Be Strong and Courageous | Joshua 1:6-9 | Pastor Josef Rasheed

In this encouraging message from Joshua 1:6-9, Pastor Josef Rasheed challenges both Pastor Dave and the Redeemer congregation to embrace God's command: “Be strong and courageous.” Just as Joshua was called to lead Israel after the death of Moses, believers today are called to trust God’s promises, follow His Word, and courageously fulfill His purposes.

Key Scripture

Joshua 1:6-9 (NIV)

Main Challenges and Encouragements

Theme: "Be Strong and Courageous" (Joshua 1:6-9)

Pastor Rasheed's message centered on God's repeated command to Joshua: "Be strong and courageous." He applied this challenge both to Pastor Dave as a leader and to the Redeemer congregation as followers of Christ.

Challenges

1. Accept God's Calling and Leadership

Just as Joshua was commissioned to lead Israel after Moses, Pastor Dave has been commissioned by God to lead the church into its next season.

Leadership requires faith, perseverance, and dependence on God rather than personal strength.

2. Lead People Across Their Fears

The Jordan River represented the fears and obstacles facing Israel.

Believers are called to trust God through uncertainty and help others move beyond fear into faith.

3. Obey God's Word Completely

Pastor Rasheed emphasized Joshua 1:7-8, calling believers to: 

Obey Scripture faithfully.

Keep God's Word on their lips.

Meditate on it day and night.

Allow God's truth to guide every decision.

4. Walk in Spiritual Freedom

Christians are called to live free from traditions, habits, and bondages that keep them from fully following Christ.

The congregation is challenged to help others experience the freedom found in Jesus.

5. Support and Pray for Church Leadership

The church was urged to stand with Pastor Dave through prayer, encouragement, unity, and faithful service.

Rather than participating in criticism or division, believers should lift up their leaders before God.

6. Stand Firm in a Culture Moving Away from God

The congregation was challenged to remain faithful to biblical truth even when society rejects Christian values.

Parents were specifically encouraged to raise their children in the knowledge and fear of the Lord.

Encouragements

1. God Commissions Those He Calls

Throughout Scripture, God called and equipped people such as Moses, Samuel, Jeremiah, Paul, and Joshua.

If God calls someone to a task, He will also provide the strength and resources to accomplish it.

2. God Is Always Present

The central encouragement came from Joshua 1:9:

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." 

08-09-2026

Ephesians 6:10-20 | The Armor of God: Standing Together in Christ

Final Message in the Ephesians Series | Pastor Daniel Bunn

As Redeemer Church concludes its 13-week journey through Paul's letter to the Ephesians, Pastor Daniel Bunn explores one of the most familiar passages in the New Testament: The Armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20). While many Christians have heard this passage taught as a guide for individual spiritual warfare, Pastor Daniel invites us to hear Paul's words with fresh ears and within the larger context of the entire letter.

Throughout Ephesians, Paul repeatedly emphasizes one central theme: God has created one new people in Christ. Jews and Gentiles, once divided, have been reconciled through Jesus and united into one body. From chapters 1 through 6, Paul's concern is not primarily individual spirituality, but the formation and preservation of a Christ-centered community marked by unity, peace, love, and mutual submission.

With that context in mind, Pastor Daniel highlights a key insight often overlooked in this well-known passage: Paul's instructions are directed not merely to individual believers, but to the church as a collective community. In the original Greek, the commands are consistently addressed to "you all." The call to "put on the full armor of God" is a call for the entire body of Christ to stand together in the strength of the Lord.

The sermon also explores what battle Paul has in mind. Rather than focusing primarily on personal struggles, Paul is addressing the spiritual forces that seek to divide God's people. The enemy's schemes are those that threaten to fracture the unity Christ has established. Falsehood, bitterness, pride, suspicion, unforgiveness, rivalry, and division are not merely interpersonal problems; they are spiritual battlegrounds.

