Sunshine Community Church's Podcast

Zechariah 3 We don't see it, but there is an invisible battle going on all around us. We are always being accused by our Enemy, the Devil. The worst part is, most of his accusations are accurate, since we are sinners who have disobeyed God and deserve punishment. However, his word isn't the last word - there is Another who gets to speaker in the courtroom. No matter what Satan says about us, God's...

Daniel 3 The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace of Nebuchadnezzar shows us the kind of pressure and risk a believer can often face in this world where Satan seems to be temporarily in charge of things. Earthly systems can stack the deck against us and we are often threatened and told to compromise our faith. The pre-incarnate Jesus showed up for his faithful servants in...

Exodus 3:1-12; Deuteronomy 18:15-19   This message dives into some moments in the life of the greatest Old Testament leader in the nation of Israel: Moses. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt and to the Promised Land; he gave them the Law and taught them about God's standards. Jesus called and equipped Moses to prefigure the Gospel and lay the groundwork for salvation. But Moses was aware of a g...

Genesis 16:1-13; 18:22; 22:11-18   Many have heard stories about the patriarch, Abraham, and his wife, Sarah. As we continue our search for Jesus in the Old Testament, we discover that he pops up quite a few times in the story of Abraham; you just have to know where to look. In these passages, we see that the pre-incarnate Jesus was intimately involved with Abraham's story and the people in his fa...

Genesis 1:1-5, John 1:1-5, Genesis 3:14-15, 21 The oldest references to Jesus are in the book of Genesis; here we see his divinity, mission, and victory over sin and hell foretold! We also see the first substitutionary sacrifice and the institution of shedding blood to cover over the shame and exposure that come from sin. Jesus is on the very first page of the Bible!

Ecclesiastes 9:1-6; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58 Statistics say we are living longer than ever before. Ironically, as our expectation of longevity increases, our stewardship of our lives actually seems to atrophy. Many people are living in denial of their mortality, simultaneously expecting more and risking less. It seems that somehow the longer we hope to live, the less we actually make of the days we...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 This world has become more and more virtual over the last decade or so. That isn't all bad, if it's just some new options for solving tricky work situations or connecting in adverse situations. However, learning excessively on these less-than-substantial interactions and activities is having untold effects in terms of human cognition, relationships, and health. It is also weake...

2 Corinthians 12:1-10 We would prefer a life of limitless abilities and opportunities and, if we're honest, we really dislike having to slow down, say no, fail, or quit. We would engineer lives of strength and self-sufficiency, and fool ourselves into thinking we are doing God a favor by not needing his help. How foolish! By escaping our weakness, we would be cutting off the means by which God mos...

1 Corinthians 6:9-20 There may be no issue in which the currents of our age are pressing so forcefully as in the area of human sexuality. Our world is all over the place on this issue. On the one hand, people idolize sex and act as if it is EVERYTHING; yet, on the other hand, they downplay its significance and insist it is a casual and ordinary part of life. If we are to keep our heads and be fait...

Acts 3:11-26; 4:5-12 As we stand firm amidst the currents and pressures of our day, we need to be particularly aware of the pressure to conform to relativism and pluralism. Our part of the world is increasingly insisting that ALL religions - including even Satanism, witchcraft, agnosticism, and atheism - constitute equally viable forms of worship and spirituality. In the midst of this smorgasbord...

Isaiah 40 Josh Hendricks gives a message on the ultimate comfort in life and death - God our Father in Heaven. 

Matthew 25:31-46 The historical Christian position on the value of life is radically clear: every human life has value and needs to be treated as holy. Humans bear God's image and are filled with his breath; what we do to protect the duration and quality of each life, we do unto Christ.

Isaiah 55 The world likes to put God on trial when things go badly. We wonder how God can be good when things go badly? How can he claim to be for me when circumstances seem to be against me? What has he done to prove that he would be a better planner for my life than I would? In the end, when we read God's Word, we see that he demands our trust and insists that his plan is better, and the only pr...

Philippians 2:1-11 The Christian faith is built on the altruism and self-sacrifice of its Founder, the one and only Son of God. We don't just think selflessness is good, though - we think that it is the essential remedy to its opposite: Self-interest and self-worship. Selfishness is common to man, but believers are called to self-sacrifice; we must develop our stamina for willing servanthood, if w...

Luke 12:1-12 Sylvester was actually the first real Pope in the history of the church. In terms of Rome and its government, Sylvester's ministry went from leading a forbidden and persecuted minority to being publicly recognized and given broad cultural influence. In his story, we see that Christmas truth will change the fate of nations; we must be prepared to face danger and fearlessly preach the W...

Ephesians 5:1-21 The Feast of St. Lucia is connected with Christmas traditions in several cultures, especially in Sweden. The real saint, though, is no more legend or tradition - Lucy's story is gritty, painful, and also amazingly powerful. She illustrates the way that the light and truth of Christ empower us to live pure lives of self-giving and love in the brutal world. Christmas shines the ligh...

Jude 1 Ambrose is a saint known as "Doctor of the Church," which means he was one of the teachers whose intellectual contributions helped shape the Church. Ambrose helped people think more clearly about the beauty of the Gospel and its impact on philosophy, music, art, politics, and more. He also fought against false teaching - A LOT. Christmas initiates a battle for truth and requires that we con...

1 John 4:7-21 You may not know much about Wenceslaus, duke of Bohemia, unless you know the classic Christmas carol about him. But the early church knew his name and knew that he was brave and principled leader who showed what can happen when a ruler converts to Christianity and governs in a way that is modeled after Jesus' love and kindness. In the story of Wenceslaus, we see that Christmas introd...

Luke 10:1-24 The Lord of the Harvest sends out his laborers in teams and ensures that all of their needs are met in advance and in Him!

John 4:31-38   When Jesus met with the women at the well of Samaria, he talked a lot about the harvest. What does it mean when he calls the Samaritan town a field and the people grain? Jesus was clear: there is great satisfaction and nourishment in obeying God and harvesting the fruit he and others before us have sown.

Psalm 126 This message begins by sharing and celebrating the reveal of the FORWARD campaign. As we reflect on the way God uses the gospel to spread the kingdom, we can't help but notice that he has an amazing ability to bring joyous fruit and growth at the end of very difficult seasons. Things that the world would call pointless and too costly are often the very places where God restores the fortu...

Lord of the Harvest Deuteronomy 26:1-11 Fall has always been a time when people gather, count up, and store their blessings for the winter and share comfort and kindness with each other. This passage discusses God's goodness to deliver us out of slavery and into rich harvest. Offering him our first fruits creates a testimony of faith and freedom, and is cause for rejoicing!

1 Timothy 6: 2-21. This message concludes our FORWARD series. It studies one more question of biblical, sacrificial stewardship: WHEN? It would be easy to think of stewardship as a future event; it is so oriented toward long-term strategy and eternal benefits that we could easily see it as a "tomorrow" item. Stewardship may be about the future, but it always takes place NOW; the sacrifices and inv...

2 Corinthians 9 This message discusses the heart condition of the giver. Stewardship is first and foremost a matter of the manner in which we give - only a free heart full of joyful generosity can please God. So we must learn to cultivate and curate our heart motives if we wish to give in a life-giving way.

1 Thessalonians 2 When we think about WHAT we are stewarding as Christians, we often jump immediately to issues of finacne and tithing. Stewardship is about SO much more than money; in fact, if all we give to God is our money, we are really falling short of missing the point. True stewardship recognizes that investing tangible and temporary treasures is a great way to increase our ability to inves...