Beyond the Message

Easter Sunday | 1 Corinthians 15:17“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” (1 Corinthians 15:17) Jake, Matt, and Sam discuss yesterday’s Easter Sunday sermon. Do you have a question you want us to address? Submit it now !

What does real Christian love actually look like? In this message from 1 John 3:16–18, we saw that love is not just something we feel or say—it’s something we do. Jake, Michael, and Sam discuss yesterday’s sermon, unpack the main points, and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. Jesus defines love by laying down His life, and that same sacrificial, practical love is meant to f...

What kind of love marks someone as a true child of God? In this message from 1 John 3:11–15, we saw that love is not just a nice Christian idea—it is an identifying mark of genuine spiritual life. Jake, Matthew, and Sam discuss yesterday’s sermon, unpack the main points, and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. John contrasts Abel and Cain to show that rightly ordered love fl...

What makes it obvious that someone truly belongs to God? In this message from 1 John 3:4–10, we are confronted with John’s sobering claim that it is evident who are the children of God and who are the children of the devil. That raises an uncomfortable but necessary question: if we say we belong to Christ, does our life make that clear? John does not teach sinless perfection, but he does insist th...

What helps Christians pursue holiness in a world full of distraction? In 1 John 3:1–3, we are called to “see” two life-changing realities: the Father’s love and the Son’s return. John reminds believers that we are not just forgiven sinners—we are beloved children of God right now. And though what we will be is not yet fully visible, one day Christ will appear, and we will be made like Him. That fu...

Ian, Jake, and Sam discuss the sermon on 1 John 2:28-29, which causes us to ask ourselves a powerful question: When Jesus returns, will you have confidence—or shrink back in shame? John reminds us that Christ’s return is not hypothetical; it is promised. The issue isn’t if He’s coming back, but whether we are ready. Real confidence doesn’t come from comparative morality, religious activity, or pre...

Ian, Jake, and Sam discuss the sermon on 1 John 2:18-27 where the alarm bell is ringing: deception isn’t accidental—it’s intentional. John says plainly, “I write these things to you about those who are trying to deceive you,” and that reality should wake us up. In the “last hour,” false teachers and spiritual opposition work with strategy to pull believers away from Christ, distort the truth about...

This sermon lands on 1 John’s first explicit imperative: “Do not love the world.” John isn’t condemning God’s creation or people, but warning against worldliness—the seductive system of values that makes sin feel normal and holiness feel strange. This text presses a personal question: if the world feels more worldly, is it possible we’ve become more worldly too? John confronts the fantasy that we...

In this episode, Michael, Jake, and Sam revisit yesterday’s message on 1 John 2:12-14, as Michael called it John’s “halftime speech”. After several weeks of weighty “tests” found in 1 John 1:1-2:11, (holiness, obedience, love), John pauses to strengthen weary saints who are tempted to quit, negotiate with sin, or spiral into insecurity. Instead of giving more commands, he gives identity-shaping re...

In this episode Jake, Matt, and Sam dig deeper into 1 John 2:7-11 and the love test: the claim to “walk in the light” must be matched by a real, Christ-shaped love for others. But the tension is that both the Bible and the world talk about love—often with very different definitions. This episode helps clarify what Christian love actually is, why it’s inseparable from truth, and how love isn’t some...

In this episode, Danny, Jake, and Sam dig deeper into 1 John 2:3-6 and how we can know we’re truly in Christ without slipping into pride, fear, or complacency. It is essential to know that there is a tension between confidence and humility in the Christian life. John calls believers toward assurance, not shallow comfort or spiritual guesswork. We explore how Christ’s finished work and the Spirit’s...

In this episode, Jake, Matthew, and Sam dig deeper into 1 John 1:5–2:1 and the uncomfortable-but-loving reality John addresses: there can be real Christians and self-deceived professing Christians sitting in the same room. John writes to strengthen true believers with confidence—and to unsettle false confidence where a “faith” exists without repentance. We talk through what it means that God is li...

