Today, Gavin interviews Jeff Fields, co-author – along with his brother Roger – of the book “Breaking the Hex: Life With God After the Cross Killed Religion.” While the title sounds complicated, the concept is simple. Living the Christian life is not nearly as hard as we try to make it. All our efforts to try to get God to love us are in vain. God already loves us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us on the cross. We merely need to rest in Him. Yet the simplicity of the Gospel is too foreign for many people who think that it is only through great effort that one attains approval by God. This is part one of a two-part series.
Did Jesus leave Heaven, come to this earth, live a perfect life, endure a horrible crucifixion and rise from the dead so that we could live a life of never-ending Christian obligations? (Really?)
Did I misunderstand how this works? (YES.) THAT is what this book is about. It turns out I was under a HEX and didn’t know it. And there is no freedom under the hex. –The Fields Brothers
As we wrap up 2017, we note the fact that we have been podcasting for FOUR YEARS! Wow! Tom and Gavin discuss the recent 2017 Simple Church Conference from October in Wilmore, Kentucky. Gavin’s number one take-away from that weekend was the concept of “being a part of two churches.” This is a concept first described by Curtis Sergeant as part of the Zume´Training. We’ve provided a link to his video below.
Download or listen to “A Simple Church Christmas, Vol. 2.” Click here:
In the gospels, we read story after story about Jesus spending time with sinners. He ate with them. He spent time in their homes. He hung out with them. Jesus wasn’t afraid to be around sinners. He showed love to them. Yet, in Paul’s epistle to the Corinthians, he tells the church not to associate with a brother who is sinning. He even goes so far as to demand that the Corinthian Church excommunicate a sinning brother. Are the actions of Paul and Jesus in contradiction? Do we deal with sinners the same way we deal with brothers and sisters in Christ who are sinning? What’s the difference? How do we know? Listen as Gavin and Tom discuss this complicated topic. This is part two of a two part episode.
In the gospels, we read story after story about Jesus spending time with sinners. He ate with them. He spent time in their homes. He hung out with them. Jesus wasn’t afraid to be around sinners. He showed love to them. Yet, in Paul’s epistle to the Corinthians, he tells the church not to associate with a brother who is sinning. He even goes so far as to demand that the Corinthian Church excommunicate a sinning brother. Are the actions of Paul and Jesus in contradiction? Do we deal with sinners the same way we deal with brothers and sisters in Christ who are sinning? What’s the difference? How do we know? Listen as Gavin and Tom discuss this complicated topic. This is part one of a two part episode.
Today, Tom and Gavin review a YouTube message by Francis Chan called, “Rethinking Church.” We analyze his message and discuss its relevance to Simple Church.
Are advocates of the Simple/Organic/House church movement “bewitching” Christians as Paul describes in Galatians 3:1? Are we trying a more simple method of church in order to escape the legalism of a more traditional church, or are we creating a new type of legalism? Where is the balance between legalism and gracious obedience to Jesus? Listen as Gavin and Tom discuss.
Are you coming to the Simple Church Conference in October? Register here:
For our 100th episode, Tom and Gavin take the time to affirm that the whole reason for this podcast is not just to espouse an alternative way of doing church, nor do we want to rebel against the established traditional church. Rather, the reason for this podcast is to lift up Jesus for all to see and to make Him known in all the world. We are not preaching ourselves, or our ways, but we want to preach Christ asLord of all (see 2 Corinthians 4:5).
Every follower of Christ has either heard the good news through a sermon, and/or has preached that good news to others in some fashion. Preaching has been part of the history of Christianity since ancient times. Numerous preachers and their sermons have been described in detail in the scriptures. While a formal sermon delivered by a professional preacher might not figure prominently in many Simple Church venues, the sermon and the preacher are always going to be a part of our Christian experience. What makes the preacher and the sermon worthy of our attention? This is the second part of a two-part series.
Here is a link to Cat and Dog Theology mentioned in the podcast:
Every follower of Christ has either heard the good news through a sermon, and/or has preached that good news to others in some fashion. Preaching has been part of the history of Christianity since ancient times. Numerous preachers and their sermons have been described in detail in the scriptures. While a formal sermon delivered by a professional preacher might not figure prominently in many Simple Church venues, the sermon and the preacher are always going to be a part of our Christian experience. What makes the preacher and the sermon worthy of our attention?
What is a “successful” church? How do we evaluate success? Traditional churches look at metrics such as membership, growth, budget, baptisms, etc. But what does success look like in a Simple Church? In this two-part series, Gavin and Tom will discuss the measurement of a Simple Church’s effectiveness.
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