The Alley Church Podcast

Because Jesus suffered, rose, and now reigns, we can suffer for doing good without fear—our salvation is secure and everything is under His authority. We suffer spiritual attack and we suffer human hurt and we question when bad things happen … if you will to good people. YET WE HAVE HOPE! Have you ever followed a game where one team seemed destined to lose? They lagged behind on the scoreboard, th...

1 PETER 3:13–17 NKJV And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? (14) But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.”  (15) But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear...

Rylee Cooper is headed on a YWAM adventure and she is taking the opportunity to share her story with us.

Passage this morning will be  And we will start with 1 PETER 3:10–12 Last week we went through 5 qualities of a Christian: like minded, compassion for one another, we love as brothers and sisters, tenderhearted, and courteous. And today Peter supports those qualities by quoting Psalm 34. He shows us that the call to bless rather than retaliate is consistent with Jesus teaching when He gave His ser...

H ave you ever been walking with a full cup of coffee when someone suddenly bumped into you? Coffee spills everywhere, and our first response might be, “Look what you made me do!” But why did coffee spill out of the cup? Because coffee was what was inside it. If the cup had contained water, water would have spilled out. Whatever fills the cup is what comes out when it is bumped. Life has a way of...

Last week we began exploring what happens when Christianity enters the home. So follow along as I review. Biblical submission is not inferiority, keeping one’s mouth shut, being controlled, or enduring abuse; it is voluntary cooperation, and trust in God’s order. Peter urged Christian wives with unbelieving husbands to let their lives become the sermon. Christianity had changed the landscape for w...

I Peter 3:1-7 WHEN JESUS ENTERS THE HOME - Part 1 Last week Peter told us that following Jesus sometimes means doing what is right even when doing what is right costs us something. He gave us the ultimate example in Jesus Christ, And now Peter continues the same thought by taking everything he has been teaching us about following Jesus into one of the most personal and sometimes difficult places o...

 NIV But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to...

WHEN DOING RIGHT STILL HURTS Lifestyle of a Christian  1 Peter 2:18–20 Recap: Last week we were urged by Peter to deliberately keep our distance from sinful desires. Why? Because they are at war with our soul. To say it another way, these sinful desires have not the Spirit of God. So if we continue in sin, deliberately, like me continuing to lie or Shandel being impatient, without any effort to re...

Recap: Peter has spent the first two chapters reminding us who we are in Christ. We have been born again through the living Word of God. Last time, Peter reminded us that our identity is no longer found in our past, in our failures or our successes, our accomplishments, or even our nationality. We are now the people of God, that is who we are. Everything Peter has written has been building to this...

Recap: Peter has been talking to us about our identity and now he goes even deeper. Last week, we talked about… Because we have been born again through the living and enduring Word of God, a sign of our new life in Christ is a longing for God’s Word, craving it like newborn babies crave milk. Today, Peter shifts from our individual growth to God’s greater purpose: He is not saving isolated people;...

We are back to our study in 1 Peter. We left off in Chapter 1 where Peter has reminded us that believers have been born again through the living and enduring Word of God, and obedience to the truth found in God’s word, cleanses us from our sins. Because we have been born again, God's Word gave us new life, now the Bible must shape the way we live every day and that’s where we pick up as we be...

We live according to the standards of God as aliens in a strange world of shifting ideals.  We don’t study God’s Word so we can know more—we study it so that we will live differently. Biblical knowledge is valuable, but it only has value when it  transforms our life. It’s not merely about what we know; it’s about how our lives reflect Christ. In the previous passage, Peter reminded us that our sal...

(17) Since you call on a Father who judges each man’s work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. (18) for you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, (19) but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.   Intro: There are some things...

There are few things more beautiful than standing on a mountain ridge at sunrise. The valleys are still dark, the air is crisp, and as the first light begins to crest the horizon, the exhilaration of the first glimpse of the sun and its warmth soothes every cell of your being.  Peter is taking us to a high place spiritually. He wants to lift our eyes above our daily concerns in the dark valleys be...

We are in a series called: When Life Gets Hard and we are learning from the Apostle Peter, who was one of Jesus' closest disciples and he was one who knew suffering and experienced great persecution. He is writing to believers who had never seen Jesus, yet had a deep faith in Him, and He is encouraging them as they too were suffering and enduring trials. He is also including us here.  When I...

1 Peter 1:3–9 Series “When life gets hard” Last week, we saw that Peter was writing to believers who were suffering, scattered, and struggling to remain faithful in a hostile world. And that has not stopped. For us in this country the hostility is not so overt, but covert, it's subtle, and we don’t realize it because we are not beaten for our faith, or thrown in prison.  by drawing people&apo...

We are about to spend the next few months discovering…“How to stand firm and live faithfully for Jesus when life gets difficult.” I Peter 1:1-2  - right after James before 1 John which we did too. The letter was written around 64 AD, during the reign of Emperor Nero.  History: Written by Peter an apostle of Jesus Christ Originally named Simon  He addresses the letter as Peter, which means “rock”,...

“Prayer is not preparation for the battle; prayer is the battle.” 2 Cor 10:3-6 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every though...

Part one of two on prayer

Romans 12:17-19 Do not be wise in your own opinion. Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 1) Why does violence and war exist in the first place? W...

Fear of the Lord !

This morning's message will focus on the core biblical truth that every person is created in the image of God. Our goal is for you to leave with a deep understanding of your inherent importance and significance to God. And to worship him fully  for In him we live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28)   To structure this discussion, we will answer six questions that have been submitte...

(16) Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. (17) When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. (18) Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (19) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and (20)...