Living The Message

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss the topic of fasting. What is the purpose of fasting? Is it about changing Gods mind, or your own? And can we manipulate God through fasting? These are just some of the questions we’ll be dealing with on this episode.

Fasting is a tool in the tool chest of spiritual formation bringing us into closer conformity to the image of God. At its core, fasting is about self-denial, which is a very counter cultural concept. It helps to sharpen our earnestness in prayer as we bring our spiritual needs before God.

Questions from the sermon:

• Does fasting make our prayers more effective? (4:41)
• Is fasting manipulative of God? (7:08)
• How do you fast well as an individual in a communal spiritual family? (9:16)
• How can people use their lunch hour during a day of fasting? (12:21)
• What allowances can we make for ourselves during a fast? (14:30)
• How should people who struggle with negative associations with food approach fasting in a healthy way? (17:54)
• Should we implement a regular fast from non-food items in our spiritual walk? (22:33)
• How can we train our kids to learn to fast? (27:03)

 

To watch the sermon for this podcast, click here: https://youtu.be/ACh_kR1I7EE

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Questions for living the message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or emailed to [email protected]

As we’ve been going line by line through The Lords's Prayer for the past six weeks, it’s possible to miss the forest for the trees. So, in this convo, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss the most life changing surprises from this prayer.

1. The Father’s Heart (2:46): How can we feel close to our Heavenly Father in prayer when He can seem so distant at times? Remember that we’re not spiritually immature if we don’t always feel close to God. Jesus is retooling our approach to speaking to God the Father, reminding us that He's for us and desires to hear from us.
2. Prayer Change Us (12:36): How do we live in the balance of praying for something and allowing prayer to also change our hearts? If you feel like your prayers aren’t working, God may in fact be working on you. When we pray, we are processing the world in a way that is really beneficial to us. So, if your world isn’t changing because of your prayers, remember that that isn’t the ultimate goal. God intends for prayer to work its transformation first and foremost on us.
3. A Greater Story (22:03): The Lord's Prayer teaches us to lose ourselves in the grandeur of God, where our stories become a part of God’s greater story. And the most amazing part is that we're invited to join Him on mission, to be a part of His kingdom story.

To watch the sermon for this podcast, click here: https://youtu.be/CrzZ3EUEEQM

Questions for living the message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or emailed to [email protected]

What is temptation, how do we pray against evil, and what resources do we have pursue victory over spiritual warfare?

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric explore the confusing phrase “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” We'll learn what the original text means and how to apply it in a variety of cases.

They also address important questions from the sermon:

• Did the devil make me do it? Or should we blame God? 2:45
• What is temptation, and how do we understand that term? 6:25
• Can testing ever be a good thing? 9:45
• Why do we pray to be delivered from evil? 15:40
• Are we praying against evil in general, or against the "Evil One"? 18:45
• How much should Christians be thinking about spiritual warfare? 20:50
• What are practical ways to pray against spiritual warfare? 26:07
• What does a model prayer of deliverance look like? 32:25

To watch the sermon for this podcast, click here: https://youtu.be/3XMQJwlZfKk

Questions for living the message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or emailed to [email protected]

Forgiveness is hard for all of us. Can you forgive someone when they haven’t yet repented? How do you forgive someone who hasn’t repented? And how do you begin the process of forgiveness when your wounds feel too deep?

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss what it looks like in practice to pray "forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors" from The Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:12. True forgiveness means to pay a debt in full and be done with it. But applying that to our lives can be a complicated endeavor. To unpack this topic, they address important questions from the sermon:

1. How can we forgive someone and still leave room for justice? 1:37
2. Is repentance necessary for forgiveness? 9:06
3. Why is pride a root issue for forgiveness? 14:29
4. What approach should someone take if they feel unable to forgive someone due to deep hurt? 20:47
5. Why do some version of the Lord's Prayer use "trespasses" instead of "debts"? 23:13
6. What do we gain by forgiving others? What are the costs of not forgiving? 27:57

 

To watch the sermon for this podcast, click here: https://youtu.be/n-FVq5uZvzw

Questions for living the message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or emailed to [email protected] 

Jesus tells us to pray “give us this day our daily bread,” but how does that work? Does it mean that we don’t have to work at all, just pray? And how do we make sense of the fact that sometimes the prayers of Christians for basic needs are not answered?

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss what it means to pray for “our daily bread” and why it is important for us to have the right context for this passage. When Jesus shared this prayer in the Sermon on the Mount, He was attempting to reorient our hearts to a bigger reality than our basic daily needs. He wanted us to see that we are beings created to be tethered to God, dependent on Him for our physical and spiritual nourishment. And so, praying for our daily needs is a natural extension of our created order. We can lift up our physical and spiritual needs to God with confidence that He cares.

They also took questions from the audience:

• How would Jesus’ original audience have understood the term “daily bread?” 4:22
• How do we pray this prayer in practice? 7:29
• Where is the line between praying for our daily bread and working for our daily bread? 9:07
• How much should we emphasize praying for the needs of others? 11:45
• Can we become overly concerned with the prayer needs of others? 14:57
• How do we make sense about the issue of Christians who pray for daily needs that aren’t met? 18:45

To watch the sermon for this podcast, click here: https://youtu.be/rEns4q6ZYBs 

Questions for living the message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or emailed to [email protected]

Do you come to God in prayer with an agenda of your own? Or do you pray for God's will to be done in your life and in the lives of those around you? In this episode, Pastors Philip and Eric explore how to reform our prayers to a Kingdom mindset. This simple shift that can have profound effects on our prayer life.

