us to confess our sin lest we deceive ourselves.
Aug 16, 2020•7 min
Consider how the Bible describes God—he is preeminently glorious and worthy of praise! And yet we so often go about our lives as though he isn't or we don't care. That's why we need to be called to worship each week by God in his Word and repent of not regarding God according to his worth.
Aug 09, 2020•5 min
Walking in the routine and rhythms of the Christian life can result in a sleepy lethargy of habit and doing things the way they've always been done. In this sermon on Mark 2:13-28, Pastor Brett shows how Jesus is calling us to wake up to the new work he is doing through a new kind of calling, a new method, and a new authority.
Aug 09, 2020•30 min
Pastor Haakon exhorts us to have our view of hospitality shaped, infused, and transformed by God's hospitality. It isn't about what your house is like, but do you commend the One who has gone before and promised a place for you in his Father's house?
Aug 02, 2020•5 min
Knowledge can be a blessing and a curse. Does what you know lead you to action in following Jesus or does it bind you in fear to either reject him or not fully follow him? In this sermon on Mark 2:1-12, Pastor Brett leads us in considering what different people in the passage know about Jesus and how they respond.
Aug 02, 2020•30 min
