Eric Ludy Sermon Podcast: Church at Ellerslie

At Ellerslie, this is THE message. A semester at Ellerslie is a constant refrain of this extraordinary Truth. Eric Ludy is constantly asking his students, "Where are you spiritually located?" And the answer to that question defines the level of spiritual health that our soul enjoys. The Gospel power hinges on the believer being "in" Christ—not "near" Christ, "on" Christ, or merely "within earshot" of Christ. When you truly grasp the substance of this message, the Christian life finds its wings and begins to fly.

Faith is the linchpin that holds the entire construct of Christianity together. Without it the Christian life is completely non-functional. But if faith is understood, grasped, and realized, everything begins to fit back into place. Suddenly the Christian life once again has power. Suddenly the Bible begins to live and breath for the believer. And suddenly all Hell goes on red alert. Get faith right and all Hell's best laid plans and conspiracies go south. If your faith is a bit wobbly at the moment, this message is a sure elixir.

There are certain topics that pastors know they should probably avoid for fear of raising the ire of their congregants. Talking straight about parenting methods would definitely fall into that category. However, in this message Eric Ludy throws caution to the wind. With the extreme influx of post- modern "feelings-based" ideology into the raising of our children, it's important to gain a Biblical grip on the issues at hand. Many Christian parents today have unwittingly bought into the notions of "feelings-based"parenting methods. This inevitably results in Christian homes run by little toddlers with grape jelly on their chins and foolishness running unchecked within their hearts. But God has an age-old, time-tested method for raising children, and it's high time we brought it back to the Church of Jesus Christ, both in parenting our kids and in the way we respond to being parented by our God.

To be "politically correct" is one of the not-so-hidden social secrets to success in our modern age. In America today, there are social behaviors that are frowned upon and social behaviors that are approved by the populace (i.e. racial sensitivity is approved while criticism of homosexuality is disapproved). But this demarcation of "correctness" by no means originated in modern America. It's as old as humanity itself. And we are not the only culture that has been poisoned by its power. In fact, Jesus struck a decisive blow against this "man-defined righteousness" at the Cross. 2000 years ago, Jesus declared this form of “righteousness" filthy in His sight and wholly unfit to save a single human soul from the judgement to come. He then proceeded to provide us with the only righteousness that was truly fit for the job of rescuing the world... His own.

In 1638, Scottish Christians were faced with a jarring challenge. They had to choose between their earthly king, Charles I, and their true "heavenly"King, Jesus Christ. To choose the "earthly" would mean comfort in this world, but death to the soul. To choose the "heavenly" would mean death in this world, but life to the soul. They chose Jesus. And these "Covenanters" modeled for each of us as believers the manner in which we are supposed to handle this same decision in our own souls. We must die in order to truly live.

This is a message that unlocks the art of praying in a very unique and stirring way. The answer for the Church is not in brainstorming solutions and in novel marketing campaigns—it's in prayer. And prayer is enabled and empowered when one beholds the "face of God." This message is about seeking the face of God as a primary work and not as a last resort.

December 2nd of the year 1804, an arrogant little man named Napoleon Bonaparte ascended to the throne of France. Kings being crowned kings is not an uncommon thing throughout the histories of men; however, at Napoleon's coronation something very unusual happened—something so bizarre, fantastical, and despicable that it proves an amazing metaphorical picture to explain the bizarre, fantastical, and despicable things that happen within our own human souls. There is one very clear conclusion that can be drawn: no man is great enough, wise enough, or strong enough to sit in the seat of the preeminent. That seat belongs to Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ alone!

Every Christian today seems well groomed in the phrase, "Judge not, lest ye be judged." But Scripture makes it clear that "judging" (authoritative decision-making based on the Word of God) is a necessary part of a healthy society, business, church, family, and individual life. For instance, if a father doesn't have the ability to bring judgment in his home, his little children will run wild without proper discipline and punishment. There is an arrogant and improper way to judge, and there is a humble, heavenly way to judge. It is imperative that the Church of Jesus Christ learns how to judge rightly.