Exit Church Teachings

Commonly referred to as " the rich man and Lazarus," this parable sums up that last four chapters worth of Jesus' focus on money. His emphasis is to highlight how short-lived finances are in light of eternity. Rather, we are to spend our lives in pursuit of Jesus' kingdom.

Jesus continues pressing into the Pharisees and challenging their values by how they approach money. This shows us that money reveals our true values. Jesus' concern is that they (and us) will justify their own actions and deceive even themselves into thinking that they are in right relationship with God when they were actually out of alignment with him.

As disciples of Christ, we submit all things to Him. This includes what we believe and how we engage in this world. The word of God says a lot about the value of human life and how we are to treat one another. Abortion is common in our nation and our culture is passionate about it. Between the clarity of the word of God and the emphasis of our culture, it is fitting that we take the time to thorou...

In this puzzling parable, Jesus tells the story of a rich man and one of his managers who was deceptive and dishonest. And while there is no overt protagonist in the story (both the rich man and the manager have significant character flaws), Jesus purposefully includes this story in his teaching to provide picture for us to learn how to walk in wisdom in our finances. This is incredibly relevant t...

In this iconic text of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the prodigal son, Jesus  puts on display the heart of God towards repentant sinners. For those that have been a Christian for some time, this paradign-shifting text can seem mundane and commonplace. But when we truly see that it is aimed at us, it completely tranforms the way that we think about God, his affection for us and how we view ours...

Unlike cults and secret societies, Jesus is overtly clear and up front with what it entails to follow him. He is open about the fact that the cost to follow him is incredibly high. It costs us everything that we have, even the people and things that we have the highest affections for. And when understood properly, this incredibly high cost is a good thing--it helps us see God as holy as he truly i...

In this passage, Jesus is at a dinner party hosted by a prominent Pharisee. Jesus challenges him and the others at the party, telling them to focus on what is eternal instead of simply being preoccupied with day-to-day life and getting married and making a living. While those are good gifts from God, they are never meant to be the heaviest thing in the room–the thing that our lives orient around....

The religious leaders continually invited Jesus to dinner parties and watched him to see how he would act. Jesus takes the opportunity to address the issue of pride and how to put it to death.

Have you ever wondered why God doesn't do grandiose miracles everyday in our lives? In this passage, Forrest Brown preached  about how Jesus advances His kingdom through small things--through the woman with the bent back, the parable of the mustard seed, and the parables of the yeast. Who would have imagined that in a matter of a couple thousand years, God's kingdom would advance from one man, to...

Scripture speaks to the concept of repentance quite a bit. But what does it actually mean? Forrest Brown preaches on the topic, addressing many of the misconceptions about repentance and also reveals God's heart for people in the process.

We're finding in Luke chapter 12 that Jesus has some harsh and direct words for his listeners. And this week's passage is no different. Why did Jesus bring fire to the earthy? Why did he say that he came to divide families? For a culture that primarily sees Jesus as a soft, gentle man, these words can seem startling. Yet, when we unpack them, we realize how good Jesus is and how his words are for...

Earlier in Luke 12, we observe Jesus addressing the issue of money, and now he furthers his emphasis--not simply on money but on the entire orientation of one's life. Jesus is calling his followers to stay alert, ready and pursuing the mission at all times until the end of our lives.

One of the topics that Jesus speaks about the most is money, and his words are difficult to accept and apply. Because his kingdom is not about amassing personal wealth but rather himself and his glory. And when we make our lives about him, we trade in our earthly currency for real, eternal wealth. Listen in as Pastor Forrest Brown preaches on one of Jesus' most difficult texts. 

It seems that there is a growing divide in our own culture and Scripture with how we are to parent our children. Forrest Brown preaches on just two verses that both speak into how the Lord disciplines his own children, why that is good news for us, and as a result, how to view disciplining our own children. 

What does it actually mean to honor the Lord with your wealth? Elder Tim Carpenter preaches on this often misquoted Proverb.

Forrest Brown continues the series in Proverbs, looking at what it means to trust in the Lord with all of our hearts.

Bob Petty preaches on always keeping the Lord in front of us, beholding him, which leads to a faithful walk with God.

What is God's will for my life? Many times we desire that God's direction for our lives would be as simple as shaking a magic 8 ball. And while the Lord sometimes speaks to us and gives us clear direction, his normative method of communication is through his Word. And, in the words of Solomon, God's will is that we dig into his Word and walk in the path of wisdom, not the path of folly/sin. 

Forrest Brown introduces a new book--Proverbs--specifically focusing on how wisdom always starts with the fear of the Lord.

This last section of Joel focuses on the final Day of the Lord that is to come--where Christ will return to judge the world. 

In part 2 of this 3 part series in Joel, the author focueses on the Day of the Lord as it applies to Jesus' life, death and resurrection.

New book! Forrest Brown starts the book of Joel, which will only be a 3-week series. In this passage, the author, Joel, calls his people to repentance (even himself) because of the coming judgment of God. In particular, the focus is on grieving/lamenting of the brokenness of the relationship with the Lord. 

In this Psalm, elder Muchun Yin preaches on where we find our refuge. Peter preaches a portion of this Psalm in Acts chapter 2, showing us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Psalm. Therefore, Jesus was the refugee that left the glory of heaven to sacrifice himself to redeem us from our sin. And the result of his sacrifice is eternal pleasure at the right hand of the Father. Likewise, we must als...

David wrote Psalm 24 to celebrate the Lord as the King of Glory. The Creator-God is the King of Glory and has come down to dwell in the midst of the city of man. How do we respond to him? Listen as elder Tim Carpenter preaches on this Psalm of celebration.