Commons Church Podcast

Distinction and difference, these ideas were very important to the ancient Israelites. The point of the levitical purity code was to signal a people set apart for God. Once upon a time that looked like ritualized religion and rule following. Today what that looks like today is the counter-cultural, boundary-crossing, surprising love of Jesus. A love that shocks the world into noticing just how nea...

In Leviticus there was always a concern that we might bring some contamination, unintentionally or otherwise, into God’s presence. In Jesus we learn that God is Spirit and therefore God is with us, and in us, and through us at all times and in all places. Through that, we come to understand that sin does not contaminate God. In fact, God wants to enter into our brokenness so that he can heal it. B...

Taken together in this opening sequence of Leviticus, we have a personal offering that announces our presence before God and our commitment to engage with him, we have a grain offering where we remember God’s promise and we become part of how that memory is unlocked and remembered in others, and we have a peace offering where we pause to be thankful for all that God has gifted to us, lest that rea...

We are going to try to explore the major themes and movements in this book, and in that we’ll try to understand what God was teaching this ancient culture about himself. As we do that, sometimes we’re going to see how God was preparing the story of Jesus and the connection is going to make a lot sense to us. Other times we’re going to see how just how completely Jesus upends these ancient assumpti...

September always feels like a new start. School is back in session, the pause of summer vacations have come to an end, and there is renewed focus on moving forward. It’s no di erent for us at Commons. And so every year we like to start September with a re ection on the central concepts that guide our community. This year we’ll take the letter of 1st John as our guide and walk through those three k...

September always feels like a new start. School is back in session, the pause of summer vacations have come to an end, and there is renewed focus on moving forward. It’s no di erent for us at Commons. And so every year we like to start September with a re ection on the central concepts that guide our community. This year we’ll take the letter of 1st John as our guide and walk through those three k...

September always feels like a new start. School is back in session, the pause of summer vacations have come to an end, and there is renewed focus on moving forward. It’s no di erent for us at Commons. And so every year we like to start September with a re ection on the central concepts that guide our community. This year we’ll take the letter of 1st John as our guide and walk through those three k...

Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger and our co...

Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger and our co...

Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger and our co...

Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger and our co...

Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger and our co...

Psalm 73 Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger a...

Psalm 8 Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger an...

Psalm 51 Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger a...

Jesus knew the Psalms. Paul knew the Psalms. In fact, the entire early Christian community was steeped in the same Psalms that have served as the central prayer and hymnbook for the church since its beginning-until now. Reading, studying, and praying the Psalms is God’s means for teaching us what it means to be human: how to express our emotions and yearnings, how to reconcile our anger and our co...

We believe we need a recovery of sorts. Contemporary culture has pushed us to think that public life is mostly structured (show up on time, fill your obligations, do your job), but private life is mostly unstructured (free time to use as you see it). What happens then when spiritual life is relegated to the unstructured part of life, to our private “off work” world where there are few obligations?...

We believe we need a recovery of sorts. Contemporary culture has pushed us to think that public life is mostly structured (show up on time, fill your obligations, do your job), but private life is mostly unstructured (free time to use as you see it). What happens then when spiritual life is relegated to the unstructured part of life, to our private “off work” world where there are few obligations?...

We believe we need a recovery of sorts. Contemporary culture has pushed us to think that public life is mostly structured (show up on time, fill your obligations, do your job), but private life is mostly unstructured (free time to use as you see it). What happens then when spiritual life is relegated to the unstructured part of life, to our private “off work” world where there are few obligations?...

We believe we need a recovery of sorts. Contemporary culture has pushed us to think that public life is mostly structured (show up on time, fill your obligations, do your job), but private life is mostly unstructured (free time to use as you see it). What happens then when spiritual life is relegated to the unstructured part of life, to our private “off work” world where there are few obligations?...

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the cente...

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the cente...

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the cente...

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the cente...

What is the “good news” of Jesus Christ? Why do people need to hear it? How can they experience it? What will it mean for their future? And what does the good news have to do with everyday life? These large and basic questions form Paul’s agenda in Romans—an agenda dictated by a combination of audiences, circumstances and purposes. The salvation issue, with all its various facets, was at the cente...