In this conversation, they discuss what it means to pray for "Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" from Matthew 6:10. When we pray this phrase, we're attempting to sync up our agenda on earth with the Heavenly agenda.

They also answer important questions from listeners about the sermon:

1. What reason do we have to engage in social and political action on earth as we await Jesus' return? 6:48
2. What is the "Kingdom" that we are praying for? 13:47
3. How should a person submit their life to God in prayer? 16:31
4. What if we feel like submission to God makes our prayers weaker? 19:10
5. What are Pastor Philip's biggest takeaways from this passage? 21:20

 

To watch the sermon for this episode, click here: https://youtu.be/kbUtoCskJN0

Questions for Living the Message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or by email to [email protected].

Are you praying the right way? Many of us wonder if we're using the right words, or if God is even hearing us. The good news: Jesus gave us the perfect model, which if followed produces prayers that God loves to hear and loves to answer. Over the next six weeks, we're looking at The Lord's Prayer and applying the model Jesus gave us to everyday prayers.

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss that first line of the Lord's Prayer and unpack what it means to "hallow" God's name. 1:19

They answer important questions from the sermon:

1. Why do we pray to "Our Father in Heaven," and what can a person do if they have a difficult or painful relationship with their earthly father? 5:18
2. Why do some Bible translations use the phrase "in the heavens" when other translations don't? 11:56
3. What is meant by the "spiritual heaven" and "third heaven analogy" in Scripture? 17:49
4. What does it mean to "hallow" someone? 19:50
5. How do we live out hallowing God's name on a daily basis? 20:36
6. What does it look like to pray hallowing prayers? 23:53

Featured Resource: What If Jesus Was Serious About Prayer by Skye Jethani

To watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/cQtxKBwjBEA 

Questions for Living the Message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or by email to [email protected].

Prayer that uses God to look good or uses God as a vending machine doesn’t work. So what kind of prayers get His attention?

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss how to pray in a way that pleases God. How we orient our hearts to God matters to the outcome of our prayers. Our heart orientation should be to genuinely spend time with God, not to manipulate God for our personal gain. God honors prayer that primarily seeks relationship with Him.

They also answer important questions from the sermon:

1. How do we know if we're trying to manipulate God? 5:11
2. What’s the right and wrong way to pray for a blessing? 9:00
3. Is public prayer a form of social platforming? 11:30
4. Who should we direct our prayers to? The Father, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit? 16:20
5. Do structural prayers have their place in our spiritual life? 21:49
6. What resources do you recommend on prayer? 25:38

To watch the sermon for this episode, click here: https://youtu.be/Oi31q8a0wVo

Questions for Living the Message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or by email to [email protected].

Barna Research found that 85% of those who left church did so because they felt that church people are hypocrites. That'a a big problem! Are you guilty of hypocrisy?

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss hypocrisy and how to avoid "virtue signaling" tendencies. Jesus hated hypocrisy too, calling out those who fake religiosity as "actors" who aren’t living rightly before God. Essentially, hypocrites are doing all the right things for all the wrong reasons, and that breaks the heart of God.

They also address questions that you submitted to the show:

1. Is it ok to give or do something good when you don’t intend for it to be kept fully secret? If you can do something in private and be OK without publicity, then you know that your heart is in the right place. (3:16)
2. When is it ok to put your good works on display without "virtue signaling"? Always ask yourself, "who is getting the glory?" (10:52)
3. How do you properly share your accomplishments and let your light shine before others? Assess your motivations. (13:14)
4. How should we balance a self-promotion culture to "get ahead" with Jesus’ teaching on hypocrisy? Awards and accolades are OK and can be celebrated, but don’t confuse your performance and your identity in Christ. (17:43)
5. How do you call out hypocrisy in another? Be careful to manage your own heart first before calling sin out in another. (23:39)

To watch the sermon for this episode on YouTube, visit https://youtu.be/Q2mZEfvll0c

Questions for Living the Message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or by email to [email protected].

Jesus says to turn the other cheek. But how many times are we supposed to turn it and allow ourselves to be hit?

In this conversation, Pastors Philip and Eric discuss practical steps to loving our enemies. While the redemptive heart of God is for non-violence and non-retaliation, living that out is complicated and requires understanding of the biblical context. Important topics include how to set boundaries, the Christian definition of pacifism, how to navigate disagreements in-person and online, and steps to cultivating a heart for our enemies.

They also address questions that you submitted to the show:

• How should you respond to people who continually take advantage of you? 2:10
• How often should we forgive someone? 6:51
• Is self-defense OK if you’re attacked? 8:52
• What is the heart of God if someone breaks into your house? 12:20
• Is it ok to serve in the military? 14:59
• How should we conduct ourselves in the metaverse? 20:24
• How should we respond to online criticism? 24:50

Three steps to cultivating a heart of love for those who are our enemies: 27:11

1. Pray for our enemies
2. Preach to yourself
3. Say “hello” and love them

If you enjoyed this video, please subscribe and give us a like!  

To watch the sermon for this episode, click here: https://youtu.be/ouiNK23BV7Q

Questions for Living the Message can be submitted to 312-682-1888 or by email to [email protected].