This week on Beyond the Message, Jake, Ian, and Sam recap the kickoff to our 1 John series with verses 1-4 in chapter 1. John’s opening aim is surprisingly clear: joy. Writing as an aging apostle and “father” to the churches, John addresses real threats inside the church—false teaching, growing worldliness, and a drift in devotion. But he’s not swinging for behavior modification. He’s aiming for s...

In the second week of our annual Rhythms series, we focus on prayer—not just as something Christians should do, but as a repeated practice that forms us into people who actually trust God. In Matthew 6, Jesus teaches His disciples to pray by re-centering on God’s name, God’s kingdom, and God’s will. In this week’s message we walked through the ACTS framework—Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Su...

As we kick off our annual Rhythms series, we dug into why Bible reading isn’t just a churchy habit—it’s one of the primary ways God forms a church full of people who abide closely with Jesus. In John 6, the crowd wants Jesus for what He can give—but Jesus presses them to see who He is: the Bread of Life, the only source of true and lasting life.  In the message, we le...

This week on Beyond the Message, Michael Rhodes and Jake Each recap yesterday’s Advent message from John 3:16, which shows us God's love is evident, extravagant, extensive, exclusive, effective, and endearing. We unpack the sermon's main points and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. In the final week of our Advent series, we slowed down to reflect on what Christmas reveals...

This week on Beyond the Message, Ian Crosby and Michael Rhodes recap yesterday’s message from Romans 8:32, which demonstrates that God always provides for his plan—God has already given us His greatest gift, his own Son. We unpack the sermon's main points and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. When life feels marked by waiting, disappointment, or unmet desires, it’s easy to...

This week on Beyond the Message, Sam Anderson and Ian Crosby recap yesterday’s message from Philippians 2:3-11, exploring how the humility of Christ leads to the worship of Christ. We unpack the sermon's main points and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. The humility of God is revealed in the birth of Jesus. The eternal Son willingly laid aside privilege, took on flesh, and...

This week on Beyond the Message, Matthew Morken and Danny Daugherty dive into Matthew 1:1-17, where we see that God’s purposeful sovereignty over Jesus’ birth proves that we can trust God’s purposeful sovereignty over our lives. We unpack the sermon's main points and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. In yesterday’s message, we saw how the genealogy of Jesus isn’t a boring...

 In this episode, Sam and Jake discuss yesterday’s sermon from Daniel 11:2-12:13 — we are called to care about wisdom, purity, and to trust in the resurrection. We unpack the main points from the sermon and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. As the book of Daniel closes, God reminds His people that He’s sovereign over history, over evil, and over every future moment st...

In this episode, Sam and Jake discuss yesterday’s sermon from Daniel 10-11:1 — we saw in the text that we have to be in awe of God to be at peace in this world. We unpack the main points from the sermon and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. Daniel expected the end of exile to mean the rebuilding of Jerusalem, but God revealed something far bigger—the coming of a Messiah wh...

 In this episode, Michael and Jake discuss yesterday’s sermon from Daniel 9 — similarly to Daniel our hope can be off and in need of an adjustment; we need to remember to put our hope in Christ, not the lesser things that can tend to captivate our hearts. We unpack the main points from the sermon and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. Daniel expected the end of exile t...

 In this episode, Sam and Jake discuss yesterday’s sermon from Daniel 9 — we see that the purpose of our troubles are to draw us back to God. We unpack the main points from the sermon and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. Daniel 9 provides us with one of the most powerful prayers in Scripture—a prayer that begins in the Word, flows from brokenness, and ends in worship...

 In this episode, Sam and Michael discuss yesterday’s sermon from Daniel 8 — and that we can do what God asks now by trusting what God will do later. We unpack the main points from the sermon and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. Daniel’s vision of rams, goats, and a madman—and what it means for followers of Jesus today. Michael unpacks how Daniel 8 reveals God’s tota...

In this episode, Ian and Jake discuss yesterday’s sermon from Daniel 7 — faithfulness today comes from passion for someday! We unpack the main points from the sermon and go beyond yesterday with additional insight into the text. Apocalyptic literature isn’t about guessing dates—it’s about fueling endurance. Daniel 7 paints a chaotic world full of beastly kingdoms, but it ends with the Ancient of D...