Word of Life Church Podcast

The greatest and most famous Jesus’ parables is the Parable of the Prodigal Son. It is the gospel found inside the gospel. The parable of the Prodigal Son is a story of the Kingdom of God being announced and enacted. Jesus gave it to those who were angry about how he was ushering in the [...] The post Pardoned By A Kiss appeared first on Word of Life Church.

If you are at all serious about the Christian faith and living as a Christian person, you have to be very serious about the call of Jesus for you to take up your cross and follow him. Christianity is not just about what Jesus did on the cross, but it is also about how we [...] The post Stigmatized appeared first on Word of Life Church.

We have all heard the famous parable of “The Good Samaritan”. It has become so famous in our culture that it has unfortunately lost its meaning. Despite popular belief, the point of the parable of the Good Samaritan is not to be “a good Samaritan.” Jesus crafted this parable to answer a question about eternal [...] The post The Good Palestinian appeared first on Word of Life Church.

Albert Einstein once said, “Make things as simple as possible, but not more so.” Often times, things are more complicated than you think. We love to simplify things, but often our stories are complicated. This is true with the story of Judas Iscariot, the long-disparaged disciple who betrayed Jesus. We think of Judas as just [...] The post Betrayed By A Kiss appeared first on Word of Life Church.

The Bible tells us that we are dust and ashes. It is what God formed Adam from, but that is not our whole story. There is something sets us apart. We are dust and ashes upon whom God has breathed the breathe of life and given self-awareness. We then can also become aware of God. [...] The post Dust and Ashes appeared first on Word of Life Church.

The Samaritans were a separate ethnic group from the Jews, with different theological views. These differences often translated into violence between the two groups. Most Jews would thus travel around Samaria instead of traveling through it. But on his journey to Jerusalem, Jesus journeyed right through the middle of it. During their travel, a Samaritan [...] The post Bless Us, Burn Them? appeared first on Word of Life Church.

To follow Jesus is revolutionary. That’s not hyperbole; it’s the absolute truth. To live the Jesus way is the most revolutionary thing a person can do. To follow Jesus’ practice radical love, forgiveness, hospitality, and humility, and to join God’s alternative society that is formed around Jesus Christ is life-changing. It’s revolutionary! in the 1970′s, [...] The post The Jesus Revolution Revisted appeared first on Word of Life Church.

We would prefer to think there is never any conflict between our family and our faith. But this is not always the case. Sometimes we find the family we’re born into is in conflict with the kingdom we have been reborn into. Jesus himself experience this conflict. His family didn’t really get what he was [...] The post Faith and Family In Tension appeared first on Word of Life Church.

By far the most common way we’re formed in faith is we receive it from our parents. There are Christian conversions from other religions and non-religious backgrounds, but these are more rare. Many of us are Christians because are parents were also Christians. We are all formed by tradition with choices made by parents, in [...] The post Raising Christian Kids appeared first on Word of Life Church.

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to speak the truth lovingly, to speak words that build up, to put away anger, wrath, and slander, and to forgive one another. How do we live this out in our homes particularly in the context of marriage? In this message, Pastor Derek Vreeland offers a helpful [...] The post Keeping the Shalom in the Home appeared first on Word of Life Church.

The greatest challenge that we face in passing on our Christian faith to our children and our grandchildren is the growing tide of secularism in America. Secularism is the idea that stemmed from the Enlightenment that God must be restricted to the private realm. But the private spirituality of the solitary, self-styled Christian will not [...] The post Faith, Family, and the Future of Christianity appeared first on Word of Life Church.

In life, it’s easy for us to assign labels to people. It’s how we identify ourselves inside a group. But often, even without realizing it, we put label on other people in order to negate them. We reduce them to a category. We put labels on ourselves that we have to live up to (or [...] The post “Say it, Teacher” appeared first on Word of Life Church.

All Christian understanding of God flows from Christ as the incarnation of God. Christ is God, enfleshed; God as human. Christ is the human icon of God. Human beings are image bearing creatures. We are designed to bear images. Christ is the image of God, and the goal of the Christian life is for our [...] The post Parker’s Back appeared first on Word of Life Church.

The degree to which the Sermon on the Mount has been ignored by Christians is scandalous. We want Jesus to die for us, but leave our world alone, especially if we are on top of the world. But Jesus has no intention of leaving our world alone— he fully intends to change it! What Jesus [...] The post A Sermon to Change the World appeared first on Word of Life Church.

We believe Jesus is the light of the world. He has freed us from captivity and brought us into the light of the real world where he invites us to follow him. But how should we respond? Some want to respond by learning and following the rules. Others respond by using Jesus to find themselves. [...] The post Rules, Relationship, and Radical Authenticity appeared first on Word of Life Church.