Renew Communities Teaching Podcast

In week one of our Parables series we took a look at the Good Samaritan. Most often we think of this stories as one that encourages us to be kind to those we encounter but Jesus is actually pushing us to consider much more than that. Join us as we wrestle through how we love our enemies and what to do when we're forced to chose between being holy and loving our neighbor.

Our lives are full of people that are quietly (or not so quietly) struggling through their day to day life. Part of living the invitational life is taking the risk to extend the invitation. In our final week of this series we take a look at some friends who took a big risk to carry their friend to Jesus and worked through some practical ways you can do that too.

On Sunday we looked at how Jesus challenged the Mark Zuckerburg's of his day and how he calls them to realign their method of relating with others to match their mission. In doing so, Jesus challenges us to do the same. Jesus shows us how to align our method of relating to one another with the mission he has given us, in a way that accomplishes it rather than undermines it.

Have you ever thought about who God might be sending you to? Like who does God want you to invite into His family? What if it's the people you are already living your life with? In week 2 of This Invitational Life we talk about the strategy of "showing up" in the lives of your friends and neighbors and how that can be the best way to extend the invitation.

As Christians we believe that God wants to save everyone. How does that happen? Well, it starts with you and I accepting the invitation - but the way the invitation continues to be extended is through those who have already accepted that invitation. The first movement in the invitational life is simply living your life. Allowing the way Jesus has worked in your life to be seen by others so they can see how you've been invited and will maybe believe they've been invited too. In week 1 we see how this plays out in John 4 and we learn a little bit more about how to not just follow Jesus but to follow the woman at the well in living the invitational life.

It’s all about the practice. Jesus says the only way to build a strong foundation is to obey His words. So the question isn't have I heard the words of Jesus? The question is am I doing the words of Jesus?

If you’re following a leader you have to be careful because ultimately you’ll end up where they do. In this week’s teaching on the sermon on the mount Jesus warns his followers to be on their guard against false teachers that could lead us astray. We’ll talk about why we’re so easily fooled, how Jesus says we’ll be able to tell if someone is a true or false teacher and what makes you someone worth following.

As we come to the end of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus begins to offer us both an invitation and a warning. In this weeks teaching we talk about how the wrong road can feel so right and how we can walk the narrow road that leads to life.

For good or for worse, your view of God shapes the way you pray. Jesus knows this. That's why he uses the analogy of a father with his children to be the foundation of your prayer life. Jesus doesn’t use guilt to get us to pray, rather he casts a compelling vision of the goodness of the father. We will explore how this can change the way you pray.

One of the most popular phrases Jesus ever said was "Do not judge" and yet throughout the sermon on the mount Jesus points out actions and activities that were sinful. The question is what does Jesus want us to do when we see immorality in our lives and the lives of those around us and how can we both give and receive mercy.

Worry plagues many of us on a regular basis and yet Jesus commands us not to worry. This teaching isn’t just a direction but Jesus shows us how it’s possible to live a worry free life based on his perspective and the regular pursuit of his life and then offers us an invitation to follow him in this worry free way of life.

Right in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus begins to warn his followers about chasing after things that don’t last and how it impacts our lives. The most serious warning is about the way money can take control of our hearts and minds. Listen as we dig in to this famous passage and try to understand how our relationship with money impacts our lives.

Jesus' teachings in the Sermon on the Mount are so practical but what's interesting is the closer you look the more they reveal what's happening at a heart level. In this week's teaching we dig into Jesus' insight about the commitments we make and the commitments we break and how our connection to God plays a part in all of it.

Jesus has something to say about our anger, and there is good news and bad news. In week three of the sermon on the mount series, we look at anger, the brain, and a simple practice which can help connect us with God and change how we react to difficult situations.

In week 1 of our Sermon on the Mount series we focus on the beatitudes and take a look at who exactly Jesus says is blessed according to his Kingdom. The list is shocking because it seems to run the opposite direction of who we assume has been blessed in the world around us. The question is what does that mean for our lives right now and how do we respond to the people that made Jesus’ list?

Jesus called his disciples to follow him because he believed that one day they could do what he did and more. The real question is how is that possible? In our final week of The Inner Circle we look at how the Holy Spirit activated Jesus' ministry on earth and how the Holy Spirit should be activating you.

The vision Jesus had for his disciples was that they would be able to do the same things he'd been doing and even greater things than that. The question we ask as his followers today is "how?" How could someone like me do the things that Jesus does? In week 4 of our Inner Circle series we look at how Jesus prepared his disciples and how he could be preparing you too.

The primary thing that keeps us from believing we could be who Jesus has called us to be is the sense of shame that comes when we don’t quite measure up or intentionally turn our backs on Jesus. In week 3 of our series we look at how Jesus responds when Peter falls short and think through what that means for how you and I follow Jesus today.

The first disciple Jesus called to join him was Peter and the way Luke tells the story helps us see how Jesus might be calling you. In this teaching we see how Jesus is asking you to partner with him, what he believes you're capable of and how you can say yes to being His disciple today.

Jesus called the most unlikely people to be in his inner circle. In a world were people want more connection and less commitment, Jesus is calling the unlikely people of his church to fight for each others hearts. Maybe you don't feel called but God has chosen you to be a part of something bigger.