bread church

By breadReligion & Spirituality Christianity

bread church episodes

August 17 A vision for bread: a Now and Not Yet church.
John 13–17
Jesus announced - and demonstrated - that the Kingdom of God had come. And
yet, on the night before his death, Jesus prepared his disciples for a
reality they had not expected: the Kingdom had come, but it had not yet
come in its fullness. It is a tension we still live in 2000 years later.
At bread, we want to live faithfully in the overlap: praying boldly and
expecting the supernatural power of the Kingdom to break into the present,
while refusing to deny the very real suffering, disappointment and loss of
the world we still inhabit.
So, how do we live with expectation and disappointment, miracles and
unanswered prayers, joy and grief? The heart of Jesus’ Farewell Discourse
in John “Remain in me.” Correct theology matters, but theology alone cannot
hold us. We make our home in Jesus, as he makes his home in us — and from
that abiding place come the love, joy, peace and power we need to live as
people of the Now and the Not Yet.
NB - serendipitously, the Lectio 365 app is working through the Remain in
me verses in John 15 this week. Follow along there too!
By Hannah Flint
40 min
August 10 A vision for bread: a Biblical church.
Acts 6:11-13 & Acts 7
From the beginning, Jesus' Church has been rooted in the Scriptures. This
is seen no more clearly than in Stephen's biblical defense of the fledging
Christian community in Acts 7.
At bread, we aspire to be a Biblical church. This means, amongst other
things, never reducing God to a particular geographical place; never
reducing him to a man-made cause; never shirking the reality of our human
sin and weakness; and always having our eyes fixed on Jesus. To be a
Biblical church is not just about teaching and interpreting the Bible well,
it's about having it written on our hearts - so that we, like Stephen,
might look just like the Jesus whom the Scriptures reveal.
By Ed Flint
36 min
August 03 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 2.
Psalm 2
This prophetic Psalm is one of the richest, Messianic Psalms written,
giving us an understanding of the absolute authority of Israel’s coming
Messiah. Psalm 2 points us to the future of the Messiah’s Kingship and
Kingdom, and the ultimate subjugation of Christ’s enemies and the kings of
this world, where the final reality is laid out: all will either submit to
Christ the King’s eternal reign, or be destroyed.
The timeline presented in Psalm 2 not only points us to partial fulfillment
in Acts 4, but also contains within it a key verse, that presents a
powerful foundational truth, positioning and enabling His church to have
the correct heart posture and spiritual response in this current era of the
Holy Spirit; both toward those who would oppose Christ’s authority, and to
those who are lost and need to know Him.
By Dianne Manusama
38 min
July 27 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 51.
⁠Psalm 51⁠
Psalm 51 gives us incredible insight into how David viewed God even when he
had gravely sinned. It’s a study in the nature of our Heavenly Father.
David didn’t allow shame to make him cower before God. He didn’t see Him as
a hard taskmaster to be feared, but rather as his safe place to run ‘to;
not run ‘from.’
David learned throughout his life that being in God’s presence was the most
precious thing he could ever experience. So, this Psalm isn’t self
abasement from David, but instead, intense liberating repentance based on
his absolute knowledge that just like us in our New Covenant reality, in
times of greatest sin, we can come fearlessly, boldly, and confidently,
before the throne of grace and receive God’s unfathomable mercy and
forgiveness.
By Dianne Manusama
47 min
July 20 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 46.
Psalm 46
Psalm 46 reminds us that God is not only supreme and powerful, but also
eternally merciful.
By painting the picture of a God who rules over all creation, as well as
the warring nations, the Psalmist reminds us of His love and mercy towards
His people. That even in the midst of total chaos, our God invites us to be
still and know that He is God.
By Bram Manusama
39 min
July 13 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 139
Psalm 139
To be human is to be made for intimacy - with other people vitally, but
also with God primarily. In Psalm 139 we see how nothing is hidden from
God. He knows us intimately.
This can lead us to do two things - run away from Him; or run towards Him.
We run away because we're afraid - usually of rejection, abandonment, or
humiliation. But David understands that that is not what awaits us, nor is
running away anything but futile. No one can get away from God's presence.
Instead, He runs towards God's love - His love is intimately concerned with
us, it is fiercely passionate for us, and it leads us into life in all its
fullness. We can stop hiding.
By Ed Flint
35 min
July 06 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 110.
Psalm 110
More than any other, Psalm 110 reveals the identity of the Messiah.
Jesus is the fulfillment of David’s prophecy in this psalm: Jesus has
completed the work God assigned him setting us right with God, Jesus is
Lord over all that we ever face, Jesus is our eternal priest caring and
interceding for us, and Jesus is extending His kingdom over evil with us as
His willing army in the fight.
By Ed Flint
34 min
June 29 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 19
Psalm 19 (NIV); Psalm 19 (Message)
The Psalms don't just tell us about God—they teach us how to speak to him.
Psalm 19 invites us into an ancient prayer of orientation, that begins with
the skies, delights in instruction, and ends with a simple prayer of
surrender.
But to hear it well, we have to step outside our modern assumptions about
science, faith, and religious rules—and learn to see the world a little
more like ancient Israel did. It's an invitation to slow down, recover
wonder, and allow the Holy Spirit to write God's ways on our hearts.
By Hannah Flint
39 min
June 29 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 8
Psalm 8
God of Humanity
The Bible answers the fundamental question of what it means to be human, by
saying: it means to be in relationship with God.
It's less about who we are and more about whose we are. When we start with
God, we experience life as it’s supposed to be lived: we see that God is
enormous and powerful; we are small; our worship shuts the mouth of all
that comes against us; God cares about the smallest details of our lives;
and in our weakness he makes us strong. We come to God as we are, and he
meets us there.
By Ed Flint
34 min
June 15 Songs of the Kingdom: Psalm 96.
Psalm 96
At bread, we value the manifest presence of God above all else. Worship is
essential for that.
Since the beginning God's people have sung songs of worship. We are
commanded to do so; it's who we were created to be; and He alone is worthy
of it. Worship will always be the ultimate goal for humanity. So we're
learning that as we bring our full selves- body, mind and spirit- to
worship, trusting in the cross of Christ, we draw close to God, and He to
us. Our worship welcomes in the King of the Kingdom. And wherever He is,
his Kingdom comes.
By Ed Flint
0 min