This episode is a message that was given by Joshua Molden at River City Church's Thursday Morning Bible Study on 2/6/2025. The text that Joshua covers in the sermon is Ephesians 1:5-6, listed below:

"In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved" - Ephesians 1:5-6 ESV

This episode is a sermon on Ephesians 1:4 given by Jackson Hankey at River City Church on Thursday, January 30th, 2025. This verse unfolds for us the doctrine of Unconditional Election and the sermon draws out 8 things that we learn from this passage about this doctrine. Listed below is the definition I give of Unconditional Election and the 8 things I highlighted about it from Ephesians 1:4

Def: "Unconditional Election is the Bible's teaching that God has unchangeably and infallibly chosen before the foundation of the world, and based solely upon his good pleasure and not on any foreseen merit, all of those who will be undeservingly saved."

#1 - The Doctrine of Unconditional Election should cause us to praise God

#2 - The Doctrine of Unconditional Election is a doctrine for the whole church

#3 - God's Unconditional Election of us is the fountainhead of every other spiritual blessing that God gives us

#4 - Unconditional Election is an act of the Father through/for the Son

#5 - The Doctrine of Unconditional Election teaches us that God, not man, has the determining choice in salvation

#6 - God made this determining choice before the foundation of the world

#7 - God made this choice unconditionally. Meaning it was not based on any foreseen condition in us.

#8 - God elected us with a purpose. That we should ultimately be presented holy and blameless before him in love

This episode is a sermon on Ephesians 1:1-2 which was given by James Kaczor at River City Church on Thursday, Jan. 16th, 2025. This is Paul's introduction to the letter, and as James' mentions it is like an embryo which contains many of the things we see throughout the rest of the book. Now, these are verses that, if we're honest, we are often prone to quickly skimming without really thinking about them, but to do so is to miss some of the great treasures that are to be found. The truth is that God never wastes any words, and if these verses are in the Bible, then God has put them there for a reason. Listen and you will hear more about what that reason might be!

This episode is an introduction to the book of Ephesians which was taught by Jackson Hankey at River City Church on Thursday, Jan. 9th, 2025. As stated in the episode, the book of Ephesians is one of the most important documents in the history of the world. That is largely due to the fact that even though this letter is relatively short, it is one of the clearest and most comprehensive statements of so much of the substance of the Christian beliefs that we hold so dear. Many of God's sheep in all ages have been led by the Great Shepherd to find in this book green pastures and still waters for their souls.

This overview of the book covers a few things:

1. The Historical Context & Relevant Background of the letter

2. The Clear Teaching of Ephesians on Salvation

• That it's by Grace Alone, through Faith Alone, in Christ Alone, and to the Glory of God Alone

3. The Teaching of Ephesians on the Christian Life

4. The Teaching of Ephesians on the Church

This episode is a sermon on Isaiah 53:10-12 that was preached by Jackson Hankey at River City Church on 12/29/2024. Isaiah 53 is one of the most beloved passages by Christians of all ages because of how clearly it speaks of the work of Jesus even though it was written hundreds of years before he came into the world.

Verses 10-12 finish this great passage in the same way that the Bible itself finishes and the same way that all of human history will finish. That is, with a resurrected, highly-exalted, all-glorious Christ, receiving as the fruit of his labor a vast and innumerable people for his own possession. Few passages in the Bible so clearly explain both the redeeming work that Christ accomplished and the way in which he will be gloriously rewarded for it!

This episode is a sermon on Isaiah 53:4-6 that was preached by Jackson Hankey at River City Church in Fargo, ND, on 12/15/2024. Isaiah 53 is one of the most beloved passages in the Bible by Christians of all ages and verses 4-6 are at the very heart of the passage. Perhaps nowhere else in the Bible is there such a clear explanation of the significance of the death of Christ as in Isaiah 53:4-6, and that is despite the fact that it was written 700 years before Christ came into the world!

Here's a quote about Isaiah 53 from the famous English Preacher Charles Spurgeon.

