This sermon by Greg Boyd explores the Christmas story of the Magi’s search for Jesus. Greg provides historical background that opens our eyes to seeing the surprising and radical nature of their journey to find the Jewish Messiah. In addition, it reveals implications about who God is and how he relates to us.
In this sermon, Greg examines the story of the angelic appearance to the shepherds and its meaning for Jesus and for us. We see how God comes for the marginalized and includes the outcasts into the redemption of all things.
This sermon examines the story of Anna when she met the child Jesus in the temple. Dan Kent highlights how she waited for the Messiah for decades and the importance of waiting on God to act in our lives and release his gifts through us.
This sermon by Dan Kent introduces the pale green horse of death in Revelation 6, and provides a way of understanding what God is trying to communicate through this and other terrifying images. Dan challenges us to embrace faithfulness when circumstances push us to prioritize fear.
In this sermon, Greg examines the symbolism of the second and third horses who are told to come forth and show themselves for who they are. The second horse is given the title of societal conflict and the third is the horse of economic distress.
In this sermon, Greg expounds on the first broken seal and what it symbolizes. Here we read about the white horse that seeks to ascend through conquering. Some have taught that this represents the rule of Christ, but actually it is the ancient serpent who is merely a Christlike figure.
Leading up to and throughout this election season, many of us have been experiencing a wide range of emotions—things like fear, anxiety and frustration. It can be easy to lose perspective, which is why on "Election Eve", we held a special service, all about keeping our eyes fixed on King Jesus and his Kingdom, no matter the outcome of the election. We want to remember who we belong to, where our citizenship is, and that our real hope is in Jesus—not in any particular candidate, political party o...
This sermon is a conversation between Bill Doherty and Greg Boyd, where they talk about the relationship between the Kingdom of God and how the kingdoms of this world work, applying it to the present election season.
Greg speaks from the heart about the way that God judges, and how he uses all life circumstances to grow us, even though he does not cause those circumstances. When we honestly look at the difficulties of life, can we trust that God remains in them and meets us there, bringing good out of evil?
The Bible speaks repeatedly about the judgment of God, including the final judgment that is coming. In this sermon, Greg addresses what God’s judgment means by explaining the concept of organic judgment in contrast with judicial judgment.
In John’s vision he sees the martyrs calling out for justice, asking how long will they have to wait for God to make things right. This speaks to our common longing for justice as we live in the space where Jesus has won the victory and overcome Satan, yet we wait on justice to be fully realized. This sermon shows how we live in this space.
In this sermon, Greg provides a defense for the existence of an evil intelligence, a being named Satan, and explains how Revelation conveys that he is the source and cause of all the violence, evil and destruction in the world. Through this, Greg argues that God has often been blamed for what Satan has actually done.
This first sermon in this sub-series entitled “The Wrath of the Lamb” sets the stage for what is to come. Greg shows how the images in Revelation 6 have been traditionally interpreted as depicting God as a violent arbiter of wrath. However, he challenges these interpretations and introduces an alternative, which is more faithful to the text and to the revelation of God in Christ.
In this final sermon for the Political Distortions series, Greg Boyd addresses the heart posture of humility, calling us to the mindset of living in love to the point that we take on the mind of Christ on the cross instead of the prideful-ascent mindset that characterizes Satan and those who are always pursuing a life of “more.”
Jesus and the writers of the New Testament highlight the importance of how we use our words. In fact, the biblical parameters stand in stark contrast to the common ways of speaking about one another in modern life. As followers of Jesus, we are called to embrace an alternative way that is driven by love, not slander and gossip.
In this sermon, Shawna Boren calls us to live in the way of Jesus by embodying patience in the midst of strife and turmoil. We are to bear with one another, showing others patience even when our natural tendencies compel us to set them straight.
Dan Kent challenges us with the words of the Apostle Paul to respond to polarization by letting our gentleness show. He explains what gentleness is and is not, and outlines the inherent power and the freedom we experience when we obey this command to gentleness.
In this team-taught sermon with Greg Boyd and Bill Doherty, we learn about the importance of being a peacemaker, and discover some basic skills about how we can actually promote peace when polarized perspectives are part of our conversations.
Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. Therefore, we must be wise to temptations that seek to entrap us in patterns that lead to our destruction. In this sermon Greg Boyd and Bill Doherty identify common ways that we are tempted in the current culture of political polarization. Greg and Bill then provide practical guidance for navigating these temptations so that we can avoid their entrapment.
Greg Boyd and Cedrick Baker highlight the difference that the kingdom of God makes and how it contrasts with the kingdoms of this world. They help us understand how the two kingdoms often are combined, which means that the kingdom of God becomes something other than what it should be. Greg and Cedrick also provide some insight into ways that we can practice kingdom distinctives in our everyday lives.
In this introductory sermon to the new series, Political Distortions, Greg Boyd and Bill Doherty provide a framework for why God’s kingdom people are challenged to provide an alternative to the political polarizations that pervade our current reality. They also offer some initial guidance in how we can practice this alternative.
In Revelation 5, John’s vision includes the 24 elders holding up bowls of incense, which are our prayers. Greg explores four aspects of prayer, specifically intercessory or petitionary prayer. He addresses how prayer can be natural, its purpose, why it is urgent and the mystery of prayer’s outcomes.
The 24 elders in the throne room who sing praises to God show us that corporate worship is a distinctive feature of God’s people. Why is this important? What does this mean when corporate singing is uncommon outside of the church? Greg addresses these questions and provides practical guidance for ways that praising God can become a central part of our relationship with God.
When John enters the throne room in Revelation 4 and 5, the Father and Son are evident, but the Spirit is depicted as the seven eyes of the slain lamb. What does this imagery tell us about God’s triune nature and what can we learn about the role of the Holy Spirit? These are the questions addressed by Greg in this sermon, and the answers guide us into a deeper union with God.
The heavenly vision of John in Revelation 5 reveals that God redeems persons from every tribe, language, people, and nation. Shawna Boren highlights the radical contrast of this truth against our common experience of division and “othering” that occurs in small and grand ways in our lives. God calls us to love the other rather than excluding those who are different. We make this a reality as we embrace the practice of hospitality.
The people of God are a kingdom and priests who will reign on earth. This is our identity. What does this mean and what are the implications for us? Cedrick Baker explores how we are being formed to be people of character who are trained to reign on earth, reflecting the character of God.
In this sermon, Greg Boyd focused on the part of John’s vision that no one is worthy to open the scroll. The reason is due to the fact that humanity has been deceived and therefore does not align with the character of God. Greg ties this passage to the deception of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3 and then he provides spiritual practices that can break this pattern of deception.
In this sermon, Greg Boyd introduces chapter 5 of Revelation where we read about the vision of the slain lamb. This lamb unveils the nature of God’s character in a surprising way, as typically God is depicted as having lion-like character, but instead the slain lamb shows us what God is really like, how God works in the world and how God has conquered evil.
The twenty-four elders fall before the Lord in perpetual worship, giving us a radical image of life in the presence of God. In this sermon, Dan Kent explores the meaning of worship by showing us that the key is our allegiance to God demonstrated by the choices that we make in laying down our crowns before him.
God is the only eternal one. All else is temporary. However, it is human nature to put our trust in temporary things, to focus on things that will not last. Jesus invites us to treasure that which will not be destroyed. When we set our hearts on God’s kingdom and his righteousness, we will discover the only treasure that endures.
