Fuel For Life

On this episode of Fuel For Life, I am interviewed by my friend Elijah Koryfan. Elijah and I sat down recently in Sacramento, California where he asked me a series of questions that have to do with planting churches in America, as well as the state of the church in America. Elijah is a great interviewer and I was excited to share my thoughts about these topics, that are near and dear to my heart....

On this episode of Fuel For Life, I interview my good friend and fellow church planter Aleksei Kharlamov. Aleksei immigrated to the San Francisco Bay Area eight years ago from Moscow, Russia. Aleksei and his wife Lera are planting a new church, Spring Church, in Moraga, CA, in the East Bay Area of Northern California. In this incredible interview, Aleksei tells the story of his life leading up to...

On this episode of Fuel For Life, I interview my good friend and fellow pastor, Gheorghe Rosca, Jr. Gheorghe is a Founding Board Member at Protect Our Kids (POK), a coalition of parents, community leaders, attorneys, physicians, pastors, teachers and concerned citizens united in the belief that today’s public schools threaten our children’s welfare. Public schools have a role in educating children...

This is a sermon preached by Pastor Bogdan Kipko, Senior And Founding Pastor of Forward Church. We hope you are encouraged by the message from God’s Word and we are thrilled to help you find hope in Jesus. For more information, about Forward Church, please visit: www.forward.fm To listen to all audio messages from Forward Church, please visit: www.forwardchurchpodcast.com To support Forward Church...

You are saved to serve. In this passage, Paul encourages his readers to continue to grow in their character (vv. 1–3), in their gifts (vv. 11–12), in their knowledge of the truth (vv. 13–15), and in their love for one another (vv. 2, 15–16). Paul mentions gifts as given by the grace of God and reminds us that their purpose is to prepare God’s people to serve (vv. 7, 11–12). Yet he tells his reader...

In this passage, Paul explains that the turning point of history is God’s plan of redemption made evident by Jesus Christ. The mystery was built up for generations, revealed in pieces through the Law and the Prophets, and now the culmination is this, that God would send his own Son to live, die, and rise again in order to save humanity.  Let's get ready to find hope in Jesus, by listening to...

We forgive the inexcusable done to us because God in Christ has forgiven the inexcusable done by us. How many of us have felt the pain of strained relationships, conflicts in relationships, the disintegration of relationships, and deep down inside, all we ever actually wanted was peace and reconciliation? Christ formed in us, is the salve for that wound, a solution to the pain we feel. Forgiveness...

We are saved by God for good works, not by our good works. So let's walk in those good works. This is the message that Paul is conveying here to the Ephesian church and to us. By God's providence, we are studying these verses today that are talking about death, the course of this world, the prince of the power of the air, and the spirit that is not at work in the son of disobedience. Doe...

What's the bravest prayer you can pray? What is the hardest thing you can believe God for during this series we're in? We believe that prayer isn't a button to be pushed, it's a relationship to be pursued. Our prayer for you is that you would identify that mountain in your life, that needs to be moved, and you would say enough is enough and change is coming.  Let's get rea...

This brand new sermon series that Pastor Bogdan at Forward Church is beginning, walks through the book of Ephesians, emphasizing God’s action at work in our lives both to restore us to Himself and to restore our relationships with each other. Discussing the issues of God’s sovereignty, his plan of redemption, his grace, and our responsibility to love one another and to pray, this series will commu...

As Christians, how can we have assurance that we truly are saved and belong to God? When we doubt our salvation, our temptation is to look at our behavior and performance to determine whether we’re saved. However, that isn’t the direction Paul points us. Instead of looking at ourselves, Paul tells us to look back at the cross and how God loved us when we were his enemies. God saves people on the b...

The image that best illustrates Christianity isn't a ladder that you have to climb up to get to God but rather a cross where God decided to come down to us. It’s been said that the gospel, or the good news, is like an ocean, but in the sense that it is so incredibly accessible, that children can wade into it and understand it, and also the most learned theologians keep diving as deep as they...

