In this message, Scott asks the church several questions about the size and location of church community: where should Christians gather to practice church life? Are church buildings sacred? What is the ideal size of a church gathering? What kinds of spaces have we met in for worship gatherings? Which ones seemed to work best and why? What are the pros and cons of large churches? Of small churches? At what point numerically is a church too large to know everyone? If we experienced sudden dramatic numerical growth—what should we do? Bigger building? Multiple services? Or do we plant churches?

What is the Church? What is the difference between the universal Church and a local church? What should the church do when they are gathered together? This message invites us to discuss multiple questions about how we assemble as a church.

This message is a succinct summary of the preceding three weeks. There are eight distinct aspects of the paradigm shift that are explained. Each is aimed to strip away church practices that are not rooted in God’s design as revealed in Scripture. The message is also a call to be part of Ren Church for 2022.

In this talk the modern way that churches distribute the money they bring in is challenged. Every year in the United States churches bring in about 120 billion dollars. Where does all that money go? About 75% goes toward staff and buildings. Another 15% goes toward programs for the church people. About 10% goes toward foreign missions and local outreach. The problem with this picture is that the concept of Christians gathering in a church building and having a paid pastoral staff—isn’t in the Bible. In fact, for 300 hundred years the early Christians did not meet in buildings and did not have salaried pastors. Imagine if the churches in America returned to God’s original design. That would be about 90 billion dollars a year that could be invested in local and global mission. This message challenges the modern ways churches—including Ren Church—spend money. Scott also gives some wisdom about how Ren Church can make this shift in a gradual way that doesn’t hurt the community.

In this second message of the Paradigm Shift series, Scott gives a detailed vision of what the Lord intended church life to be like. The idea is to shift away from the traditional model of the “big Sunday show” and move toward a small missional church expression. The message not only lays out the design of God but also shows the wisdom of God’s design in fulfilling the mission of the Church. Scott gives some strong appeals to be courageous and not hold tightly to traditions for the sake of the advance of the gospel.

This first message in the series is an attempt to deconstruct the traditional American church model. Unless we are convinced of it’s deficiency we won’t have the conviction or courage to step into new waters. The message of the gospel does not change from generation to generation, however, methods and models must adapt with the times. The Christian movement in America is in decline. Many churches are dying. May God awaken us to the urgency of making drastic changes in the way we structure church life.

There are times to lament, and there are times to feast. Pastor Scott goes through the theology behind celebrating as well as for fasting. This message focuses on not only practical wisdom for how to fast but also why we would fast and how to tell what the motives are behind your fasting.

Reading spiritual books is more than gaining information—it’s about transformation of the mind. Spiritual books interpret scripture for us in meaningful ways, or they can give fresh insight to faith in our day and age. Over time spiritual books will cultivate the way we think, which affects the way we live, so it is important to wisely choose which books we read. Pastor Scott offers ways to discern what and how we read, sharing his own list of book suggestions.

Pastor Scott addresses various habits we tend to have when we read the Bible and goes through a list of practical ideas to help us study the Bible more deeply.

We exist for the purpose of knowing God and enjoying Him. In this message, Pastor Scott offers wisdom to confront obstacles to our prayer times, such as a crowded mind, theological knots, or disordered affections, which deter us from gaining traction in our communication with God.