The armor of God, therefore, is expressed in the life of a united church:

Living truthfully with one another

Practicing righteousness toward one another

Walking in the gospel of peace

Remaining faithful to one another

Holding firmly to salvation and God's Word

Praying continually for one another

Pastor Daniel emphasizes that Paul does not call the church to attack, conquer, or achieve victory. Instead, he commands believers to stand. Christ has already won the decisive victory through His death and resurrection. The church's calling is to remain steadfast within that victory by bearing with one another, forgiving one another, speaking truth in love, and refusing to let the powers of darkness convince us that fellow believers are the enemy.

The message concludes with a powerful reminder that every act of reconciliation, every restored relationship, every wall that comes down, and every instance of forgiveness makes the victory of Christ visible in the world. When the church stands together in unity, clothed in the armor of God and strengthened by prayer, it becomes a witness to the power of the gospel that no spiritual force can overcome.

Key Takeaway: The Armor of God is not merely about individual believers preparing for personal battles. It is a call for the whole church to stand together in Christ's victory, protecting and preserving the unity that Jesus has won for His people.

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20
Series: Ephesians
Speaker: Pastor Daniel Bunn
Church: Redeemer Church

"Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power... Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes." (Ephesians 6:10-11)

08-02-2026

Ephesians Series - Week 12

Living a Life Worthy of the Calling: Faithfulness in the Ordinary

Pastor Dave Brown | Ephesians 6:5-9

In Week 12 of our Ephesians series, Pastor Dave Brown tackles one of the most difficult and historically misunderstood passages in Scripture: Ephesians 6:5-9. This text has often been misused to justify slavery, but Pastor Dave explains why Paul was not endorsing oppressive systems. Instead, Paul was teaching believers how to faithfully live out the gospel within the realities of the Roman world while bearing witness to the Kingdom of God.

The key to understanding this passage is reading it within the larger context of Ephesians 5:21-6:9, framed by two foundational truths:

"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ" (Ephesians 5:21)

"There is no favoritism with God" (Ephesians 6:9)

Paul's concern is not creating a blueprint for social institutions such as marriage, parenting, or slavery. Rather, he is showing believers how to live lives worthy of their calling as adopted children of God, demonstrating the character of Jesus wherever they find themselves.

Throughout the message, Pastor Dave highlights Paul's broader vision found in passages like Galatians 3:28, where all people are united in Christ regardless of social status, ethnicity, or gender. Far from defending inequality, Paul continually points believers toward the transforming reality of God's Kingdom.

A central theme of the sermon is that Jesus redefines power and leadership. Those in positions of authority are called to use their influence the way Christ did: not for personal gain, but to empower others to become everything God created them to be. At the same time, Paul affirms the dignity and value of those without power, reminding them that they can fully participate in God's mission right where they are.

Pastor Dave also challenges a common cultural assumption that our significance depends on status, success, influence, or upward mobility. While ambition is not inherently wrong, God's kingdom work does not begin when we reach a particular position, promotion, or life stage. It begins now.

Most of life is lived in ordinary moments:

Going to work

Answering emails

Raising children

Caring for family

Doing household chores

Showing up faithfully day after day

The Kingdom of God often advances not through extraordinary achievements, but through ordinary people consistently embodying the love of Jesus in everyday places.

Key Takeaways

✅ Context matters when interpreting Scripture.

No matter where you find yourself today, God has given you opportunities to reveal the character of Jesus and the love of the Father through your everyday life.

#Ephesians #BibleTeaching #PastorDaveBrown #RedeemerChurch #KingdomOfGod #ChristianLiving #Faithfulness #Ephesians6 #LeadershipLikeJesus #OrdinaryFaithfulness #GospelTransformation #SermonPodcast #BibleStudy #ChristianPodcast #JesusChrist

07-26-2026

Ephesians Series | Week 11

The Mission of Marriage: Mutual Submission and Christlike Love

Ephesians 5:21-33 | Pastor Dave Brown

In Week 11 of our Ephesians series, Pastor Dave Brown tackles one of the most debated passages in Scripture: Ephesians 5:21-33. Rather than reading "wives, submit to your husbands" in isolation, Pastor Dave explores how Paul's teaching must be understood in its full context, beginning with the instruction to "submit to one another out of reverence for Christ" (Ephesians 5:21).

