Aspire Church Podcast

John is calling the Church to walk and live in the light and love of Jesus Christ, so they can witness to the world and help bring them to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. John calls his community not to sin but lets them know if they do, there is grace. However, the goal is not to sin. John lets us know that the only way to live in the light of Christ is by being in Christ. If we are in Chri...

How do we know what we know? This may seem like a simple question, but it is one with which philosophers and theologians have wrestled for centuries. It is even more complicated when we talk about things like faith and spirituality. John wanted to assure his readers that what they believed about Jesus was true. As one of the last living witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection, he was uniquely qualified t...

Jesus said to “pray to the Lord of the harvest to send workers to the field” – the “field” was the mass of humanity – the city – that was coming toward Him. Later, Jesus wept as He overlooked the city of Jerusalem, before issuing His final directive to His disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Join us as Pastor Gary shares three major changes we...

The thought of impacting the city can seem overwhelming. Rather than allowing the size of the task to paralyze us, we must recognize that the city begins when we cross the threshold of our house. We change the city by doing for one what we wish we could do for all. The person you stand behind in the line at the coffee shop or the cashier who serves you at the grocery store may be a person in whom...

Being in the city comes with unique opportunities and challenges. Jesus called His followers to be salt and light. How are believers called to influence the city by standing out in it? Join us for part six of For the City where we will explore a famous Bible story about three young men made the risky decision to stand up against the culture of their city.

It is often said that Christians are to “be in the world, but not of it,” but what, exactly does that mean? How immersed in culture should Jesus’ followers be? How effective would we be if we completely isolated and insulted ourselves from the culture around us? Would we stand out as salt and light if we completely embraced culture? Join us for part five of For the City where we explore God’s dire...

When the Apostle Paul went to Athens, he was entering one of the largest most influential cities of his time. As he looked around that impressive city, his heart was broken by the lostness of the people. But believing God had called him there to share the gospel, Paul engaged the philosophers and city leaders, challenging their world view and inviting them to rethink their concept of God. As our o...

Have you ever felt a holy discontent? That sense that things could and should be different? This divine displeasure will either move us to action or cause us to grow callous and blind to the needs around us. When Nehemiah was confronted with the living conditions of the people living in Jerusalem, he was moved to act and rushed toward the city. Join us for part three of For the City where we will...

When God called Jonah to go to Nineveh, he responded by running in the opposite direction. God’s call always leads to a crisis of belief that requires faith and obedience. We cannot stay where we are and go with God. Join us for part two of For the City where we explore the challenge of answering God’s call and our temptation to run in the opposite direction to a place of comfort and security.

God called a man named Abram to leave his childhood home and go to a place he did not know. A place God would only reveal after Abram stepped out in faith and obedience. Abram’s epic search for God’s chosen city would become the catalyst for the nation of Israel and ultimately, the redemption of all humanity. Join us for part one of For the City, where we explore the great cities of the Bible and...

In an obscure passage listing the people who helped King David unify the nation of Israel, the writer of Chronicles mentions the men of Issachar as those who understood their times and knew what to do. As culture is constantly shifting and changing, the people of God have continued to need people like the men of Issachar. People who can understand the times and know what to do. Join us for a speci...

A recurring theme throughout the book of Psalms is a declaration of God’s reign over all the nations of the earth. In fact, this idea runs throughout the course of the entire Bible, beginning with God’s command to Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply, to Jesus call for His followers to make disciples of all nations, to the culmination of human history when the book of Revelations declares that...

Have you ever received news so good you felt like you would explode? If your life had been a musical, you would have burst into song! If so, you have also likely had the opposite experience. Times when the burdens of life seemed so heavy that you were desperate for someone else to help carry the load. Times when the song in the musical of your life would have been in a minor key. Many of the Psalm...

Edgar Allan Poe’s famous short story, “The Tell-Tale Heart,” describes the tortured mind of someone who has committed a horrible crime. His secret is eating him alive and driving him insane. Secret sin has that effect on the human heart. Because we are created in the image of God, our hearts are not designed to hold onto sin. When we try to keep sin a secret, we suffer physical, emotional, and spi...

The Bible begins with a description of God’s creation and man’s call to steward and care for it. So what does that mean for Christians today? What is the biblical view of creation and the environment? Throughout history people have, on the one hand, confused creation with the Creator, and on the other, ignored God’s call to care for the world He has given us. Join us for the first message in the S...

Road trips are always more fun when you travel with people you love. For three years, Jesus and His followers traveled together throughout the Judean countryside. Along the way, the disciples learned a lot about each other and God’s Kingdom. Throughout the New Testament, believers worked together to serve the church and accomplish God’s will. It is in community that God reveals His plans and purpo...

It’s one thing to know God’s will and another to do it! One of Jesus earliest disciples said, “I know the good I ought to do, but don’t do it. And the evil I shouldn’t do? Well, I just keep on doing it!” Can you relate? In part three of Walk This Way, we will explore the challenge and rewards of obedience, and how we can walk in it.

The ancient Hebrews taught that you should learn from your rabbi by “covering yourself in his dust.” This phrase might not mean as much in our world of concrete and asphalt, but to the ancient Jewish mind, it was a clear call to stick closely to the teachings of the rabbi you chose to follow. Join us for part two of Walk This Way where we will explore how to understand the Bible the way Jesus did.

What if finding God’s purpose was as simple as taking a step? Most of us complicate our search for God’s purpose by attempting to answer all of life’s most difficult questions before taking that first step. But as the saying goes, “it’s hard to steer a parked car!” Join us for the first part of Walk This Way , where Pastor Gary Webber explores Jesus’ teaching about our ultimate purpose.