The parable of the vineyard reveals that God brings all into his kingdom, not just the successful or those who were there first. Through the parable of the laborers, Jesus is emphasizing that in God’s kingdom, all come to him on an equal playing field. Whether you are rich or poor, have been a Christian your entire life, or have just begun the journey, there is no one who is better than another. U...

The parable of the talents teaches us that God expects us to be advancing his kingdom until Christ’s return, not sitting idle. We will be a people who look for new opportunities to advance God’s kingdom in the world.  This parable applies not just to currency but to everything God has entrusted us with. We must learn to be wise stewards of all that God has given to us. It's not about how much...

God came to seek and save the lost. In response to God’s grace, He calls us to change and make amends for the past. Jesus approaches the crowds in Jericho, walks right through them, and goes straight to the tree Zacchaeus has climbed. He looks up at Zacchaeus (v. 5) and tells him to come down because Jesus needs to stay in his house. Who is seeking whom here? We’re told Zacchaeus is seeking Jesus,...

In this final message based on the book of Jonah, God uses a vivid object lesson to teach Jonah about his sovereignty over creation and salvation. God grows a plant to shade Jonah from the sun, then removes the plant to show his power and sovereignty over his creation (Jonah 4:6–8). Although the plant, like the fish, gladly obeys the command of God, Jonah has yet to get on board with God’s plan an...

In this message, Pastor Bogdan helps us understand what to do when we are disappointed with God. What to do with your disappointment in God? Have you ever been disappointed with God? Have you ever been angry with God or angry at God? Those people who are in authority over us, such as parents, bosses, supervisors, leaders, and pastors,  might have made decisions that impacted us, at first, we did n...

God uses the few simple words that Jonah speaks to bring about great repentance and salvation to an entire city. God doesn’t need your eloquence to accomplish His desires. Rather, He lovingly invites you to lend your voice to His simple message and to join Him in His work. In this third message in our Jonah series, Pastor Bogdan reminds us that God speaks to Jonah a second time commanding him to g...

When Jonah literally hits rock bottom, God rescues him and redirects his thoughts and actions. Pastor Bogdan will remind us through this sermon on Jonah, that God can hear your prayer, save you, and create space for you to listen to and obey him, even when you are at your lowest point.  God is at work to save, even before those fleeing from Him are aware of him.  Let's get ready to find hope...

Living at peace with governing authorities is practiced by living at peace with one another. Most leaders shy away from controversial topics in the church. Under the right circumstances, though, a dialogue within the church on a sensitive subject can help worshippers grow in faith and friendship.  Romans 13:1–7 has a storied legacy of use in political rhetoric. The very fact that such broad interp...

As we navigate the increasingly polarizing topic of faith and politics, we take guidance from Jesus as he himself tackled a time of religious and political upheaval. What were the politics of Jesus’ time? How did Jesus interact with governing authorities? When we have fellow believers on opposing sides of the party line, how can we maintain Christian unity? This two-week series will stimulate fait...

After three long years of drought, without any rain in Israel, the time had come for God to defeat the demonic spirits working through Ahab and Jezebel. In today's message, we are going to learn what the passive Ahab spirit and the controlling Jezebel spirit look like and how we can avoid falling prey to such demonic activity.  Let's get ready to find hope in Jesus, by listening to this...

Studying the life of Elijah, we see that God will sometimes send you into a season of separation for preparation. In this message, we will observe how Elijah meets a very poor widow and her son. The Word of the Lord comes to Elijah, and if he thought he was through with testing from God, he goes from being cut off to being cut down to now, going to a place that means to melt. We will see in this m...

In this new sermon series based on the life of the prophet Elijah, we will see and learn a model for Christian living. Elijah’s life is filled with incredible stories of faith and passion, yet he was just a regular person—a human being just like us. God’s Word encourages us that if we practice humble obedience the way Elijah did, God can use us in incredible ways, too.  The big idea in this first...

Jochebed was the mother of three famous people in the Bible. She was the mother of Moses, the deliverer of Israel. She was the mother of Aaron, the first high priest of Israel. She was the mother of Miriam, a prophetess, poet, and singer in Israel. Aaron, Moses & Miriam were all three siblings. Jochebed’s name means “honor or glory of God,” and she certainly honored God with her life and with...