This message challenges common interpretations that have often reduced the passage to questions of authority and hierarchy. By examining the broader flow of Paul's argument, the original Greek text, and the example of Jesus Himself, Pastor Dave shows that the foundation of Christian marriage is not domination, but mutual submission, sacrificial love, and Christlike service.

Drawing attention to Paul's greater emphasis on husbands, the sermon explores the call for men to love their wives with the same self-giving, agape love that Christ  demonstrated for the Church. Jesus did not use His power to control others. Instead, He willingly laid down His life so that others could flourish and become everything God created them to be.

This week’s message highlights:

Ultimately, Pastor Dave reminds us that marriage is more than a personal relationship. It is a living picture of Christ and the Church. Christian marriage is intended to help husbands and wives become more like Jesus while serving as a signpost to the world of God's love, grace, and coming Kingdom.

Whether you're married, single, divorced, widowed, or simply seeking to follow Christ more faithfully, this message offers a powerful challenge to live a life worthy of the calling we have received by loving others with the same self-sacrificial love Christ has shown us.

Scripture: Ephesians 5:21-33

Series: Ephesians

Speaker: Pastor Dave Brown

#Ephesians #Ephesians5 #ChristianMarriage #PastorDaveBrown #BibleStudy #ChurchSermon #MutualSubmission #AgapeLove #ChristAndTheChurch #TulsaChurch #Faith #Discipleship #ChristianLiving #Gospel #JesusChrist

07-19-2026

Ephesians 5:1-20 | Pastor Leanne Benton | Reading by Reverend Dr. Terry Bell
Ephesians: Walking in Christ Together

This week, Pastor Leanne Benton continues our series through Ephesians with a message titled "Children of Light: Learning to Walk in Love" from Ephesians 5:1-20. The service also features a Scripture reading by Reverend Dr. Terry Bell, a longtime pastor, educator, and member of Redeemer Church.

Drawing from Paul's teaching, Leanne reminds us that we are all being formed by something. As God's dearly loved children, we are called to imitate Christ, walk in love, live as children of light, and continually be filled with the Holy Spirit. Rather than focusing on rules or religious performance, this message explores how true spiritual formation happens through identity, community, wisdom, honesty, and God's transforming grace.

Join us as we consider an important question:

Who are you becoming, and what would it look like to love well today?

07-12-2026

Ephesians Series – Week 9 | Ephesians 4:17-32 | Pastor David Nunn

What does it really mean to be holy?

In Week 9 of our Ephesians series, Pastor David Nunn explores Ephesians 4:17-32 and challenges the common belief that holiness is achieved by trying harder or following a list of rules. While Paul gives practical instructions for Christian living—telling believers to stop lying, control their anger, avoid stealing, speak words that build others up, and practice kindness and forgiveness—the deeper message is that these behaviors are not the cause of holiness, but the result of a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

Pastor David walks through Paul's argument in Ephesians, reminding us that throughout the letter, salvation, transformation, and spiritual growth are presented as the work of God's grace, not human effort. Through Christ, believers have been redeemed, adopted into God's family, and empowered by the Holy Spirit to become a new humanity united in love.

This message highlights the difference between striving for individual righteousness and participating in God's work of shaping His people into the body of Christ. True spiritual transformation happens as believers live in community, encourage one another, and join the Holy Spirit in building up the church.

Key Takeaways:

As followers of Christ, we are called to lean into the work of the Holy Spirit, encourage one another, and help build the church into the full measure of Christ's likeness.

