WestGate Church Teaching

Money is the topic of more than 25 percent of Jesus’ parables. One out of every 10 verses (288 total) in the Gospels are about money and resources, and there are more than 2,350 verses in the Bible are about money and resources. Why? Because money can easily, easily lead to greed, which is enslavement to money and all that it promises. And this isn’t just a risk for those with plenty. It’s a high risk for all of us—those with financial hardship, uncertainty, and stability and comfort. We’ll examine how follow Jesus’ clear example to “be on guard” against greed and share practical ways to make sure that God is our Master, not money.

SPEAKERS:

Jay Kim (Saratoga), Steve Clifford (South Hills)

Bible Passages):

Luke 12:13-21

YouTube playlists: Work Hard, Rest Easy

Sermon Description:

According to recent research, Americans spend more than 5 hours a day on leisure, with about 3 hours of that watching streaming content. That’s a lot of leisure time. And yet, 60 percent of Americans say they’re more tired than ever. We’re exhausted. We want to stop. We want to rest. But the things we’re doing don’t seem to be replenishing us. This is why the Biblical wisdom about Sabbath is so critical for our modern moment. In Scripture, we see that Sabbath is not an escape from work, but an intentional entering into God’s presence. It’s not about entertaining ourselves, but delighting in God’s goodness and grace. And it’s not about meaningless leisure, but meaningful rest. And for many of us who are worn out and tired, the invitation of God to Sabbath is likely exactly what our tired souls desperately need.

SPEAKERS:

Jay Kim (Saratoga), Corinna Girard (South Hills)

Bible Passages):

Exodus 20:8, Deuteronomy 5:12-15

Title: THE AFTERWORD | Work Hard, Rest Easy - Week 2 - Questions about Sabbath

Description:

This week, David shares actual questions submitted by WestGate Church congregants about what it means for someone in the Bay Area to “practice keeping the Sabbath.” What does this look like, practically, in a region whose culture flows swiftly toward “overwork.” Does the Sabbath *have* to be on a Sunday? Irreligious people sometimes say they “Sabbath”…is there a way to Sabbath that’s functionally non-religious? What about if you’re an introvert? Does Sabbathing look different for different people? And how do you Sabbath if your work and family responsibilities don’t ever shut off? Jay Kim and Corinna Girard stop by to provide some pastoral insights to these questions and more. Also, find out what a “horse porpoise” is, and why it’s so important.

Speakers: David Tieche + Jay Kim + Corinna Girard

Easter is a strange holiday for our post-Christian, mostly secular world. If you go just a little bit deeper than Peeps and chocolate bunnies, it’s actually pretty confrontational. The story says, “Jesus was dead, and now He isn’t and that means something BIG.” Jay and David talk about the “confronting” edges of Easter, and why Easter has harder edges than Christmas. We talk about if the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection even matters in an age that’s post-truth and post-facts. And David shares how the story of the Resurrection became critically important to his family this Easter.

Speakers: David Tieche + Jay Kim

In the ancient near eastern world, humans were universally conceived as being made by the gods to be slaves. Made from-the-mud servants, with little to no value. But in the story of creation in the first book of the Bible (Genesis) we see a dramatically different story. God creates humans not as slaves, but as co-laborers, stamped indelibly with God’s image, and given purpose and dignity. And they’re given good work to do by God Himself - work to bring order out of chaos, bring good potential to bear, and even infuse meaning into the mundane. In a world and culture that often looks to work to provide ultimate meaning, here is a crucial corrective. Work is a way for us to connect with God, as His image bearers, to bring His kingdom to earth (little by little!) every day.

SPEAKERS:

Jay Kim (Saratoga), David Tieche (South Hills)

Bible Passages):

Genesis 1:1, 17-19, 26-27, Colossians 3:23

SPEAKERS:

Jay Kim (Saratoga), David Tieche (South Hills)

Bible Passages):

Matthew 8:28-34

Easter is a strange holiday for our post-Christian, mostly secular world. If you go just a little bit deeper than Peeps and chocolate bunnies, it’s actually pretty confrontational. The story says, “Jesus was dead, and now He isn’t and that means something BIG.” Jay and David talk about the “confronting” edges of Easter, and why Easter has harder edges than Christmas. We talk about if the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection even matters in an age that’s post-truth and post-facts. And David shares how the story of the Resurrection became critically important to his family this Easter.

Speakers: David Tieche + Jay Kim

Sermon Description:

The final book of the final Gospel contains a story of an ordinary man (Simon Peter) who comes face-to-face with an extraordinary story: Jesus has beaten death and is Resurrected. As we walk through Peter’s story, we show him moving from utter depression, to glimmers of hope, to majestic awe to being invited to respond to Jesus’ invitation and join Him in His work around the world. The invitation is the same to us as it was to Peter: consider what the resurrection of Jesus means for our lives. And in the end, we see that this story is either the biggest con in human history, or the fulcrum of human history: with little in-between.

SPEAKERS:

Jay Kim (Saratoga), David Tieche (South Hills)

Bible Passages:

John 21:2-17

Matthew 8 records an interaction of Jesus with two demon-possessed men, a story which seems fantastical (even made up) to modern ears. But the Biblical worldview, here and throughout, has no problem with the existence of an unseen realm, a world in which there are “powers of a dark world and spiritual forces of evil,” in the words of Paul in Ephesians 6. So if that’s the case, what are these “powers” and “spiritual forces of evil” up to today? And although demons can’t possess Christians, the devil can oppress and enslave us with lies. We examine some of the most common, pervasive lies the “spiritual forces of evil” speak today, and how Jesus still is and has the authority to lead us to freedom from these lies.

SPEAKERS:

Jay Kim (Saratoga), David Tieche (South Hills)

Bible Passages):

Matthew 8:28-34

Title: THE AFTERWORD | Matthew (Season 5) - Week 6 - Demon-Possession, Healing and Authority

Description:

Two demon-possessed men tormenting a whole town? Jesus sending a horde of demons into a herd of pigs that then immediately drowns itself? The story of the two demon-possessed men in Matthew 8 is undoubtedly one of the strangest stories in the entire New Testament. Jay and Dave discuss the other Gospel accounts of this encounter and discuss the seeming contradictions between Matthew and Mark/Luke including 1. where this event happened and 2. how many people were possessed. We also discuss some of the more human aspects of the town’s inept initial solutions and the town’s puzzling request for “Jesus to please leave.” As always, Jesus is out disrupting things.

Speakers: David Tieche + Jay Kim

Sometimes, in the Gospel narratives, Jesus can come across as….cranky. In the story of Jesus calming the storm in Matthew 8, Jesus seems to be irritated (and even seems to rebuke) His disciples because they were afraid when a GIANT storm seemed ready to sink their boat. Sorry that we couldn’t fall asleep during a Hurricane like you, Jesus. But is the lesson here “don’t wake Jesus up during a nap because He’ll be grouchy”? Or is Jesus confronting something inside us that needs to be confronted? When storms come, even bad ones, is there a way to react that’s not what Jesus would want for us? Lisa Averill and Corinna Girard stop by to share their insights on this pretty incredible moment in the lives of the disciples.

Speakers: David Tieche + Corinna Girard + Lisa Averill