Our tired, sin-sick old world needs far more than another message of condemnation – thus on this Christmas, as Christ followers we choose to light a candle rather than curse the darkness.
According to C.S. Lewis, the birth of Jesus can be likened to the rightful king who parachuted behind enemy lines, encouraging those who followed him to take part in a great campaign of sabotage. It was the grace invasion! It still is!
Join Greg as he explains Isaiah 9:6: 1) “For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, 2) and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called 3) Wonderful Counselor, 4) Mighty God, 5) Everlasting Father, 6) Prince of Peace.”
When she found out that she was pregnant, how did the young teenager we today know as Mary, the mother of Jesus, react? We’ll discuss Mary’s thoughts, as illustrated by her song – traditionally known as the magnificat (Luke 1:46-55).
We consider a Christ-centered Christmas season with a discussion of Revelation 1:1-8. Our passage is a thumbnail sketch of the gospel, the three comings of Jesus, the plan of God from the very beginning.
“Upward mobility” is the swan song of this age, yet Jesus’ birth was just the opposite. It’s the story of “downward mobility.” Jesus humbled himself, taking the very nature of a servant. Why? Was it for him or was it for us?
King Herod organized the first opposition to Jesus, trying to kill him when he was only a baby. Herod reminds us that God sent his Son into a world that didn’t really want him. How many of us are influenced by the same spirit that influenced Herod?
If you knew that a gift would bring you great joy but also some hardships, would you accept it? Greg talks about Mary’s response to the Angel Gabriel’s announcement that she would be the mother of God and that God has offered us an incredible gift.
Do you feel empty, lonely, spiritually adrift in a vast wasteland of meaningless existence? The birth of Jesus Christ means we don’t have to feel that way. Listen as Greg Albrecht talks about the implications of “God with Us.”
How many Christmas cards have you ever seen with Joseph cradling Jesus in his arms? He always seems to be in the shadows of Christmas — a man of few words but called to action. Listen to today’s program to see what we can learn from Joseph.
Have you ever been left out, missed the cut, failed to make the team or been laid off? Without power, money, talent or good looks our culture often has no room for us. You know the same thing happened to Jesus .. when he was born there was no room in the inn.
Is God unfair? Why does He allow so much suffering, any suffering? The birth of Jesus, the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world, has so much to tell us about all of the suffering in today’s world. His birth brings meaning to our own lives of hurt and pain.
From the very beginning before the boundaries of our physical lives, time and space — before planet earth — before all that we know — Jesus’ birth as the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world was determined.
A form of the golden rule is used by many parents to teach children how to think of the needs and concerns of others, but it’s usually not the Golden Rule. It’s a variation of it and a powerful illustration of how humans often turn the gospel of Jesus Christ into religion.
Thanksgiving sneaks up on people and presents a unique dilemma: though united in celebrating Thanksgiving there is much disagreement about giving thanks and to whom to give it.
Thanksgiving is a time for Christians in particular to pause and reflect. Greg talks about Christian gratitude — a kind of gratitude that transcends normal human appreciation — that reaches beyond materialistic and surface happiness into a deeper and more profound spiritual joy.
Have we forgotten the blessings we’ve been given and the God who makes them possible? Thanksgiving is rooted in the gratitude we have to God because he is the giver of every good and perfect gift.
Thanksgiving is not just a national holiday — it’s an important part of being a Christian. When we truly understand the reasons for being thankful, we can’t stop ourselves from expressing our appreciation to God.
Have you ever gotten your car stuck in mud — the more you tried to get out the more you got bogged down? A similar thing can happen spiritually — we get stuck in the swamp of religion — bogged down in a sea of spiritual mud.
In their religious zeal, some churches conceal the Good News of Jesus Christ from their members. Christians need to scrape the religious barnacles off of Good Ship Christianity and leave religion behind in order to know our Lord and Savior in the fullness of his goodness.
Sarah was barren so she had her slave, Hagar, be a surrogate mother of sorts, but later Sarah had a child of her own. The apostle Paul used the story of their resulting conflict to illustrate the conflict between the old covenant of law and the new covenant of grace.
What two words would you use to summarize the gospel? In two words how would you define God, what he stands for and what he’s all about? What is the condensed gospel? Be sure to catch Greg’s discussion of which words work and which words don’t.
Our natural state spiritually is that we’re dead corpses — among the walking dead. How does God determine that you will be saved? On what basis? How much of your salvation is up to you — does God expect you to do everything you can and then he’ll do the rest?
Legalism and license are two ways people lead their lives that lead to destruction. Many people follow these two opposing paths that are in their own ways popular and enticing, but the third way, liberty in Christ — freedom in Christ, is found by only a few.
Do these teachings sound familiar? “You’re the most important person in the universe, the master of your own destiny, truth for you is what you decide it is and you can do everything necessary to save yourself.” Greg talks about the “Master Heresy and Greatest Lie”.
What is the world at large thinking about Christianity when it sees the circus antics of some Christian TV, religion posing as the gospel and people playing the “church game”? Authentic Christianity exposes the bad-news imposters freeing us for the good news of Christ.
Some congregations and even a few denominations think they are the best, or even claim to be the one and only true church. Just how small is the body of Christ? Are you a spiritual loner – part of a small group of people you believe is better than anyone else?
If you don’t have enough faith will God return some of your prayers unanswered, rubber stamped with the message, “Insufficient funds”? When it comes to faith many are confused. You may think you need more faith, but is that true?
The biggest threat to Christianity isn’t apathy, indifference or its own woefully inadequate example – nor is it from Islam, New Age thought or the myriad cults. The greatest challenge to Christianity is religion insidiously thriving under the flag of Christianity.
Christianity is in a completely different category from other religions. In fact, it is opposed to all religion – including religion appropriating the name of Jesus Christ. Religion is bad news – the polar opposite of the gospel of Jesus Christ – which is by definition, good news.
Organized religion frequently tries to solve the problems of this world, encouraging involvement in all sorts of causes and even political action, but that “religion” can become a substitute for our relationship with God – for authentic Christianity.
Religion assures us that if we do stuff – if we comply with its rituals, its formulas and its prescriptions – that we’ll be able to please and appease God. Religion supplants Jesus Christ by telling us we have to be involved with and rely upon it to “make it to heaven.”
What’s our biggest problem as Christians…is it religion? Is it legalism? Is it a lack of knowledge of the Bible? Is it too little obedience? You may be surprised.
Religion and legalism are uncomfortable with God’s grace, claiming that the grace of God encourages people to sin. But can we have too much grace — is it possible to overdose on grace?
What do true Christians say and do — what are they like? How righteous does a Christian have to be? Would you identify a real Christian mostly by what they don’t do — by actions and habits they avoid?
The Bible admonishes us to count the cost before we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, but once we’ve done that, we’re to stop counting. What do we stop counting? For one, how good we are, but listen as Greg discusses other things the Bible teaches we no longer count.
This tongue-in-cheek program suggests four things you can do to be successful in religion (as opposed to authentic Christianity). These four strategies are prominent in our religious world today. See if they don’t ring a disturbingly familiar bell with you.
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