Scripture: Ephesians 4:17-32

Living a Life Worthy of the Calling

Ephesians 4:1–16 | Pastor Dave Brown

In Episode 8 of our Ephesians series, Pastor Dave Brown explores the pivotal transition in Paul’s letter from theology to practice. After spending the first three chapters describing everything God has done for us in Christ—choosing, adopting, reconciling, and uniting us—Paul now asks a pressing question: How should we live in response to such incredible grace?

Drawing from Ephesians 4:1–16 and reflecting on the meaning of freedom during America’s 250th year, Pastor Dave contrasts a self-centered view of freedom with a biblical understanding rooted in humility, responsibility, and service. Using the example of George Washington’s voluntary surrender of power, he highlights how the greatest expressions of freedom are not found in what we gain for ourselves, but in what we are willing to give away for the good of others.

Paul’s central challenge is clear: “Live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” As adopted sons and daughters of God and co-heirs with Christ, believers are called to reflect the character of Jesus in their daily lives. Pastor Dave identifies four key themes from this passage that define a life worthy of that calling:

Humility – Putting Christ and others before ourselves.

Unity – Making every effort to preserve the unity of the Spirit.

Responsibility – Using our gifts to serve the body of Christ and our community.

Maturity – Growing steadily into the fullness of Christ through faithful obedience.

A significant portion of the message focuses on humility, examining how pride subtly manifests in our spiritual lives. Drawing from Augustine’s reflections on pride, Pastor Dave challenges listeners to consider how self-centeredness can appear through spiritual complacency, misplaced priorities, religious performance, or an excessive focus on personal comfort and preferences.

The sermon also emphasizes that Christian unity is not uniformity. God has gifted every believer differently, and the church reflects His glory best when diverse people work together in love, peace, and mutual service. Paul’s call to “make every effort” toward unity remains especially relevant in a culture often marked by division, conflict, and self-interest.

Ultimately, spiritual maturity comes through what Eugene Peterson described as “a long obedience in the same direction.” As followers of Christ, we are invited to continually grow in humility, serve one another faithfully, speak truth in love, and become living testimonies of God’s kingdom on earth.

The message concludes with corporate confession and Holy Communion, reminding believers that humility, unity, responsibility, and maturity are not merely ideas to discuss—they are practices to embrace as we gather around Christ’s table and are sent back into the world as His people.

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1–16

Key Theme: Living out our freedom in Christ through humility, unity, responsibility, and spiritual maturity.

Pastor: Daniel Bunn
Series: Ephesians Week 7

Ephesians 3:14–21 | Knowing the Love That Surpasses Knowledge

Scripture: Ephesians 3:14–21

In this message from our Ephesians series, we reflect on Paul’s prayer that believers would be strengthened by the Spirit, that Christ would dwell in their hearts through faith, and that they would come to know the love of Christ—a love so wide, long, high, and deep that it surpasses knowledge.

Paul begins by bowing his knees before the Father, a posture of reverence, humility, and surrender. From that place of awe, he prays not simply that the church would know facts about Christ, but that they would be rooted and grounded in His love. This kind of knowing is more than information; it is the deep, lived knowledge that comes through abiding nearness, shared life, and ongoing communion with God.

The sermon explores the difference between knowing about something and truly experiencing it—like understanding the physics of riding a bike versus actually riding one, or the wordless understanding that forms through years of relationship. In the same way, Paul prays that believers would encounter Christ’s love so deeply that they recognize it can never be mastered or exhausted.

As we consider the vastness of creation—from the immensity of galaxies to the intricacy of the human body—we are reminded that God is greater still. And this infinite God has loved us forever. The proper response is not pride or control, but wonder, humility, worship, and prayer.

Key themes:

Reverence and humility before God

Christ dwelling at the center of our lives

The difference between knowing about God and knowing God

The immeasurable dimensions of Christ’s love

Being rooted and grounded in love through the Spirit

Reflection question: Where might God be inviting you to move beyond knowing about His love and into a deeper experience of being loved by Him?

Listen and reflect with us as we continue through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.