"This fifty-third of Isaiah is a Bible in miniature. It is the condensed essence of the gospel. This is the foundation upon which I have built all my hopes for time and for eternity; this is the source of my sweetest consolation; this is the sun that makes my day, and the star that guides my night."

This episode is a sermon on Isaiah 52:13-15 that was preached by Jackson Hankey at River City Church in Fargo, ND, on 12/1/2024. Isaiah 52:13-53:12 is one the most beloved passages of Scripture by Christians in all ages. This is because it is one of the clearest and most thorough passages that we find about the person and work of Jesus Christ in the entire Bible (despite the fact that it was written by the Prophet Isaiah about 700 years before Christ came into the world). Here are a few quotes that demonstrate the richness of this great passage.

"There is, indeed, in all the writings of the Old Testament, no plainer text nor prediction, both of the sufferings and the resurrection of Christ, than in this chapter. Therefore all Christians should be well acquainted with it, even know it by heart, in order to strengthen and defend our faith." - Martin Luther on Isaiah 52:13-53:12

"This chapter is so replenished with the unsearchable riches of Christ that it may be called rather the gospel of the evangelist Isaiah than the prophecy of the prophet Isaiah." - Matthew Henry on Isaiah 52:13-53:12

This episode is a sermon on the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) that was preached by Jackson Hankey on November 10th, 2024, at Bethel Baptist Church in Park River, ND.

The Lord's Prayer is perhaps the most well known and most repeated passage in the entire Bible. Yet, it seems that very few of us have really understood it and taken it to heart. Many of us, in spite of it's familiarity, have been entirely unaffected by it's meaning, especially in our own prayer lives.

Yet, the Lord's Prayer in reality is a glorious manifesto of the heart of Biblical Prayer. At the same time, it is both wonderfully profound and remarkably simple. Surely, we would do well to learn about prayer from the Master himself, the Lord Jesus Christ. Nowhere else in the Bible do we find the command to "Pray then like this."

In this episode, I (Jackson Hankey) address the debate surrounding the topic of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. As we have moved to the Holy Spirit in our discussion of the Doctrine of God, it seems fitting to address some of the current controversies surrounding the work of the Holy Spirit, especially those that have arisen out of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement. With this in mind, we've decided the first thing to address should be the Biblical concept of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Below is a summary of the Charismatic view, as well as the more common Evangelical view that I will be defending.

Charismatic View:

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is experienced by some (not all) Christians. It is a special work of the Spirit that is distinct from regeneration and happens after regeneration, meaning that someone can be a born-again believer but not "Baptized in the Spirit." This work of the Spirit is marked by speaking in tongues.

Non-Charismatic Evangelical View:

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to the experience of all (not some) Christians at the moment of regeneration and conversion when they are "baptized" (immersed) in/with/by the Holy Spirit. It is a distinctive blessing of the New Covenant (fulfilling New Covenant prophecies such as Ezekiel 36:26-27 and Joel 2:28-29) that was not experienced by believers under the Old Covenant. It was sometimes (not always) accompanied with the gift of tongues in the New Testament, but that gift ceased to exist in the church after the closing of the Apostolic age.

Listen to the episode to hear how each group arrives at their views and for a defense of the second view listed in this description. Enjoy!

In this episode, James Kaczor and I continue our series on the Doctrine of God and now progress to a discussion of the Holy Spirit. This episode has a feeling of unique relevance given the degree of confusion that fills the church today in regard to the person and work of the Holy Spirit. For many, there is a strong tendency to overemphasize or overrealize the person and work of the Holy Spirit in unbiblical ways. However, perhaps just as common, is a tendency to underemphasize and underrealize the Holy Spirit in similarly unbiblical ways. With this in mind, we hope in this episode (and more to follow) to give a biblically accurate picture of the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

In this episode we look at two main things.

1. The Identity of the Holy Spirit

• As a unique person of the Trinity
• As being truly and fully God

2. The Ministry or Role of the Holy Spirit in the Church

• What does the Holy Spirit actually do for people?
• What are the marks of the Spirit in a person's life?