EPHESIANS – WEEK 6

Pastor: Dave Brown
Series: Ephesians

Ephesians 3:1–13 | Administrators of Grace

What does it mean to receive God's grace—and then live it out?

In Ephesians 3, Paul shares his own story as an example of a life transformed by the Gospel. Once a persecutor of the Church, Paul became an administrator of God's grace, carrying the good news of Jesus to people who had previously been considered outsiders.

This message explores the mystery now revealed in Christ: that people from every nation, background, and culture are invited into one family of God. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, believers are called not only to receive grace but to embody it, extending Christ's love, reconciliation, forgiveness, and hope to the world around them.

The Church is more than a gathering place—it is God's living witness to His Kingdom, a community where His wisdom becomes visible through transformed lives.

Scripture: Ephesians 3:1–13

Additional References:

Key Takeaway:

EPHESIANS – WEEK 5

Pastor: Daniel Bunn
Series: Ephesians

📖 Sermon Summary (Ephesians 2:19–22 with Scripture)

Main Idea: A Declaration of Identity

Ephesians 2:19

“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.”

The core message is this:

✅ If you have believed in Christ, you already belong.

Paul is not:

Giving a command

Expressing a wish

Setting a future goal

He is making a present-tense declaration:

You are citizens. You are family. Right now.

1. We Struggle to Accept the Truth About Ourselves

We often:

Overestimate ourselves (pride)

Or underestimate ourselves (imposter syndrome)

Spiritually, this sounds like:

“I don’t really belong”

“That must be true for others, not me”

But Paul speaks truth over that doubt.

2. Who We Were vs. What Christ Has Done

Who We Were

Ephesians 2:11–12

“Remember that at that time you were separate from Christ… excluded from citizenship in Israel… foreigners… without hope and without God in the world.”

We were:

Outsiders

Strangers

Without hope

What Christ Has Done

Ephesians 2:13–14

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace…”

Ephesians 2:18

“For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.”

Because of Jesus:

We are brought near

We have peace

We now have access to God

When This Became True

Ephesians 1:13

“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.”

✅ This identity begins when you hear and believe the gospel.

3. Belonging Is Declared, Not Earned

Ephesians 2:19

“You are no longer foreigners and strangers…”

This is:

Not “you will be”

Not “you might be”

Not “if you improve enough”

👉 It is a finished reality based on Christ’s work, not yours.

4. The Building Metaphor: What We’ve Become

Paul expands our identity using a construction image:

Foundation = Truth

Ephesians 2:20

“Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets…”

The church rests on truth revealed and proclaimed

This truth is preserved in Scripture

Cornerstone = Christ

Ephesians 2:20

“…with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”

Jesus:

Aligns everything (cornerstone)

Supports everything (keystone idea)

Completes everything (capstone idea)

👉 Christ is central to the entire structure.

We Are the Building Material

Ephesians 2:21–22

“In him the whole building is joined together… And in him you too are being built together…”

We are:

The stones

Different in size, shape, and background

Stronger together than alone

👉 Unity is not sameness—it’s shared alignment to Christ.

5. A Living, Growing Temple

Ephesians 2:21–22

“…rises to become a holy temple in the Lord… a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”

The church is:

Not static

Not finished

Alive and growing

👉 God is still building His people into His dwelling place.

✅ Big Takeaways

1. You Belong Right Now

“You are… fellow citizens… members of his household.” (Eph. 2:19)

Not based on performance

Based on Christ’s finished work

2. Faith Is Communal

“You too are being built together…” (Eph. 2:22)

You are not meant to follow Jesus alone

We are built together

3. Diversity Is Part of God’s Design

Different “stones” create a stronger, more beautiful whole

Unity comes through Christ, not uniformity

4. God Is Still Building

The structure is not complete yet

Growth is ongoing

Completion belongs to God

🧩 Final One-Sentence Summary

Because of what Christ has done, you already belong to God’s household—and together we are being built into a living, growing dwelling place for His presence.